Sunday, September 19, 2010

Kulinarya Cooking Challenge--FILIPINO-SPANISH DISHES

The Philippines was colonized by Spain for 300 years and their influence in Filipino culture is very much felt in food and religion--I don't want to talk about religion, because this is a food blog so let's focus on food. Even if the Spanish conquistadores have left for many many years, they have left an indelible mark on Filipino cuisine, many of our food have Spanish names and we have very similar dishes. Whereas in classic European cooking they use mirepoix which is a combination of carrots, onions and celery, we use tomatoes, onions and garlic which has been passed on to us by our Spanish colonizers. And one very good example of this is Pochero.
For this month's Kulinarya Cooking Challenge, I made Pochero, the Filipinized version of the Spanish Cocido which is a very similar stew made of chickpeas, potatoes and meat. When I was growing up, we didn't really cook pochero a lot because everyone wanted Nilaga which was a simpler stew made by boiling meat, cabbage, beans and potatoes--kind of like pochero but without the chickpeas and tomato paste. So it was really a treat if pochero was going to be the main dish. That's why I really wanted to cook this, I wasn't disappointed--the combination of the meats and the sausage with the rich tomato soup was delicious!
POCHERO
Chicken thighs 2 pieces
Beef round, cubed 250 grams
Chorizo de Bilbao 1 piece, sliced
Tomatoes, diced 2 pieces
Onions, minced 1 piece
Garlic, minced 3 cloves
Tomato paste, 1 tablespoon
Spring onions, 5 stalks sliced
Red Bellpepper, 1 piece, diced
Cabbage, small quartered
Beans, cleaned and sliced
Potates, 2 boiled
Chickpeas, canned, drained
Salt and Pepper to taste
In a medium pan, cover beef and chicken with enough water and bring to a boil with the spring onions. Cook until beef is tender. The chicken may be taken out first to prevent it from getting too soft and breaking apart. Strain the broth and save for later. Set aside the meats.
In another pan, saute tomatoes, onions and garlic until onions are translucent and the mixture is fragrant. Add the tomato paste and cook for 1 minute, add the sliced sausages also. Pour in the strained broth. Add the meats and let it simmer. Add the vegetables, season with salt and pepper. Do not overcook the vegetables. Serve hot with rice.
Kulinarya was started by a group of Filipino foodies living in Sydney, who are passionate about the Filipino culture and its colorful cuisine.
Each month, we will showcase along with their family recipes. By sharing these recipes, we hope you find the same passion and love for Filipino food as we do.




15 comments:

♥peachkins♥ said...

Pochero is my favorite dish!

Annie said...

pochero is true comfort food!

Anonymous said...

wow pochero! :) thanks for posting the recipe. this reminds me of our old kitchen

A cupcake or two said...

I do love Pochero. Its so delicious. My mums version is a little sweet. Its so hearty and homely. Nice dish for Kulinarya,

Trisha said...

I haven't had pochero in a very long time! I remember it's always eaten during very special occasion :)

Confession Nook said...

Yum-O! reminds me of my uncles who make the best pochero i have ever eaten in my life... lovely dish and crisp picture! =)

Unknown said...

Great recipe. I never had this before but it does look familiar :D. I can't wait to try this.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for sharing such a wonderful recipe! Loveing the Kulinarya cooking club. I learnt so many new dishes.

Caroline said...

I love pochero and haven't had this in a long time. It's getting cool here now so I think it's time to make some.

Anonymous said...

Photography wise I give you a ten, just love how the color coordination work so well with your Pochero. And the addition of green vegetables on the right just makes the photo so outstanding!

Sawadee from bangkok,
Kris

Olive said...

that looks sooo delicious..I've never tried cooking pochero with tomato sauce, thanks for sharing your recipe :)

Chef Bee said...

This looks like a bowl of comfort. Thanks for sharing.

Plan B

Jeannie said...

THis looks like a dish I would enjoy very much!

Cherrie Pie said...

your pochero looks delish. YUM

cusinera said...

Thanks for the recipe, never tried the dish yet...with this September theme, I realize I haven't tasted a large amount of Spanish/Filipino dishes yet.