[Addendum: I keep wondering who in our community would be qualified to write this book. I don't think it's me. I have been told someone is writing a book on Filipino American "taste," but I don't know exactly what this writer's project or thesis is.]
On the recurring theme of my Americanizations of Filipino foods, and thinking on Sunny's interest in how traditional Filipino dishes change with generations of geographical movement/settlement and changing palates and palettes, yesterday evening's meal included mixed salad greens in a spicy peanut vinaigrette, chicken estofado (on top of steamed white rice, of course), and for dessert, ginataang halo-halo.
"Estofado" is a Spanish term for "stew"? I think I have always known of estofado as a variation on adobo, and maybe I'm wrong, but the process feels similar enough. I've been told that the main difference is the addition of potatoes, sugar, and a whole cinnamon stick while simmering. I used locally grown new potatoes; I think the potatoes' red skins make the estofado visually interesting.
I already include a bit of Turbinado sugar in my chicken adobo, and this is because I really don't have a taste for maasim. Or I just can't settle on a proper vinegar. Or I don't have a taste for Filipino vinegars: palm or coconut. I have been making adobo with rice vinegar and Japanese or Korean soy sauce (I don't know if the soy sauces make a difference, or whether Filipino soy sauce is a unique thing), and I know of folks who've cooked adobo with balsamic vinegar. I can't bring myself to do this. Not yet, at least.
So chicken estofado then, is something like stewed chicken braised with sugar. I stewed cubes of boneless, skinless breast and new potatoes in rice vinegar, soy sauce, cracked black pepper, bay leaves, crushed garlic cloves, a whole Mexican cinnamon stick, and a more substantial amount of Turbinado sugar, in a newly seasoned cast iron Dutch oven, and afterwards, did a reduction of the fat-less sauce with a little unsalted butter. Not fuckin bad at all, though I keep thinking my mom would be disapproving. Oscar and Sunny seemed just fine with it.
On the ginataang halo-halo (you know, I ought to start taking pictures of my Filipino food experiments). Admittedly, I am more of a fan of ginataang bilo-bilo, just lots of gooey malagkit (or Mochiko) balls and tapioca/sago stewed in sweet, thick and warm coconut milk. I am also a fan of the all-maíz variety. Ginataang (root word: gata) is total cold/glum weather comfort food. Sunny asked from where ginataang originates, and I think it's Southeast Asian.
The inclusion of chopped fresh plantain and langka (jackfruit) really adds a nice tangy to the sweet. I am not a fan of the yams, but Oscar is. We did see actual ube and taro in the 99 Ranch produce section, but I am good with going in moderation on the tubers. I do not know that we would have been able to find fresh langka anywhere in our part of the Bay Area (I think maybe the Union City Filipino grocery stores, Magat and all, might've surprised me), so I figured it was reasonable enough to go with the jarred variety.
Fresh langka, if my memory serves me correctly, does have a tart un-syruped sweet, and I prefer it un-syruped like that. We'd bought some in an open air market near Lake Taal when I was last in the Philippines, and I watched my aunt oil her bare hands and then proceed to take the fruit apart. I've also had Vietnamese freeze-dried jackfruit chips, which taste like nothing is added to the fruit.
So there's that. I am thinking that next, I may want to discover the difference(s) between pochero and cocido, since Christmas is happening soon.
Now, what have we learned about Filipino food palates and palettes in this West Oakland sexy loft kitchen?
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Anyway, next up on yesterday evening's film viewing selection: Akira Kurosawa's Rhapsody in August, which I'd resisted watching all this time due to the appearance of one Richard Gere as the Hawaii-born Hapa Nisei nephew of a Nagasaki survivor. Now I realize my Richard Gere discrimination was completely unfair. More on this soon.
