Domesticated: The Jester-in-Exile's Lazy Sunday Dinner

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(This post is sponsored by a DigitalFilipino Club Ad for Value Hotels in the Philippines. I may not cook at the level of their chefs, but I can hold my own in my own kitchen.)

Despite my being slender, I love food. Of course, in this day and age and country, it's can be rather difficult to fix up a good meal.

Still, one does one's best... and I daresay, nothing beats the home cooking of a Kafagway kid who's lived on his lonesome for nearly a decade (except the home cooking of his mother, naturally).

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Our lazy Sunday dinner was worth a no more than a hundred fifty pesos, and was good for four (or two of me), and it takes just about half an hour to fix up on a two-burner gas stove and a bachelor's basic cook set.

Taters and Onions in Beef Broth/ Beef in Ginger and Bell Pepper (with innapoy -- we're Pinoys, after all)

Ingredients:
1/4 kg side of beef
1/4 kg red bell peppers (medium)
1/4 kg green bell peppers (medium)
1/4 kg potatoes (small)
1/4 kg red onions (small)
1/4 kg white onions (medium)
2 stalks of celery (small)
2 stalks of leeks (small)
1 clove of garlic (small)
1/2 piece of ginger (small)
salt, black pepper, cayenne pepper, vinegar, soy sauce

No, the laptop is not a cooking utensil.
Procedure:

1. Slice the side of beef into half. One of the halves should be sliced into thin strips, the other half sliced into bite-sized chunks.

2. Marinate the beef strips in vinegar, soy sauce and cayenne pepper. Set aside for the moment.

Now, don't forget, ramasenyo daytoy karne. If you don't squeeze and squish the beef in the marinade, you won't get much taste later.
3. Start preparations for the taters and onions on beef broth mix. Mince half the clove of garlic, julienne half of the red onions, and quarter two-thirds of the white onions. Chop the soft part of the celery stems, and shred the celery leaves. Chop up the leeks.

I wish I had better knives. Oh well.
4. Peel the potatoes. If the potatoes are medium or big, quarter them.

This soup dish is a quickie, so the taters must be small enough to be cooked quickly.
5. Start the broth. Saute the garlic, red onions, and the celery stems in a pot. Start the rice (in a separate pot, you mo-ran! Heh heh.)

6. Add the beef chunks and brown them slightly. When done, add two Taz mugs of water, salt and black pepper to taste, and the chunks of beef. Simmer over a low flame.

7. When the beef becomes tender, add two more mugs of water and the potatoes.

8. While the potatoes are cooking, shred the ginger, julienne the remaining garlic and onions, chop up the rest of the leeks, chop and shred the rest of the celery. Set aside.

Yes, I happen to very VERY good with my hands. Haha.
9. When the potatoes are half-done, add the quartered half onions and the leeks (not the leeks you just chopped up, the leeks for the soup dish, jeez). The rice should be done about now (assuming you know what you're doing), and you can take it off the stove now.

10. When the potatoes are done, sprinkle the shredded celery on the soup. You can turn off that burner then.

11. On a saucepan, saute the remaining garlic and the shredded ginger.

12. Add the remaining onions, celery stems, and leeks. Leave the shredded celery for later.

13. Add the beef strips, a bit of salt and pepper, a dash of the marinade mix, and cook at low heat.

14. When the beef strips are half done, add the bell peppers. Cook for about seven minutes more (just don't overcook the bell peppers), and then sprinkle the shredded celery.

15. You're done. Set the table.

Ah, the life.

The taters and onions in beef broth is best with the traditional toyomansi mix, although patis and calamansi is pretty good too; you won't need sili with the dip because the beef in ginger and bell pepper is a bit spicy. Oh, and since this is a lazy Sunday dinner, don't forget the Coke 1.5L.

Gotta love Sunday afternoons.

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Refueled for the fray.



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