Thanks for putting together this website. It gives me a place to check if I’m doing my cooking right.

I’ve been living in New Jersey since 2000, and recently got married to an Irish-Italian woman. She told me before that she might not like our cuisine, but boy, did she eat her words (pardon the pun) many times over!

Her favorite food now is tortang giniling na baka, although I kept telling her it’s not really a big thing. I also have done stir-fried vegetables for her, along with chicken sopas and some other stuff. She didn’t like pork sinigang, mainly because of the tanginess. Oh well, more for me!

I read your thing on kare-kare, and was really struck with your issues with peanuts and rice. When my grandmother used to make it, she’d boil the tripe the night before the party, and as it boiled, would set her clay stove outside and I would then transfer the pot of tripe on the stove so it would boil overnight. The next morning, she would wake me up and I’d move the pot back on the stove, and she’d have me grind the peanuts and rice. As you may surmise, that was not an enjoyable thing to do. My reward, though, is I got to eat the kare-kare ahead of others: the dish would be done by 10 am, way before the start of our party at noon.

In one of those times she woke me up to do the peanuts and rice, I figured, why not try grinding them? So, I go her hand-cranked meat grinder and did it there. It worked quite well for the peanuts; the rice wasn’t ground well enough, but it made it easier to do it with the mortar and pestle.

A couple of years later, I tried the blender. The rice turned up really good, as it was a powder-like consistency. The peanuts turned into a paste, something like peanut butter, although a bit chunkier. That actually tasted good. So, everytime she’d make it from then on, I’d be using the blender. Even she liked it. The thing is, she’s not into such modern stuff, so she still woke me up. And I still enjoyed the perks.

Here in the US, I’d go to the supermarket, and they would have those peanut butter that’s unsweetened, which is the same consistency as the one I’d put in the blender. I still do the rice with the blender. The challenge here, though, is finding tripe, or even ox tail: the regular supernarkets don’t usually carry them. So, my search usually turns into adventures, and now I have a couple of Asian supermarkets that I’d go to to get them. I also get my bagoong there (Kamayan and/or Barrio Fiesta brands).

So, try the blender for the peanuts and rice. Just do the rice first, then the peanuts. And before doing so, put the rice into a skillet or frying pan WITHOUT OIL; same with the peanuts. My grandmother tells me, “Kailangan habusin muna ang bigas at mani bago gilingin.” Heat them without burning them (i.e., tunring them brown). Then put them in the blender, one after the other.

I tried your recipe and my husband liked it so much. Last Christams I also went to this website to look for baked macaroni recipe. I cooked it and it was well received as well by my famiy and relatives. I cooked it again in our 1st wedding anniversary when my parents came and visited us in the house. They love it.

Thanks for sharing your recipes. You have helped a lot of people especially newly married ones like me. It’s such a joy to be able to cook great food for our loved ones.

Thanks Conie and God bless you and your endeavors.

Ces