During the first few years of our marriage, my husband would repeatedly ask me to cook dishes his mother used to prepare. I would do it, except that I would prepare the dishes my way, not hers. Later on, as my culinary vocabulary continued to grow, I tried more and more new recipes. I guess he missed his mom’s cooking at that point. One time, he wanted fried chicken. He was telling me exactly how his mom did it. I blew my top. I told him, “Your mother does not know how to fry chicken; she lets it simmer in oil. In fact, she doesn’t know how to fry period.” He didn’t know what the heck I was talking about. After I’ve cooled my head, I explained. First, don’t ever tell me to do things her way because I’m a much much better cook than she will ever be. Second, frying chicken means you place the chicken in very very hot oil so that the outside browns but the inside remains juicy. You don’t crowd the pan so that the temperature of the oil does not drop. Most important of all, you don’t let the chicken soak in the oil for a long time because you don’t want it to absorb all that oil. After that, he came to realize why all the dishes he grew up with were always swimming in oil. Even scrambled eggs.
So, there’s a way to enjoy fried chicken without all the unnecessary grease. Garlic and parsley blended into thinned mayonnaise add a piquant touch to traditional fried chicken. Crushed pineapple gives cole slaw a tangy sweetness.
For the fried chicken :
Ingredients :
1 whole chicken, about 1-1/2 kilos, cut into serving pieces
1 tbsp. of iodized salt
1 tsp. of pepper
1 c. corn flour
1/2 tsp. of salt
1/2 tsp. of pepper
1/4 tsp. of sugar
1/2 tsp. of garlic powder
1/2 tsp. of onion powder
1/4 tsp. of paprika
2 c. of cooking oil
How to :
Pat chicken pieces dry with paper towels. Using your hands, rub salt and pepper well into the chicken. Let stand in the refrigirator for 20 to 30 minutes.
Mix together flour and remaining seasonings.
Heat cooking oil in a fryer. Roll each chicken piece in the flour mixture and deep fry over medium high heat until golden brown.
For the garlic-mayo sauce :
Ingredients :
1/2 tsp. of finely minced garlic
1/4 tsp. of finely minced parsley
1 c. of mayonnaise
2-3 tbsp. of water
salt and pepper to taste
How to :
Blend all ingredients together except water. When well blended, add water a few drops at a time while stirring to avoid lumps. Use less water for a thicker sauce.
For the pineapple cole slaw :
Ingredients :
1/2 head of cabbage (napa variety), finely shredded
1 carrot, finely shredded
1/2 c. of crushed pineapple
1/4 c. of mayonnaise
1/4 tsp. of salt
1 tbsp. of sugar
How to :
Blanch shredded cabbage and carrot in briskly boiling water for 2 minutes. Drain in a colander and pour ice water over them. Still in colander, place vegetables in the freezer for 5 minutes until very cold. Transfer to a salad bowl, add mayonnaise, crushed pineapple. salt and sugar.
I was browsing through your blog (a daily habit I must say! You got me hooked
) when I found this recipe for pineapple coleslaw. I have to confess it was a bit of a lifesaver! I was racking my brain for a side dish for the grilled rib-eye I was planning for a home-cooked Valentine’s Day dinner (yes my hubby and I are so MAIS, ha ha ha…at least it saved us from splurging on overpriced restautants and crowded parking lots). Seeing the recipe reminded me how he LOVED the pineapple coleslaw his grandmother used to make. I made it as a surprise that night much to his delight. I repeated the recipe again as a side dish for our grilled rack of lamb a few days later. Not a drop of mayo was wasted. And like the caldereta he demolished, the same fate met the coleslaw. Thanks again for putting up the recipe! 
:grin::grin:
You’re welcome, Mrs. Leslie.
Happy Valentine’s Day Ms. Connie!
Ms. Connie, Is napa cabbage same as pechay baguio? Gusto ko kze i-try to tonight eh… Thank you po…
Hi Happy_Joy, yes it is.
have been browsing from this site alone for almost 7 hours now, reading one recipe to the other that i must have read almost all of your posts. even told my husband a few hours back before he went to sleep how each posts excites me and there is only an hour left for breakfast.
even read most of the comments and didnt thought i would post one until i read this. i feel for you when you snapped a reply to your husband’s rantings.
i dont understand how a mother’s cooking can be nostalgic when a lot of times its not properly done and tastes bland.
grew up in a family where each member knows and cooks good food. i, too, may not be the best cook but i know i cook well.
now, i live with my husband’s family, with his mother and older brother. problem is, my husband’s older brother is not much of a fan of herbs, spices and gourmet-ish type of food for his meals, which im used with cooking and experimenting with. he adores me nonetheless.
it still makes me feel insecure that he’s the only one who doesnt like my cooking and would trade it for anything her mom cooks be it flat-fried scrambled eggs soaking in oil.
thank God my husband and i have the same taste for food! but since we live with them, i always have to consider his “kuya” whenever i cook, sacrificing what taste good to me- meaning, my dish would sometimes go halfway bland. what better way should i deal with this?..
im not the type who copies recipe from anyone- i always try to incorporate something to make it my own.
i instantly fell in love with your recipes because you have a wide variety of exquisite food using ingredients that are readily available in the market. also, you don’t specify brands unless it’s no-good. plus you can turn a simple dish into a gourmet. not to mention, my own recipes are diversified.
this site is heaven-sent to every household!
will be making your version of bacon and egg for breakfast a little later.
this recipe, fried chicken, garlic-mayo sauce & pineapple coleslaw i will make for lunch.
i hope i have time this afternoon to shop for the unavailable ingredients of “the most sinful chocolate cake” because i may not be able to sleep soundly until i tasted this.
thank you, connie! you really made my day!
i will post comment on how your recipes turned out. and i promise it wouldn’t be this long next time.
have a blessed day!
Iya, good luck! Sons have this attachment to mothers, a sort of hero-worship. They tend to place their mothers in pedestals. Daughters tend to me more objective. Perhaps, it’s FIlipino culture. But, given time, the apron strings are cut to a certain extent.
ms. connie,
can i substitute regular flour seasoned with salt and pepper instead of corn flour? i don’t have it in my pantry.
Yes.
Ms. Connie, try adding bleu cheese crumbles to the coleslaw… Sobrang yummy.