PANAGBENGA SHAWARMA Road IN BLOOM

PANAGBENGA SHAWARMA Road IN BLOOM

Don’t get me wrong, I like shawarma. In fact I love shawarma. The sweet taste of pita bread  combined with the mouth watering griiled beef and spicy hot garlic sauce simply makes me a shawarma fanatic. In a previous blog post I did last January, one item in  my wish list includes the improvement of shawarma sauces not to be cheap and watery. So far, those that I tasted were saucy goodilicious!  I There were about 20 or more shawarma machines all over the Panagbenga Flower Festival event and people are just lining up to buy. Believe it or not, some visitors go to Session rd., just for the fun of eating shawarma.

The Langgonisa of Enriquez and Alabanza are a crowd favorite too!  People wait for their turn to sit down in these booths just to savor the taste of there specialized langonisas.

Next year I’m already thinking of having my own shawarma machine too!  Watch out for it!
ENJOY THE PICS!

 

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

 

mmm... nakakagutom!

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Napakasarap Ng Panagbenga 2010 Sa Session Road!

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Feast Your Eyes With The best Adobo Dishes In The World!

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KAMOTE CAN SAVE THE PHILIPPINE ECONOMY.

For centuries, our Filipino ancestors survived eating "kamote" or sweet potato. Life back then was simple and so is the staple food. Today, we grew up eating rice, junkfood, fastfood, instant food and so many kinds of food. The good old "kamote" is now branded as "poor man's food" but this is about to change soon...

Our very own kamote is an excellent source of starch and contains huge amounts of carotenoids. Kamote’s deep orange-yellow color proclaims to everyone that they’re high in the antioxidant beta carotene. Sweet potatoes are superb sources of fiber, vitamins B6, C and E, folate, and potassium. It is these and other phytochemicals that make sweet potatoes a potent anti-cancer food. 

And like all vegetables, they’re fat-free and low in calories — one small sweet potato has just 54 calories. And hear this: Sweet potatoes may reduce your risk for lung cancer, especially good news to the millions of Filipino smokers and ex-smokers out there. Cooking-wise, it’s best to eat them boiled, mashed or baked.(Philstar.com)

Below is a very good article and it is worth reading and sharing.
Title: "The underrated kamote can save our country"
Column: AS I WRECK THIS CHAIR
Author: William M. Esposo
Publisher: Philippine Star
Date Published: Thursday, April 17, 2008

Too many wrong instructions have been programmed into the Filipino psyche. If we want to move forward, we must unlearn those things that bring us down. Our counterproductive mindsets prevent us from sustaining whatever beachheads we have accomplished. We are among the hardest to convince when it comes to retooling ourselves and adopting scientifically- validated new methods. We're afraid to venture beyond our comfort zone. We are a nation blessed with tremendous natural resources and yet many Filipinos suffer from hunger and malnutrition. While it's true that the nation's wealth is cornered by only a few Filipinos, we must not lose sight of the fact  that a good part of our malnutrition problem is also self- inflicted. Rampant malnutrition could have been significantly
checked had the government taken time to promote food alternatives that could even provide better nutrition than the usually consumed staples such as rice. Ignorance, not just lack of money, causes malnutrition. Captive to our comfort zone, our people either do not know their food options or simply refuse to consider the other foods that are available to them. The underrated kamote illustrates my point. Do you know that kamote far exceeds the nutrition and health values of rice? Here are the benefits of substituting rice with kamote:

1. Kamote is more filling and suppresses hunger pangs longer. It is also cheaper than rice.

2. Unlike rice, kamote is so easy to grow. It grows in backyards with or without fertilizers.
Local government executives can provide their poor communities with idle government land for planting kamote which the entire community
can share.

3. Unlike rice which needs to be eaten with a dish, kamote tastes good and can be eaten by itself. Thus, substituting rice with kamote saves money for other needs.

4. Rice cannot match the nutritional values of kamote. Because rice converts to sugar in the body, the Philippines registers as a top producer of diabetics in the world. The poor tends to load up on rice and less on the dish which are more expensive. That makes them vulnerable to diabetes, an ailment known in developed countries as a rich man's disease.

5. The nutritional values of a 3 oz baked kamote are:
calories 90, fat 0g, saturated fat 0 g, cholesterol 0 mg,carbohydrate 21 g, protein 2g, dietary fiber 3 g, sodium 36 mg, vitamin A 19,218 IU, folic acid 6 micrograms, pantothenic acid 1 mg,vitamin B6 <1 mg,vitamin C 20 mg, vitamin E 1 mg,calcium 38 mg, manganese 1 mg, carotenoids 11,552mcg, potassium 475 mg andmagnesium 45 mg. Compare that to a 100 g serving of white rice with:calories 361 kcal, water 10.2 g, total fat 0.8 g,dietary fiber 0.6 g,calcium 8 mg,phosphorous 87 mg, potassium 111 mg, sodium 31 mg, vitamin B1 0.07 mg, vitamin B2 0.02 mg, niacin 1.8 g, protein 6 g and carbohydrates 82 g.

6. Too much rice consumption can make you sick but kamote can bring you to
health and keep away some health problems. These have been proved medically.

In a medical documentary I watched recently on KBS World (the South Korean TV Network), I was awed by the results of the research the Koreans conducted on the nutritional and medicinal benefits of kamote (which they refer to as sweet potato). Few Filipinos realize that South Korean doctors are among the finest in the world. The Korean doctors have accomplished many key breakthroughs in the field of medicine. It was a Korean doctor working in Germany who was able to develop the successful liver transplantation protocol (and the Germans almost placed him in jail for having experimented at home with live animals). The Korean doctors enjoy the benefit of knowing both the Eastern and the Western methods to tackling diseases. They may be low key but their level of medical technology is world class. In that Korean medical documentary I watched (which I followed through the English subtitles), they presented the research findings on people with established health problems who were placed on a kamote/sweet potato diet. Believe it or not ? Kamote lowers hypertension, bad cholesterol and even blood sugar when eaten as SUBSTITUTE TO RICE! The purple sweet potato (kamote) is particularly effective for lowering hypertension. Not only that, the Korean medical documentary credits the sweet potato (kamote) as high fiber and is one of the best foods that one can eat to prevent cancer! For those who are only impressed by US doctors, listen to this: the North Carolina Stroke Association, American Cancer Society, and the American Heart Association have all endorsed the sweet potato for its disease prevention and healing qualities.The Americans, the South Koreans ? both progressive nations ? have raised the kamote to a high pedestal. Many of them even call the kamote a "super food that heals."  And just how do we Filipinos regard the kamote? Remember how we like to call a loser as one who is nangangamote (Filipino term for lagging behind)?Truly, unless we unlearn many things, we will, as a nation, always be nangangamote.

KAMOTE Health Benefits in scientific form:

How sweet it is for your health to eat sweet potatoes! Not only do they taste like dessert, here's the latest research on sweet potatoes surprising benefits.

Unique Proteins with Potent Antioxidant Effects

Sweet potato contain unique root storage proteins that have been observed to have significant antioxidant capacities. In one study, these proteins had about one-third the antioxidant activity of glutathione-one of the body's most impressive internally produced antioxidants. Although future studies are needed in this area, count on these root proteins to help explain sweet potatoes' healing properties.

A Sweet Source of Good Nutrition

Our food ranking system also showed sweet potato to be a strong performer in terms of traditional nutrients. This root vegetable qualified as an excellent source of vitamin A (in the form of beta-carotene), a very good source of vitamin C and manganese, and a good source of copper, dietary fiber, vitamin B6, potassium and iron. How do these sweet potato nutrients support our health?

An Antioxidant-Rich, Anti-Inflammatory Food

As an excellent source of vitamin A (in the form of beta-carotene) and a very good source of vitamin C, sweet potatoes have healing properties as an antioxidant food. Both beta-carotene and vitamin C are very powerful antioxidants that work in the body to eliminate free radicals. Free radicals are chemicals that damage cells and cell membranes and are associated with the development of conditions like atherosclerosis, diabetic heart disease, and colon cancer. This may explain why beta-carotene and vitamin C have both been shown to be helpful for preventing these conditions.

Since these nutrients are also anti-inflammatory, they can be helpful in reducing the severity of conditions where inflammation plays a role, such as asthma, osteoarthritis, and rheumatoid arthritis.
In addition, sweet potatoes are a good source of vitamin B6, which is needed to convert homocysteine, an interim product created during an important chemical process in cells called methylation, into other benign molecules. Since high homocysteine levels are associated with an increased risk of heart attack and stroke, having a little extra vitamin B6 on hand is a good idea.

If you or someone you love is a smoker, or if you are frequently exposed to secondhand smoke, then making vitamin A-rich foods, such as sweet potatoes, part of your healthy way of eating, may save your life, suggests research conducted at Kansas State University.

Since the Philippines is an agricultural country, promoting the planting of kamote will help this country cope up with scarcity of basic food.

Rice maybe our staple food but not for long... in the coming decades rootcrops will dominate as the most basic need.

I am not Nostradamus or Madame Auring but I can see the future... KAMOTE will prevail!
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.proooottt.... pprooooot..... ppproooooot....
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THE FRUITS THAT CAN SAVE YOUR LIFE

CATEGORY: WATWATFOOD: GEN. INFO

posted by: humarri @ www.watwatworld.com

It's long but very informative

We all think eating fruits means just buying fruits, cutting it and just popping it into our mouths. It's not as easy as you think. It's important to know how and when to eat.

What is the correct way of eating fruits?

IT MEANS NOT EATING FRUITS AFTER YOUR MEALS! * FRUITS SHOULD BE EATEN ON AN EMPTY STOMACH.

If you eat fruit like that, it will play a major role to detoxify your system, supplying you with a great deal of energy for weight loss and other life activities.

FRUIT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT FOOD. Let's say you eat two slices of bread and then a slice of fruit.. The slice of fruit is ready to go straight through the stomach into the intestines, but it is prevented from doing so.

In the meantime the whole meal rots and ferments and turns to acid. The minute the fruit comes into contact with the food in the stomach and digestive juices, the entire mass of food begins to spoil....

So please eat your fruits on an empty stomach or before your meals! You have heard people complaining - every time I eat watermelon I burp, when I eat durian my stomach bloats up, when I eat a banana I feel like running to the toilet etc - actually all this will not arise if you eat the fruit on an empty stomach. The fruit mixes with the putrefying other food and produces gas and hence you will bloat!

Graying hair, balding, nervous outburst, and dark circles under the eyes all these will NOT happen if you take fruits on an empty stomach.
There is no such thing as some fruits, like orange and lemon are acidic, because all fruits become alkaline in our body, according to Dr Herbert Shelton who did research on this matter.  If you have mastered the correct way of eating fruits, you have the Secret of beauty, longevity, health, energy, happiness and normal weight.

When you need to drink fruit juice - drink only fresh fruit juice, NOT from the cans. Don't even drink juice that has been heated up. Don't eat cooked fruits because you don't get the nutrients at all. You only get to taste. Cooking destroys all the vitamins.

But eating a whole fruit is better than drinking the juice. If you should drink the juice, drink it mouthful by mouthful slowly, because you must let it mix with your saliva before swallowing it. You can go on a 3-day fruit fast to cleanse your body. Just eat fruits and drink fruit juice throughout the 3 days and you will be surprised when your friends tell you how radiant you look!

KIWI: Tiny but mighty. This is a good source of potassium, magnesium, vitamin E & fiber. Its vitamin C content is twice that of an orange.

APPLE: An apple a day keeps the doctor away? Although an apple has a low vitamin C content, it has antioxidants & flavonoids which enhances the activity of vitamin C thereby helping to lower the risks of colon cancer, heart attack & stroke.

STRAWBERRY: Protective Fruit. Strawberries have the highest total antioxidant power among major fruits & protect the body from cancer-causing, blood vessel-clogging free radicals.

ORANGE : Sweetest medicine. Taking 2-4 oranges a day may help keep colds away, lower cholesterol, prevent & dissolve kidney stones as well as lessens the risk of colon cancer.

WATERMELON: Coolest thirst quencher.. Composed of 92% water, it is also packed with a giant dose of glutathione, which helps boost our immune system. They are also a key source of lycopene - the cancer fighting oxidant Other nutrients found in watermelon are vitamin C & Potassium.

GUAVA & PAPAYA: Top awards for vitamin C. They are the clear winners for their high vitamin C content. Guava is also rich in fiber, which helps prevent constipation. Papaya is rich in carotene; this is good for your eyes.

Drinking Cold water after a meal = Cancer! Can u believe this?? For those who like to drink cold water, this article is applicable to you. It is nice to have a cup of cold drink after a meal. However, the cold water will solidify the oily stuff that you have just consumed. It will slow down the digestion. Once this 'sludge' reacts with the acid, it will break down and be absorbed by the intestine faster than the solid food. It will line the intestine. Very soon, this will turn into fats and lead to cancer. It is best to drink hot soup or warm water after a meal.

A serious note about heart attacks HEART ATTACK PROCEDURE': (THIS IS NOT A JOKE!) Women should know that not every heart attack symptom is going to be the left arm hurting. Be aware of intense pain in the jaw line.. You may never have the first chest pain during the course of a heart attack . Nausea and intense sweating are also common symptoms.. Sixty percent of people who have a heart attack while they are asleep do not wake up. Pain in the jaw can wake you from a sound sleep. Let's be careful and be aware. The more we know the better chance we could survive...

A cardiologist says if everyone who gets this mail sends it to 10 people, you can be sure that we'll save at least one life.
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How to prepare a "sosyal" meal good for 5 people with a budget of P150

Because of a basketball match , all of a sudden I have some friends coming over and I had no money and time to prepare for lunch. All I had was P150 in my pocket. So I had to think how to expand my money to cover their hungry stomachs. I went to the "talipapa" or flea market and after 10 minutes I was on my way home to cook. With less than P150 I was able to buy:


Ingredients: 

1. A bundle of Baguio beans, 
2. dried shrimp, 
3. Red bell pepper,
4. Sayote, 
5. Canned corned beef 
6. Two fresh eggs.
7. 3 garlic cloves
8. 1 onion bulb
9. 2 pcs tomatoes


Here's what I did: 

DISH 1
Boil the Sayote, dried shrimp and Baguio beans until all are half cooked. Take it out and drain excess water.

Dish 2
Saute the chopped red bell pepper and tomatoes with garlic and onions, then add boiled shrimp, mix well then add the Baguio beans. 

DISH 3
Simply fry the eggs with the corned beef, make sure the consistency is dry.


A CHEAP BUT DELICIOUS MEAL!

After cooking all three dishes, when you put them all together here is the outcome

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How to cook salted dried fish ( tuyo ) with tomatoes and vegetable on the side

SOSYAL! "Deep fried salted fish with fresh tomatoes and green vegetables on the side plus native vinegar sauce" 

This is a very famous dish for Filipinos. Taken alone, it is somewhat monotonous and boring but if you spice the meal with some combination and presentation, it becomes a luxurious meal. Sometimes, it is the presentation that makes the meal more delicious. Try this one 





I call it: "Deep fried salted fish with fresh tomatoes and green vegetables on the side plus native vinegar sauce"

In Tagalog: "Tuyo kamatis at pechay"

Watwatworld: "Naiprito nga tuyo nalaukan ti kamatis ken nilambung nga petchay"

 

Just fry the salted dried fish 

Slice the tomatoes, put them in a bowl.

Blanche the Vegetable ( any ) or simply soak in hot water for 3 minutes.

THEN YOUR DONE!

A simple dish make deliciously appealing! 

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How to cook ampalaya ( bitter gourd ) with sardines

"freshly chopped bitter gourd sauted with garlic and onion strips topped with sardines and sauce sprinkled with iodized salt"

This is one of my favorite easy to cook dish. Although a lot of people do not appreciate the bitter taste of ampalaya or bitter gourd, they still eat it because of the rising popularity of the vegetable as a good food supplement specially for those who are suffering from diabetes and also for those who would like to clean their blood. A lot of information on the numerous health benefits is already available in the internet.

I call this dish as: "freshly chopped bitter gourd sauted with garlic and onion strips topped with sardines and sauce sprinkled with iodized salt"


In Tagalog: "ginisang ampalaya sa sardinas"

In watwatworld: "inprito nga paria santu nilaukan ti sardinas" 

Ingredients: 

1 bitter gourd ( ampalaya ) medium size
1 small can of sardines ( with thick sauce preffered )
5 pcs garlic cloves chopped
1 pc onion bulb chopped
1/4 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon vegetable oil ( or any cooking oil )
1/3 cup water



Procedure:

1. Saute chopped garlic in hot vegetable oil.
2. Add onions
3. Add bitter gourd ( ampalaya )
4. Add salt
5. Add water and let simmer for 3 minutes
6. Add sardines, mix well, cover, wait for 3 minutes.
7. Done!

That's how easy it is! 

Note: to get the full health benefits of ampalaya, remember the general rule... the bitter, the better! So if you can eat it raw, go ahead. Or do the old ways... just chop the ampalaya in small circles and wash it with hot water for a few minutes (5 minutes) then eat it raw!

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How to cook isang lingo na ulam in one preparation! A budget dish good for a week or more!

EXPERIENCE THE DELICIOUS TASTE OF A CHEAP FILIPINO - ASIAN FOOD THAT IS HEALTHY AND GOOD FOR THE BUDGET! FOR STUDENTS, HOUSEWIVES, OFWS, LABORERS, MANAGERS ETC! VERY EASY TO PREPARE AND COOK!  This video will show you how to prepare a very delicious, healthy and affordable dish-viand-food ( ulam ) that is good for one week or more in a single preparation! This will definitely help in your budget! Very easy to do, very small amount to use and it can go as long as one week!

For more than two decades we have been eating a dish created by my grandmother. It has a good history since it is somewhat considered as a lifesaver during times of hunger. There were times when having a good meal is a luxury so my grandmother had to prepare this cheap dish ( ulam ). But contrary to what she thinks, we are actually waiting for it. It is delicious and it will complete a meal. In fact, you will eat more rice than you are supposed to.  It has a unique taste. For Asians, it is  very good with rice and coffee. For Westerners, it good with tomatoes and  tacos. The taste I can say is universal. The best thing of course is that you can store it up to a month or less depending on how you prepared it.


Remember to store WATWATWEEK  in a cool place, better if you place it inside your refrigerator. If you do not have a cooler, then prepare watwatday instead of a watwatweek.

The ingredients could be found in your local market. Just choose the fresh ones and when it comes to the meat, it does not matter what kind of meat as long as its not human and its minced (grounded).


How much you will cook will depend on how many people will eat. If you are alone or a family of three, the video presented above could last a week, if you are alone, it will last a month. The taste will differ depending on every persons taste buds so you better do a taste test when cooking. If you think it is too salty, adding a little amount of water will do.




WATWATWEEK


Ingredients:

Ginger – 1/8 kilo or 2 big pcs. ( look at the video )

Grounded pork or beef or chicken – ¼ kilo

Dried Salted fish ( tuyo ) – 15-20pcs.

Garlic – 30 cloves

Salt – 2 table spoons

Pepper – ½ table spoon

Chili ( sili ) – 2-5 pcs fresh or dried ( optional )

Vegetable oil – 1 cup


Materials:

Boiling pan, frying pan

3 cups water

Chopping board

Knife

Spoon

Bowl


Procedure:

1.    Put the salted dried fish  in the pan, add the water and let boil for five minutes. Let the fish smoothen a bit. Get it out of the pan, put in a bowl and set aside for the moment to cool down.

2.    Clean the ginger and chop it into very small cubes like the size of the minced meat. The volume(look) of the ginger when chopped  should at least equal the (look) of the meat.

3.    Clean the garlic cloves and chop it also into very small pieces.

4.    Get the boiled fish and using your hands, carefully remove the fish bones and separate the flesh in another bowl. You can cut the flesh into little pieces if you want

5.    When the ingredients are prepared, heat the frying pan and put the vegetable oil.

6.    When the oil is hot, put the chopped garlic cloves, mix well and let stand for 3-5minutes.

7.    Add the minced meat in the pan and mix well with the garlic. Depending on the fire, cook your meat very well.

8.    When the meat is cooked, add the pepper and the salt and mix again. Let stand for  3 minutes.

9.    Add the ginger then mix well. Put the salted dried fish flesh on top of the frying pan and cover the pan. Let it stand for 5 minutes.

10.    Open and mix very well, taste if it suites your tongue.

11.    Let it cool down.

12.    Prepare a clean container. And I mean clean.

13.    Put the cooled watwatweek in the container and store.


You could add watwatweek every time you eat as a dish/viand or a stand alone dish ( ulam ). It is also good to add with tomatoes and use it as a bread filler. In any way, you could experiment.

I love to cook and I have a big arsenal of unique, delicious  and cheap  food preparations. Depending on how this post will do, I may add some more ingredients.

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