At the Shih Lin night market in Taiwan, single serve oyster omelets were cooked side by side on large round skillets. This delectable egg and seafood dish that originated in China is also a popular street food in Singapore and Malaysia. The secret to this simple dish is proportion. Too many oysters and too little ... (more)
Budget cooking part 2 (fish and vegetables frittata)
Posted on September 19, 2008 · 11 Comments
We know it as torta; it is called omelet in the West. I simmer the fish, flake the flesh, mix it with vegetables and eggs, then cook the mixture in a little oil. The 800 grams of fish, mixed with two potatoes, a carrot, an onion, a few cloves of garlic and six eggs resulted in two large frittatas. We ate one for dinner a few nights ago; we ate the second one for lunch the following day. How’s that for cooking on a budget?
Omelet cupcakes
Posted on August 11, 2008 · 4 Comments
How to make these omelet cupcakes:
Preheat the oven to 375oF.
Lightly brush 10 cupcake tins with vegetable oil (I used silicone cups so I skipped this part).
Chop a large onion and 2 bell peppers. Saute in a tablespoonful of vegetable oil until they start to turn soft, about 3 minutes.
Beat 6 eggs in a large bowl. Stir in a jar of well-drained sardines in oil…
Mushrooms and cheese omelet
Posted on July 26, 2008 · 2 Comments
I grew up at a time when eggs for breakfast everyday was not unusual. Sometimes, we even had eggs for our mid-afternoon snack. It was a shock to read decades later about the not too healthy effect of eating eggs everyday. What was even more shocking was finding out after that that the “bad image” given to eggs was not even that accurate. According to the latest studies, it is okay to eat an egg once a day. It did cross my mind that, perhaps, the period when eggs received so much bad press was the time when makers of “instant healthy breakfasts” were pushing their products hard to the public.
Sardines frittata in tortilla
Posted on May 8, 2008 · 7 Comments
Beef and chicken are not the only things you can use to stuff flour tortillas. A tortilla is a bread and anything that goes well with bread will taste delicious with tortilla. I bought a bag of flour tortilla a week ago intending to stuff them with chicken a la king. Sadly, the chicken a la king was gone before I could use it as stuffing. The package says the tortillas won’t be any good after tomorrow so I decided to create something that would be as radical a filling as chicken a la king.
The title says I stuffed the tortillas with sardines frittata but that title doesn’t really do justice to the filling. Read on to understand what I mean.
Broccoli and potatoes frittata
Posted on January 21, 2008 · 6 Comments
This was a side dish that accompanied the fried danggit — not dried salted danggit but fresh — that we had for dinner last Saturday. The base is made with thinly sliced potatoes which were topped with broccoli florets, slivers of belly bacon, onions and two kinds of cheeses — a low-fat cheese spread and grated quickmelt cheese…
Mackerel frittata
Posted on December 3, 2007 · 9 Comments
Fourth day without tap water and I’m losing my inspiration to cook. How can I get inspired when the primary concern is to use the least number of kitchen utensils so that minimal water is needed for the clean-up afterwards? That’s what happens when you try to survive with stored water and you have no idea when the next supply will come. So, last Saturday, while mainstream media and the internet were still buzzing with the latest political fiasco in the Philippines, I tried to cook the tastiest lunch that I could manage under the circumstances.
I cooked this mackerel frittata using a chopping board, a knife, a vegetable peeler, a can opener, a frying pan, a bowl and a spatula. Even I was amazed at how well it turned out — firm but still soft and very tasty. The secret? I beat the eggs WITH the liquid from the canned mackerel. That made all the difference.
Tortang sisig at talong
Posted on February 17, 2007 · 17 Comments
I love sisig. Everyone in my family does. But, for the life of me, I can’t cook sisig — it just entails too much work from cleaning the pig’s head to the boiling to the grilling to the chopping… It’s just easier to order sisig in restaurants where it is a specialty. These days, however, ... (more)
Tortang sardinas at togue (canned sardines and mongo sprout frittata)
Posted on February 14, 2007 · 9 Comments
In my tortang tilapia entry, reader Felixberto commented, “I’ve been making torta using ligo sardines. Haven’t tried tilapia, With sardines, my torta crumbles… I was wondering, should I put in the veggies first before the fish?” And my response was, “…perhaps the best way is to mix the cooked veggies with the beaten eggs, pour ... (more)
Tortang tilapia (St. Peter's fish frittata)
Posted on May 5, 2006 · 15 Comments
Summer in the Philippines is more than halfway through and what do you know? I’m still alive. 
Honestly, this must be the most hectic summer my family’s had for as long as I can remember. Summer used to be long, hot, lazy days but this time, it’s just long and hot. I don’t think anyone had the opportunity to be lazy. The kids have been very busy with their school’s summer activities (and their personal social activities) and my husband and I had been taking turns driving them. With the heat, and the comings and goings, cooking has to be simple and fuss-free. And this torta (frittata), made with tilapia fillets and vegetables, was definitely fuss-free. Easy too…
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