The closed group, formed by The SUN’s regular contributor Rodelia Villar only five months ago, now counts about 15,000 members, which testifies to how important cooking is to a domestic worker’s job.
As Rodelia said in a previous article on the group, the challenge faced by many is the rather limited budget given to a domestic worker, who often has to prepare up to five dishes per meal. Add to this is the difficulty of learning new Chinese dishes to vary the food served each day.Members of the It’s All About Food page learn not just new recipes, but also ways of reaching out to each other from kitchens all over Hong Kong. In this sense, it has helped domestic workers cope with one of their main tasks in a way that cook books and cooking lessons could only manage to achieve in a limited way.
Posted is an interesting question raised in the page by a member: How to cook a half a slice of pumpkin.
The responses were:
Mhey Coloma Leonen: “Steam mo with pork ribs and black beans”.
Told that the employer didn’t like steamed food, Hanz Abello said: “Fry mo sis, with minced meat. Cut mo into cubes, then marinate mo lang (with) minced meat.
Adelaida Mayuga gave a more comprehensive recipe: “Marinate the pork ribs, then fry with minced garlic and add some black beans. Put enough water (and boil) until tender. Lastly, put the cut pumpkin or squash and cook until soft but not soggy. Happy eating.”
Another suggestion came from Rosalinda Lopez who said, “Ginisa sa lean pork with chu hoi paste.”
Another suggestion came from Thea Fontamillas Villanueva, “Pumpkin soup, sis”
While the administrator of a sister group, Lovely OFW Corner said: “Fried rice with minced pork and pumpkin. I-cube mo lang ang pumpkin at i-steam for 5 minutes, then ihalo.
Lorelie Lhen suggested a dish familiar to many Filipinos: “Try mo lutong Pinoy, kalabasa na may sitaw. Hope magustuhan nila”.
Finally, Marlyn Crisologo came up with two options:: “Igisa mo lang sa bawang, lagyan mo ng asin at asukal, ok na iulam.”
Another suggestion was: ‘Pwede ring pula ng itlog na maalat.Tadtarin mo ng pinong pino. Tapos i-fy mo muna yung kalabasa – dapat luto nang maigi, ha – pagkatapos mag-iwan ka ng konting mantika doon sa pinagprituhan para gamitin sa pag fry ng itlog na pula. Haluin mo ng maigi hanggang magmukhang cream, tapos ilagay mo ang kalabasa (yung apoy mo dapat medium lang). I-mix mo nang mabuti hanggang coated siya, tapos tanggalin mo sa palayok at ihain mo na.
A more complicated recipe was suggested by Marie Rose Balangui, who said: “Nilalagyan ko yan ng flour para maging noodles soup sya. Lagyan ng tubig yung flour at isang itlog. Gamit ang chopsticks ihalo mo lang sya until parang smooth na…wag masyadong basa. Tapos gamit ang bread knife, ia-isa mong kiwain para mag form na parang noodles about 2 inch thick. Cut mo yung pumpkin into squares, parang pang pakbet, at unahin mong iluto. Lagyan ng minced ginger, minced onion leaves at minced garlic. I fry mo sya tapos lagyan ng hoisin sauce, mga 2 spoons, tapos lagyan ng tubig na pang soup. Kapag malapit nang maluto ang pumpkin ilagay mo uung flour a 2 spoon.tpos lagyan n ng tubig n pang soup if malapit n maluto pumpkin ilagay n ung flour.
Cande Sanclaia gave the shortest instruction: “Roast”.
Another, Emily Aquino gave the simplest recipe: “I fry ko lang yan with garlic and oyster sauce.”
Below is another yummy dish posted on the page by the admins of Lovely OFW Corner:
Bacon Wrapped Asparagus
Ingredients2 lb fresh asparagus, ends trimmed
12 slices bacon
1/2 c light brown sugar
1/2 c butter
1 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
Procedure:
1) Preheat oven to 400 degrees. (Can be pan-fried if there is no oven)
2) Divide asparagus spears into 12 bundles (3-4 pieces each). Wrap 1 piece of bacon around each bundle, starting 1/2" from bottom of the tips. Secure the bacon-wrapped asparagus with a toothpick. Arrange bundle in a shallow baking pan.
3) Combine brown sugar and remaining ingredients in a medium saucepan; heat mixture to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Pour mixture over asparagus bundles.
4) Bake 25 to 30 minutes or until spears have begun to wilt and the bacon looks fully cooked. Enjoy
