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Filipino Chicken Afritada Recipe


Chicken Afritada is one of those special, Spanish-inspired Filipino dishes that are most common during “fiestas”, birthday celebrations, and other special occasions. Just like the mechado and caldereta, this popular Filipino dish is a tomato sauce-based chicken stew dressed with bell peppers, tomatoes, onions, and potatoes. The word “afritada” is actually a Spanish word which means fried. Don’t get the wrong idea, but you don’t actually just fry the chicken and call it Chicken Afritada. Frying the chicken until it’s medium brown is only the first part of the whole Chicken Afritada process.

For this Afritada Recipe, I will use chicken thighs and legs (my favorite chicken part). For the bell peppers, use both red and green bell peppers. I have one secret ingredient though that you will seldom find in other Chicken Afritada Recipes. I always put evaporated milk (I use Carnation Evaporated Milk) when I cook this famous Filipino stew. There are some variations of this recipe like if you prefer to use pork instead of chicken. Either way, the cooking process remains the same.


Here is my Chicken Afritada Recipe. Enjoy cooking!

chicken-afritada-recipe

Ingredients:
  • 1 kilo chicken thighs and drumsticks cut into pieces
  • 5 pcs potatoes- peeled and halved
  • 1 red onion, diced
  • 1 head garlic, minced
  • 1 green bell pepper, sliced into strips
  • 1 red bell pepper, sliced into strips
  • 2 cups pork or chicken stock (broth)
  • 1 cup tomato sauce
  • 2 tbsp of patis (fish sauce) or soy sauce
  • 3 tbsp of cooking oil
  •   1 small can evaporated milk
  •   salt, sugar, black pepper

Cooking Procedure:
  • Sauté garlic and onions in hot oil in a saucepan or pot.
  • Add chicken and fry a little bit until light brown.
  • Pour the tomato sauce and stock. Bring to a boil and allow to simmer for 20 minutes or until the chicken is almost tender.
  • Add potatoes and continue to cook for 10 minutes or until the potatoes are cooked.
  • Add the green & red bell peppers, evaporated milk. Simmer for an additional 2 minutes.
  • Salt, sugar, pepper to taste

Hot Tip:
  • Try to add evaporated milk. It will make your chicken afritada super delicious!
  • You can also semi-fry the potatoes before adding them. 



 For suggestions, cooking tips, and new recipes, feel free to write it in the comments section below.

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Filipino Beef Mechado Recipe


My Grandpa's birthday celebration will never be complete without his favorite dish, the Beef Mechado. Mechado is a truly Filipino beef dish. Although, it is traditionally considered as a Spanish dish, the slight variation of this famous dish and the addition of some ingredients like the soy sauce and calamansi juice to the marinade gives the Beef Mechado its original, flavorful, and distinct pinoy taste.

Although, the Beef Mechado Recipe that I learned from my Grandma has a lot more ingredients added, the secret to a very savory and delicious Beef Mechado is in the beef stock. Put it this way, preparing your beef stock is a very basic skill that you should learn and be familiar with if you want to have the best tasting Beef Mechado.

Here is the beef mechado recipe I use. Enjoy cooking and have fun!

filipino-beef-mechado-recipe

 Ingredients:
  • 1 kilo of beef cut into chunks
  • 1/8 - 1/4 kilo of pork fat cut into strips
  • 4 onions, peeled and quartered
  • 5 medium potatoes, quartered (optional: fried)
  • 1 medium sized carrot, sliced in 1/2" sections
  • 2 red bell pepper, sliced
  • 2 cups beef stock or 2 bouillon beef cubes dissolved in water
  • 3 bay leaves (laurel leaves)
  • 1/4 cup vinegar or calamansi juice
  • 2 cups tomato sauce and 1/2 cup tomato paste
  • 1 cup soy sauce
  • salt & pepper to taste

Cooking Procedure:
  • Cut a slice on the beef chunks and insert a pork strip in the middle (mitsa)
  • In a casserole or sauce pan, combine the beef (with the pork strips in it), tomato sauce, soy sauce, bay leaves and beef stock. Bring to a boil and simmer until the beef is almost tender
  • Add the vinegar or calamansi juice and let boil for a minute
  • Add the potatoes, onions, carrots, and bell pepper
  • Let simmer until potatoes and carrots are cooked, stir occasionally to thicken sauce

Hot Tip:
  • Try frying the potatoes first before you add them in. I've done this many times and it even tastes better.
  • You can also sauté the beef chunks in garlic and onions first before adding the tomato sauce, beef stock, etc.
  • Try to experiment using spaghetti sauce (Italian or Sweet Blend) rather than plain tomato sauce. 



Have you tried this beef mechado recipe? If you have your own mechado recipe or other beef recipes that you would like to share with us, feel free to write it in the comments section below.
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My Nilagang Baka Recipe


Nilagang Baka or "boiled beef" as literally translated is an all-time favorite indeed. I know a friend who owns this famous Nilagang Baka specialty restaurant in Bacolod City where they serve this famous Filipino dish twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Their peak hours are from 7pm till dawn. I had the chance to talk with this friend of mine and eventually asked him for his Nilagang Baka Secret Recipe. He did not give me his recipe list literally but advised me that the secret for a very delicious and savory Nilagang Baka is in the beef stock. Preparing your beef stock may be a little bit time consuming but have patience and your sacrifices will be rewarded.

Here is a nilagang baka recipe that you should try out.

filipino-nilagang-baka-recipe
Ingredients:
  • 1 kilo beef bones, chopped, 1/4 beef brain (for beef stock)
  • 1 kilo beef cut into 1 1/2" cubes
  • 5-8 potatoes cut same size as the beef
  • 1 bundle of pechay, cut into 2 parts (optional)
  • 1 small or medium sized cabbage cut quarterly
  • 4 onions, diced
  • 1 head garlic, minced
  • 4-5 tablespoons patis or fish sauce / soy sauce
  • 1 liter of water
  • 2 chili red peppers
  • 3 tablespoons cooking oil
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 tablespoon vinegar

Cooking Procedure:
  • In a sauce pan or pot, simmer beef bones and brain for about 45 minutes and remove scum that rises to the surface. Then set aside the beef stock.
  • On another pot, heat oil and sauté garlic and onions.
  • Add the beef then sauté for another 3-5 minutes.
  • Add water just enough to cover the beef then bring to a boil.
  • Simmer until beef is tender.
  • Add in more water if it dries up before the beef is cooked.
  • Pour in your beef stock, potatoes, vinegar, patis, chili peppers
  • Continue to simmer until potatoes are cooked.
  • Add the pechay and cabbage. Do not overcook the vegetables.
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Hot Tip:
  • Make sure to prepare your beef stock well. Bones and bones with marrows inside are best.
  • Add a little patis(fish sauce) and calamansi(calamondin) to desired taste.



Have you tried this Nilagang Baka Recipe? If you have your own unique recipe that you would like to share with us or if you would like to be a contributor for this site please send me a message here.
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Filipino Pork Dinuguan Recipe


My Dinuguan Recipe consists of pig's blood, pig's meat and intestines. There is a variant to this which uses chicken's blood and intestines instead of pork. In some parts of the Philippines, they even say that chicken dinuguan is more delicious than pork dinuguan. For me, both variants are very savory and delicious but my personal choice for my Dinuguan Recipe would be pork.

Dinuguan is a Filipino stew of pig's blood generally, and is a household favorite of Filipinos. The name "dinuguan" comes from the Filipino word "dugo" which means blood.

Here is a simple dinuguan recipe that I recommend. Enjoy cooking!

sarap-filipino-dinuguan-recipe

Ingredients:
  • 1/2 kilo pork meat & pork belly (diced)
  • 1/4 kilo pork liver (diced)
  • 1/4 kilo pork intestines
  • 1 small head of garlic (minced)
  • 1 small/medium onion (minced)
  • 1 thumb-sized ginger, minced
  • 3 pieces laurel leaves
  • 3 tablespoons oil
  • 1/2 cup vinegar or 1 pouch sinigang mix good for 1 kilo
  • 3 tablespoons patis (fish sauce) or 3 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 2 cups pig's blood
  • 4 long green peppers
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Cooking Procedure:
  • Store pig's blood in the fridge until needed.
  • Sauté garlic, ginger, onion in hot oil in a sauce pan or pot.
  • Add the meat & pork belly, liver & intestines, laurel leaves and sauté for another 3-5 minutes
  • Pour in water just enough to cover the meat. Bring to a boil and simmer until pork meat is tender.
  • Add in more water if it dries up before the pork is cooked or tender.
  • Add the vinegar or sinigang mix
  • Add the patis or fish sauce, salt, green peppers and simmer for another 2-3 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, take the pig's blood out of the fridge and put in a clean bowl and mash out or squeeze with your hands the jelly-like blood you see.
  • Pour the mashed blood into the pot then bring to a boil.
  • Simmer in medium heat for about 5 minutes while stirring.
  • Season with sugar, salt, black pepper to taste.

Hot Tip:
  • For a rich, thick, and saucy dinuguan, make sure that the pig's blood is pure. No water added.



 Have you tried this recipe? Give us a feedback in the comments section below.
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Filipino Pancit Palabok Recipe


Every time we stop by a fast food like Jollibee, my sister orders nothing except her favorite Pancit Palabok. One time, I suggested "Why don't you surprise your friends by preparing and cooking your very own Pancit Palabok?" So we called up our Aunt Mae and asked for her secret Pancit Palabok Recipe. Aunt Mae used to own a restaurant and also does all the cooking. On that same weekend, we visited Aunt Mae and my sister had a crash course on Pancit Palabok Recipes.

The Pancit Palabok Recipe I have prepared here is the same recipe used by our Aunt Mae. Try it out!

filipino-pancit-palabok-recipe

Ingredients:
  • 1/2 kilo miki noodles or bihon noodles
  • 1/2 kilo small crabs
  • 5 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 2 tablespoons of atchuete seeds or oil
  • 2 tablespoons of patis or fish sauce
  • 4 tablespoons of cornstarch, dissolved in water
  • 1 teaspoon of monosodium glutamate (MSG)
  • 1 1/2 cups of water

For the palabok toppings:
  • Tinapa flakes (smoked fish), you can also use canned tuna flakes
  • Cooked shrimps, shelled
  • Adobong pusit (adobo squid rings), sliced into rings
  • Pork chicharon, grounded
  • Spring onions, chopped
  • Hard boiled eggs, sliced
  • Fried garlic, minced
  • Fresh calamansi (lemon), sliced

Cooking Procedure:
  • Extract the crab fat and meat then set aside.
  • Pound crab to extract crab juice on 1 1/2 cups of water
  • On a pan, sauté garlic and onions until golden brown then add crab fat, crab meat, 1 1/2 cups of crab juice, patis and MSG. Bring to a boil and simmer for 10 minutes.
  • Add the corn starch and continue to simmer while constantly stirring until thick.
  • Put miki noodles or bihon noodles in a strainer and dip in boiling water for 5 minutes or until cooked.
  • Lay drained noodles on a platter and pour the pancit palabok sauce. Garnish with toppings and serve.
 
Hot Tips:
  • Put some chicharon or pork cracklings for your toppings.



What can you say about this Pancit Palabok Recipe? Give us your feedback below.
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Filipino Adobong Pusit Recipe


Adobong Pusit or also known as "Squid Adobo" is a very popular Filipino Seafood and an all-time favorite of Filipinos. I remember like 15 years ago when my sister and I hated this food so much that we cried and begged for fried chicken instead. But now, what can I say, we just love it!

Adobong Pusit is a native and a favorite food of every Filipino household because it is very easy to cook and prepare just like the pork adobo and the chicken adobo.

Here is my grandma's adobong pusit recipe. Have fun! Try it out!

filipino-adobong-pusit-recipe

Ingredients:
  • 3/4 kilo small to medium sized Pusit (Squid)
  • 1 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1 small bay leaf
  • 1/4 tsp. ground pepper
  • 3-4 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/3 cup vinegar
  • 1 tsp. sugar
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 3 tbsp. cooking oil
  • 1 small onion thinly sliced
  • 2 pcs. red hot chili pepper (optional)

Cooking Procedure:
  • Pull out the transparent (plastic-like) backbone from the body and its "teeth".
  • You may pull out the tentacles if you wish to separate it from its body (optional)
  • Wash the squids.
  • Sauté garlic and onions in a saucepan
  • Add squid with the vinegar, ground pepper, salt, sugar, bay leaf, and water.
  • Cook over low heat until squid is tender. Do not overcook.
  • You may add a little more salt or sugar depending on your taste.

Hot Tip:
  • For a hot and spicy adobong pusit, cut small pieces of red chili peppers and sauté together with the garlic and onions.  



Do you have recipes to share? Feel free to add your own adobong pusit recipe or other seafood recipes at the comments section below.
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Filipino Beef Caldereta Recipe


This Beef Caldereta Recipe that I'm sharing with you was my Grandpa's. He was an expert cook just like my Grandma. They all had their own unique cooking styles and specialties. Grandpa's specialty was the ever-popular Beef Caldereta. I guess I can say that no one in the house does it better than the "Old Man". My Grandpa's Beef Caldereta Recipe wasn't different at all with other Beef Calderetas except for one thing. His Beef Caldereta had one secret ingredient- San Miguel Beer. Yeah, you got it right. He puts a little beer when cooking Beef Caldereta!

The Beef Caldereta is also a tomato sauce-based dish just like the beef mechado and the chicken afritada. It was introduced to us by the Spaniards and eventually became one of the household favorite of Filipinos. There are many versions of the Beef Caldereta Recipe but originally the first caldereta used goat meat instead of beef. Others use pork or chicken. Beef is the most popular though.

 Here is my Grandpa's Beef Caldereta Recipe. Enjoy!

beef-caldereta-recipe

Ingredients:
  • 1 kilo beef, cut into chunks
  • 1 big can (350g) liver spread
  • 5 onions, minced
  • 5 cloves garlic, minced
  • 6 tomatoes, sliced
  • 1 cup tomato sauce
  • 3 green peppers, diced
  • 3 red peppers, diced
  • 4 pieces hot chilli peppers, minced
  • 3/4 cup grated cheese
  • 2 cups beef stock or water
  • 1/4 cup cooking or olive oil
     
Cooking Procedure:
  • In a stock pot or sauce pan, sauté: garlic and onions in oil. Then add tomatoes, red & green pepper and chilli peppers.
  • Add in the beef, tomato sauce, liver spread and water or beef stock. Let simmer for at least 1 hour or until the beef is tender. Salt to taste.
  • Add the cheese and olives (optional) and continue to simmer until the sauce thickens.

Hot Tip:
  • Goat's meat can also be used to make caldereta. Just be sure to marinate the goat's meat in vinegar, garlic, salt and pepper for at least 15-20 minutes.
  • For a very flavorful and delicious kalderetang baka, use beef stock instead of water. 
  • Add one bottle of San Miguel Beer Pale Pilsen together with the beef and simmer until beef is tender.


Do you have recipes to share? If you are fond of cooking and collecting recipes then send me a message here.  
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Filipino Sinigang na Baboy Recipe


Sinigang na Baboy or Pork Sinigang is my daughter's favorite food. It can be well described as a sour soup dish with vegetables and with pork as the main ingredient. She doesn't eat so much pork though but she craves for the sour or "asim" taste of the Sinigang soup. Preparing or cooking Sinigang na Baboy is not that difficult at all. In fact, it's so easy and simple that even a 1st Grader can do it! Gone are the days that you need to get fresh tamarind and extract the juice from it. Today, we already have Sinigang na Baboy Powder Mix that are readily available in all supermarkets and grocery stores.

My Sinigang na Baboy Recipe has no secret ingredient at all. All you need to do is make sure that the pork is tender enough and get the right sour or "asim" taste and your are done!

Here is my Sinigang na Baboy Recipe. Enjoy!

filipino-sinigang-na-baboy-recipe

 Ingredients:
  • 10 tamarind seeds or 1 package sinigang mix
  • 1 kilo pork; cut in 1 1/2 inches chunks (liempo, kasim, or ribs)
  • 1 onion; sliced
  • 4 tomatoes; sliced
  • 1 radish (labanos); sliced
  • 5 string beans(sitaw), cut in 2” length
  • 1/2 cup kangkong leaves (river spinach)
  • 4 pieces gabi (taro); peeled and cut in halve
  • 2 whole siling haba (long green pepper)

Cooking Procedure:
  • Boil the tamarind seeds, then mash them to extract the tamarind juice. Set aside.
  • In a stock pot or sauce pan, boil the pork until tender
  • Add the onions, tomatoes and tamarind juice
  • Add gabi, then simmer until it thickens the soup
  • Add the radish and string beans until tender
  • Then lastly, add the kangkong leaves and the sili (pepper)
  • Season with fish sauce according to desired taste

Note: If you prefer to use sinigang mix instead of tamarind juice, then pour the mix together with the onions and tomatoes.

 Hot Tip:
  • I personally like Pork Belly because I find it more savory.
  • Try Sinigang Mix with Gabi. It makes your Sinigang soup thicker and richer.


Do you have recipes to share? Send me a message if you want to be a contributor for this site.
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