Night Market



The Great Lechon

I just love the summer Night Market of Queen Victoria Market in Melbourne. It is on every Wednesday Nights 5:00-10:00 pm. Running from November '14 - March '15

 

If you do not like big crowds, come early. For me, the MAIN event is the HOY PINOY food booth because I am PINOY! The smokey pop up shop has the best Pinoy barbeque Melbourne has to offer! And not to mention the great LECHON, spit roast pig! Every celebration in my native land boasts this roasted suckling pig on the table.

 

The aroma of the bbq smoke, the stalls of different delicacies and cuisines, make every visit to the night market a wonderful food experience. Even a food safari. The fiesta atmosphere is great. It feels like home.

 

 

 

Hoy Pinoy



Pork and chicken barbeque on coals...yummm

 



Young Pinoy Crew



There's also some great drinks!



I'll try them next time



I will check them out next week!



This little stall here deserves big attention! Sweet!



Of course I always go back and take more photos of Hoy Pinoy stall.



I feel patriotic.



Litson Manok too!



The bamboo spears are huge like they can actually skewer a baby haha!



On my way home...

My pretty bag with skewers poking out



Juicy and oh so Pinoy...



Rice, atchara (pickled young papaya), Mang Tomas sarsa (liver sauce)
and some lechon is $12 of Pinoy Joy!

 

 

Dinner is served,  Rich!

Thank you Hoy Pinoy and Queen Vic Market. I love being a Pinoy in Melbourne. 

 

PS- new words to learn

 

Pinoy - Filipino

Lechon - whole roasted suckling pig

Litsong manok - Roast chicken

Atsara - pickled unripe papaya

Sarsa - sauce

Mang Tomas Sarsa - Liver sauce

Magkano? - How much?

Masarap - delicious

Salamat - Thank you

 

Kare Kare short cut...

I've made this before and today I am craving it. So another go at making Kare kare.



Ox tail, salt, pepper, ginisa mix, magic sarap, KareKare sauce, onion, garlic, petchay
(bok choy) string beans

 This time with this extra ingredient :-)

Much loved Kare Kare is a native Filipino stew of Ox Tail and peanut sauce. I have made an entry before somewhere here but I am sure this is the first time I am actually writing about how I make Kare-kare. :-)

I am actually cooking it as I write. I am not an expert cook. I am more of an eater than a doer ;-) but I have tweaked some recipes to suit my palate and enjoy the meal more.







This doesn't look appetizing, well this is how the meat I used look like after boiling
in a pressure cooker for 45 minutes. I then drained all the liquid in a container. All.
Then I let it cool so the oily part separates from the stock (which contains all the flavour)
Have a look at the oily part! Eww.

 

These oil is unhealthy - dispose properly, not on the drain as it will solidify. Eww :-)

Then I simmer the vegetables in the stock.

 

The sauce is simple, sauté the onions, then add garlic, Karekare sauce,
put some ginisa mix or the magic sarap - choose which one you like. Then
let simmer for a few minutes before adding the cashews. I ran out of fresh peanuts
and no peanut butter in the house. I did add a tiny slice of butter in the sauce to make it silky.
(and more sinful!) Add some of that yummy stock to the consistency you like. Simmer for a while...





Yum! Here is the finished product, do not forget to serve it
with Spicy Sautéed Shrimp Paste!

 

 

This makes Kare Kare. No bagoong, not the same!





Kalami! Mangaon na sab ta! Took photo before eating. Oh by the way, if your hubby is not
Filipino, easy on the Shrimp paste... :-)

Neng’s Steamed Fish



Basa Fillet is cheaper and taste good. Its white flesh is firm and
is good for steaming as it keeps its shape.



I placed this in take away containers ready for freezing. To steam
another day :-)

 

This simple steamed fish is healthy and delicious. They freeze well too.

• 1/2 cup light soy sauce
• ½  teaspoon chicken salt
• 1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
• Pinch of pepper
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 4 pieces Basa fillet
• 1 small piece fresh ginger, finely grated
• 6 tablespoons sesame oil
• A few pieces fresh chive or thinly sliced scallions
• optional: Dash of Kewpie sesame soy sauce dressing upon serving

In medium bowl, whisk together soy sauce, chicken salt, rice wine vinegar, sugar, pepper, ginger and sesame oil.

Place fish in an oven safe dish. Drizzle each piece with the soy sauce mixture, then add some chives/ scallions.

Make a tinfoil pouch. Double if you do not have thicker ones. Then make sure juice will not seep out.

If you have a steamer, steam for about 10 minutes. If not, this can be placed in BBQ also for 7 minutes on each side. The foil will puff up. Or just place in oven safe dish and cover with foil, put in 180 for 15 minutes, occasionally checking. If you want to do it with your oven, make sure it is preheated.

Whatever style you are steaming the fish always set aside for a while, residual heat will continue cooking.

Dash of Kewpie Sesame Soy Sauce dressing upon serving.

Best served with steamed jasmine rice and steamed bok choy.

Mangaon na ta! Bon appetit

Eating Out...

 

As you know by now, food is very important to me :-) but believe it or not I am very picky with what I eat. For example I do not like lamb and Indian food. I do not care much about Mexican food, either. I am not a big dessert eater. I like the sugar cone more that the ice cream. I normally do not order desserts nor have alcohol with my meal. I do eat a lot of Asian Food and most of the choices are healthy.

 

With my handy pedometer, I also take at least 10K steps a day so I can sort of justify a lot of eating out. Thank you Lord for blessings! :-)



^ Crispy spring rolls and grilled pork  c/o our fave Vietnamese Restaurant  Hao Phung ♥




Pinoy Food: Lugaw, Pinakbet, Crispy Pata, Kare-kare




c/o my older brother - BBQ sa Pier, Pinirito na Buras, BBQ Pecho, Pasayan Sinigang




Grilled Pork with Asian Salad of Hao Phung




Singapore noodles, Prawn Rice Paper Roll, Spring rolls, Crispy & spicy chicken ribs
grilled pork and rice, Thien An




soft shell crab sushi with pickled ginger




Seafood inari, soft shell, grilled scallops, grilled salmon
prawn tempura of Sushi Sushi Altona Gate





Tonkatsu Ramen c/o Bento High Point




Scallops and chili caramel pork and Asian Salad, Tom Phat




c/o Billy Kwong




Prawn Wonton egg noodle soup Hao Phung, Footscray




prawn spring rolls and spicy fish sauce dip




gluten free food I made a few weeks ago: fried chicken
roast pumpkin, grilled corn, potato salad, fried rice, chicken popcorn w/ honey




Yum! c/o our fave Viet restaurant Thien An, Irving St. Footscray




Noodles in the Target Centre




Belly pork with rice, tofu and ginger gravy
of Charsiu House, Errol St. North Melbourne




Combination soup with the lot (chicken stock) Vic Market




Prawn and Pork Rice paper rolls




seafood stirfry with rice and crispy spicy chicken ribs




same old favourites but with the Vietnamese pancake this time

I also do not like Pizza and food with weird spices that makes me sneeze. If I like something I stick by it all the time. In fact I tend to order the same thing over and over again. ♥