Recipes From Central Visayas - Region VII

Our focus today will be on the two big members of this region, Cebu and Bohol. Two places that are close and dear to me because I spent part of my youth in Cebu, the home province of my mother, and Bohol, for vacations being very proximate to our nothern Mindanao province.

APAN-APAN
1/2 cup vinegar
1/2 cup water
3 cups kangkong stems, cut into 1/2" lengths
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 teaspoon crushed garlic
2 tablespoons sliced onion
1/4 cup sliced tomatoes
3 tablespoons bagoong alamang

Mix vinegar and water and heat in a saucepan.
As soon as mixture boils, add kangkong stems.
Cook for 7 minutes over high heat until all the liquid is absorbed.
Set aside.
In the same pan, sauté garlic, onion, tomatoes and bagoong alamang.
Add kangkong stems and mix thoroughly.
Remove from fire and serve as relish or appetizer.
Serves 6.

BINU-HANG GABI
6 pieces gabi tuber
6 tablespoons brown sugar
1-1/2 cups grated coconut

Wash gabi thoroughly.
Bore a hole on each tuber top and scrape out flesh without destroying shape of tuber.
Mix gabi meat with brown sugar and coconut.
Stuff gabi shells with mixture and cook in a pan of water until done.
Pare gabi, slice and serve.
Serves 6.

BUTSE-BUTSE
3/4 cup kamote
1-1/2 cups brown sugar
5 calamansi, squeezed
2 cups grated cassava

Boil kamote and mash.
Add sugar and a little amount of water to moisten mixture.
Add calamansi juice and mix well.
Set aside.
To the grated cassava, add a little sugar and water and set aside.
Form kamote mixture and cassava mixture into balls.
Insert kamote balls into cassava balls and fry until brown.
Roll in sugar and serve.

LINUBIHANG MUNGGO
4 cups water
1 cup dried munggo
2 cups coconut milk (second extraction)
1 tablespoon salt
3 cups malunggay leaves
1/4 cup sliced tomatoes
2 tablespoons cut green onions
1/2cup pure coconut milk.
Dilis

Heat water; as soon as it boils, add munggo.
Simmer for about half an hour until tender.
Mash.
Add dilis, second extraction of coconut milk and salt.
Cook 10 minutes.
Add malunggay, tomatoes and onions.
Cook 4 minutes.
Add pure coconut milk and cook for another minute.
Serves 6.

BUTONG WITH CRABS
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
2 tablespoons sliced onion
1/4 cup sliced tomatoes
2-1/2 cups grated buko meat
1 cup coconut water
2-1/4 teaspoons salt
3 boiled crabs, cut into halves
2 tablespoons green onions

Sauté garlic, onion, tomatoes and buko.
Add water and season with salt.
Add crabs.
Cover and cook 10 minutes.
Drop green onions and cook 2 minutes longer before removing from fire.
Serves 6.

UTAN
6 segments garlic, minced
1 onion, sliced
2 tomatoes, sliced
1-1/2 tablespoons cooking oil
1 cup fine flaked fish
2 cups cut sitaw (2" lengths)
3 eggplants, quartered
3 cups sliced squash
Salt
Soy Sauce
1-1/2 cups bago leaves

Sauté garlic, onion and tomatoes in oil.
Add flaked fish, enough water and simmer.
Add sitaw, eggplant and squash.
Season to taste.
Add bago leaves and simmer until done.
Serves 6.