Cooking Oxtails Kare Kare for Our Christmas Eve Dinner This Year

 

My daughter Ditas gave me oxtails the other day. We plan on cooking it this Christmas Eve using her Instant Pot to soften to oxtails in a very short time.

I was looking for a good recipe in the Internet and I found the following from Panlasangpinoy.com website. Here is the recipe for your information. 

Ingredients

• 2 ½ lbs. Oxtail
• 1 Knorr Pork Cube
• 2 bunches baby bokchoy or pechay
• 1 medium Chinese eggplant sliced
• 10 pieces snake beans sitaw, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 1 small fresh banana blossom puso ng saging, sliced
• ¾ cups annatto water ½ cup annatto seeds soaked in ¾ cups water
• ¾ cup peanut butter
• ½ cup ground peanut
• ¼ cup cornstarch
• ½ cup bagoong alamang
• 1 medium yellow onion chopped
• 3 cloves garlic crushed
• 4 to 6 cups water
• 3 tablespoons cooking oil

Instructions

• Heat oil in a cooking pot.
• Saute garlic and onion.
• Once the onion becomes soft, saute the Oxtail until light brown.
• Pour water into the the pot. Let boil.
• Add Knorr Beef Cube. Stir. Cover and cook between low to medium heat until the oxtail becomes tender. Note: This will take around 2 to 2 1/2 hours for conventional cooking, and 30 to 40 minutes if a pressure cooker is used.
• Add peanut butter and ground peanuts. Stir.
• Pour annatto water. Cook for 3 minutes.
• Combine cornstarch and 1/2 cup cold water. Stir. Pour the mixture into the pot. Stir until the sauce gets thicker.
• Add banana blossoms. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes.
• Add eggplant and snake beans (sitaw). Cook for 5 minutes.
• Put the bok choy into the pot. Stir. Cover and cook for 2 minutes.
• Transfer to a serving dish. Serve with bagoong alamang.
• Share and enjoy!

Source: https://panlasangpinoy.com/oxtail-kare-kare-recipe-peanut-stew/ 

Watch the Video on How to Cook Oxtail Kare-Kare

Differences Between Filipino Menudo versus the Mexican Menudo

Filipino Menudo( stew) - May be made with pork, beef, goat or chicken.
 

Menudo, also known as ginamay (Cebuano: "[chopped into] smaller pieces"), is a traditional stew from the Philippines made with pork and sliced liver in tomato sauce with carrots and potatoes. 

Unlike the Mexican dish of the same name, it does not use tripe or red chili sauce. 

Mexican Menudo with tripe and pigs hock/feet in red chili sauce. To make this dish taste like my tripe recipe in the Philippines, I add garbanzo beans and tomato sauce to the above dish.
 

Pinoy Menudo is made with garlic, onions, tomatoes, pork, liver (pork or beef), diced potatoes, raisins, diced carrots, green bell peppers, soy sauce, vinegar or calamansi, and tomato sauce, and seasoned with salt and pepper.

It is one of the most common offerings in carinderias or karinderyas (small eateries that offer budget-friendly meals to local residents) and is also commonly served in potlucks or buffets due to the inexpensive ingredients used in the dish.

 How to Cook Filipino Pork Menudo

 

How to Cook Mexican Menudo

Pleasant Memories of Filipino-Style Chicken-Macaroni Salad?

I have pleasant memories of Filipino-style Chicken-Macaroni Salad. This dish is one of Macrine's(RIP) favorite dish that she loved to prepare in almost every party and special occasions when she was still alive.  Macrine was my spouse for over 63 years until her death last August. Here's her recipe: 

INGREDIENTS

• 500g macaroni*
• 300ml Philadelphia cream cheese
  
• 250g chicken breast
• 100ml condensed milk (optional)-omit if you do not want it to be too sweet
  
• 1 cup fresh pineapple, diced
• 3/4 cup red apples, cubed
• 3/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup raisins (optional)
  
• 1/4 cup sweet relish
  
• Ground salt and pepper to taste

*Aside from macaroni, you can use other types of short cut pasta. Here are some examples: Mostaccioli, Penne, Rigatoni, Cellentani, and Rotini.

METHOD

1. Bring a medium-sized pot of salted water to a boil. Once boiling, add in the chicken breasts and cook for about 15 minutes, or until cooked all the way through depending on the size. Once done, drain and set aside to completely cool down.
2. Meanwhile, mix the condensed milk, cream, mayonnaise, salt, and pepper in a large mixing bowl. Taste and adjust accordingly to your liking. Set aside.
3. Then, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Once boiling, add the macaroni and cook according to packet instructions. Once done, drain and transfer to a large mixing bowl together with the dressing.
4. When the chicken breasts have completely cooled down, shred the chicken meat and add it into the mixing bowl together with the macaroni.
5. Add all the other remaining ingredients and toss thoroughly until well combined. Cover the bowl with cling wrap and refrigerate for about and hour or two before serving.
6. Serve chilled and enjoy!

The above recipe is similar to the following recipe below:

https://amcarmenskitchen.com/2015/12/14/filipino-style-chicken-macaroni-salad/ 

Meanwhile enjoy this Hot and Sour Soup, I purchased from our local Chinese restaurant via Doordash the other day.