Looking for a Chef de Partie

An upscale restaurant chain is looking for a Chef de Partie.

If you are:

• Male or Female, 25 -35 years old
• With a degree in Culinary Arts
• Experienced in planning, organizing and directing kitchen operations
• Knowledgeable in the food and beverage cycle
• A team player
• Willing to join a reality show

Send your resume, with 2x2, face and full body pictures to:

Hired!
GMA Network Center
EDSA corner Timog Avenue
Quezon City

Or email us at hired@gmanetwork.com.

For inquiries, please call 982-7777 loc. 3025 or 926-4523.
Deadline of submission of applications is on 08 December 2008.

Alay sa Choc-Nut

Ang sarap-sarap ng Choc-Nut na ‘to
binubuksan ko pa lang
naglalaway na ‘ko.
‘Di nga magkanda-ugaga
sa pagpunit ng papel na balot e.
Hayun, sa pagkahayok,
tuloy, Choc-Nut muntik nang
malapirot.
Leche!
Kapag lumabas na
ang balot mong palara –
ayan na, malapit na –
alam kong matitikman na rin kita
lasa mong kakaiba.
Diyos ko, salamat talaga!
Dahan-dahan kong bubuksan
makikita ang ‘yong kahubaran.
Haaaay! Langit!
Anong kasiyahan!
Iningatan kong huwag madurog
hinawakang parang itlog
saka inilapit sa bibig ko
ang kaaya-ayang bisyo.
Tangina!
Nalaglag pa’ng isang piraso!
Sayang.
Pupulutin ko na lang.
Aba, grasya rin ‘to ‘no.
Kaya bago pa mangalaglag,
Please lang huwag!
Isinubo ko lahat
buong Choc-Nut!
Kaaakh! Kwaaakh!
Aaakh!
Tuloy, ako'y napaubo,
sa lakas ng pagkakasubo.
Tubig! Tubig!
Dali-dali akong tumakbo
sa kusina para uminom
ng tubig na malamig,
Glug… glug… glug.
Aaaaaah…
Glug… glug…
Uhmmm…
Putang Choc-Nut ‘to
Papatayin pa ‘ko!

- written some time in 1998, published in the anthology called Bubot at Tatlong Dosenang Sundot ng Damdamin, by Finkomarts

This was one of my earliest poems. I've lost all copies of the book and the poem, and I only recently encountered it online when I googled my name. I came across a blog with this poem. Thanks to Ellysa Sy of Caloocan City, who posted it. You can find her post and her blog here.

Who knows, one day this might just become a song. Hahaha!

Incidentally, I think it's worth mentioning that the book, Bubot at Tatlong Dosenang Sundot ng Damdamin, is catalogued in the Ateneo Libraries Union Catalog, archived in Ateneo's Rizal Library. Good to know somebody still has a copy.

Salt and Pepper Sirloin Steak with Buttered String Beans and Potatoes Topped with Mushroom Gravy

Had me a feast today with this Salt and Pepper Sirloin Steak, which I cooked in olive oil in a pan. I sided it with buttered baguio beans (string beans) and potato sticks, and smothered everything with mushroom gravy. Mmmmmm.

Guinataang Sitaw at Kalabasa, Crispy-Fried Tilapia, and Oven-Baked Chicken Pandan

Had some friends over for dinner after the holidays soon as I recovered and got back to cooking. Thought I'd do something Filipino and whipped up a smashing combo: guinataang sitaw at kalabasa, crispy-fried tilapia, and oven-baked chicken pandan.

This is the guinataan dish, which is stringbeans and squash, sauteed with ground beef, and cooked in coconut milk. Guinataan, of course, means cooked in coconut milk, or gata in Filipino. Very flavorful.

Crispy-fried tilapia. Crunchy and tasteful.

Got this from the grocery ready to cook. It's marinated chicken thigh meat wrapped in pandan leaves, which I cooked in an oven toaster for about 20 minutes. It turned out really tender and juicy, not to mention yummy.

I was originally intending to consume all these by myself, but I thought, hey, this is too good not to share, so I called on friends, Jay and JM.

They swear, of course, to the very pleasant gastronomic experience we all shared. 'Til the next dinner!

Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato Salad with Caesar's Dressing Topped with Shaved Parmesan

Was sick over the holidays but I mustered some strength to whip up a classic. Wanted to feel a little healthier so I tossed me a BLT salad with Caesar's dressing. Topped it off with some shaved Parmesan cheese to taste.

It was, needless to say, yummy.

Bucket List

Okay, this is so I don't forget. The list just keeps getting longer so I'm putting some of the things down while they're fresh on my mind.

• Be a travel writer - get paid to go places and write about them.
• Put my music out so it's heard by many.
• Sing and play music on stage and TV - be a kick-ass rockista.
• Act on film and TV - and eventually go international.
• Host a show on TV - a travel show, maybe, or a cooking or music show.
• Cook and invent more and more dishes.
• Write books.
• Have a great body.
• Own a house by the beach.

That's it for now. I think. Will just add and subtract as I go along.

Home-Cooked Yumyums

Lately, I've spent more time at home. It's been a month since I moved to the new apartment. (Yes, it's been a month, and this is only the first time I am writing about it. I want to show pictures only when I feel I've completed all the decorating of the place. Until then I will hold the post.) And since then I've been working at home a lot, writing my scripts and articles here, and checking and responding to mails.

I've also taken to cooking (rather, gone back to it) and to inviting friends and family over for dinner. I love preparing meals for friends and family, and cooking meals for myself.

This one was for dinner last Monday: tenderlean pork cooked in balsamic vinegar and rosemary, topped with pesto.

This one was for tonight, at the dinner I gave my little brother and sister: Breakfast steak cooked tender in olive oil and soy sauce, topped with sauteed asparagus and garlic slices.

My guests: niece Wendy, brother Andrew, and cousin Wilma.

This is me with my baby sister, Mikee, and niece, Wendy.

Of course, we had fun. And of course, they liked the food. So here's to more home-cooked meals and to lasting bonds with family and friends! Cheers!

Padlock Party

Evie/Piper posted pictures and a video of the PADLOCK party held at my apartment last week, in honor of my birthday and Jeng's (and Blessie's). Couldn't have been any more fun than it was. Only things missing were Blessie (and her pansit, which means shorter lives for Jeng and I - hahaha!) and Prue.

Click here to see the pictures. Be sure to check the video as well.

Almost Perfect

He was almost perfect.

But then he failed to mention one tiny detail: he was currently involved. The guy had a girlfriend.

The old me would have just shoved that detail into the nooks and crannies of my immaculately dirty mind, but that was then. Now, those things are part and parcel of any serious decision making that I do on matters of love.

Plus there's the matter of honesty. It wasn't as if we were both hiding our interest in each other. The conversation was heading toward exploring something together. Yet he did not think to mention he was involved until Piper/Eve (who so lovingly volunteered to drive me to Batangas to meet the guy - love you!) and I were all set to go.

Besides, I'm tired of introducing, baptizing, or welcoming "converts" into gaydom. Done with that.

I am so done with Valentines. It's one big joke.

(I hope this doesn't predispose me against mechado. Maybe one day I will write a song about this. Hmmm... mechado, the song. Has a nice ring to it.)

Well, enough said. I will leave you with something Piper/Eve said after hearing about this:

Bring out the drum and lyre band and let's shoot them all down!

Mechado (Updated with a Postscript)

When one is inspired, one learns a lot of new things. Here is something I lifted from Wikipedia on the Filipino dish called mechado:

Mechado is a stew served as a viand in the Philippines. Traditionally, it is cooked with beef briskets, potatoes, pimiento (red bell peppers), and tomatoes. It is similar to a beef stew, with elements of Filipino ingredients such as patis.

Origin and preparation. The dish originated from a Spanish recipe whose name originally referred to the strips of pork back-fat that are threaded (mecha - wick) through thick pieces of cheaper lean beef to render them more tender and less dry. The larded pieces of beef are then marinated in vinegar, soya sauce, calamansi juice, crushed garlic, black pepper and bay leaf, browned quickly on all sides in hot oil or lard and then slowly braised in its marinade with the addition of soup stock, onion slices and tomatoes until tender and the liquid is reduced to a thick flavorful gravy.

The use of thinner slices or even bony cuts of beef such as short ribs by budget-conscious cooks makes the larding that gave the dish its name unnecessary. The next step that has fallen by the wayside but which is crucial to success (because it takes away so much from the taste and appearance of the classic dish when skipped) is the quick browning of the beef before actual braising. This step not only seals the pieces of meat so that it retains much of its flavor and juice but also helps produce the dark brown color and rich beefy taste of the gravy. The long, slow braising tenderizes the meat and liquifies the slices of onions and tomatoes to blend with and thicken the sauce. The addition of soya-sauce and calamansi juice to the marinating liquid, of course, gives this recipe its distinct Filipino touch and character.

Beef tongue can be similarly treated with little or no variation to produce another dish called Lengua Mechada.

If goat meat is used, it is known as kaldereta.

Postscript: As of press time, the catch to all this has been revealed. More of that in another entry. Men... tsk tsk tsk!

I'm Not Getting My Hopes Up...

...but I met someone very interesting last night.

Accomplished yet expanding his horizons still. A lover of knowledge and learning. (He has 2 bachelors, an MBA, and wants to enroll in culinary school next.)

He is at home in the kitchen and claims to whip up the meanest mechado in the world. (Promised to cook for me one of these days.)

A singer (baritone who has toured Europe and parts of Asia). A sports buff. (Recently injured himself playing volleyball.) Absolutely loves traveling and the outdoors.

Has the most engaging accent (which reminds me so much of family, we have almost the same roots - Bisaya and Southern Tagalog.) Very funny. He is into charity work, too!

And fantastically, but more importantly, I believe he is taken with me.

It all just sounds too good to be true. Is it too bad to hope?

(I could almost hear Piper thinking to herself, What's the catch?)