Bicol Express

Today is the birthday of Jing's husband, Sherman. Happy Birthday, Man! To celebrate his birthday, I've decided to cook Bicol Express tonight. He was the one who taught me how to cook it. I also grilled Tilapia, asked my maid to buy live fish from Guadalupe market. Oh... and green mangoes and bagoong. Andddddddd gulaman drink.



I'm so full and bloated, even if the Bicol express was not super spicy, it still had a little ZING and had to drink water every other spoonful. Do you remember when we were young and the teachers told us how St. Lorenzo Ruiz was tortured???? Water torture! Then they would put a plank on top of his bloated stomach and play see-saw. Now, that is how full I feel!!!!






Sherman's Bicol Express

1/4 K. Pork Kasim, cute into small cubes
1 head native garlic, crushed
1 white onion, chopped
2 T. alamang
1 1/2 C. coconut milk (2nd extraction)
1/4 K. green sili (see instructions below how to clean)
pure coconut milk (1st extraction)


Squeeze milk from freshly grated coconut, set aside(1st extraction). Add 1 1/2 C. hot water to the grated coconut, squeeze to extract thin coconut milk. Boil chopped pork, onion, garlic, alamang and coconut milk from the second extraction on your smallest burner. When it boils rapidly, stir for a few seconds, lower heat, cover and simmer for 1 hour. Add green sili and pure coconut milk. When the sili starts to wilt switch off burner.


*Slice the green sili lengthwise, remove the seeds by using a teaspoon. Make sure you wear plastic gloves or use a sandwich bag on your hand. Add 1-2 t. of rock salt, squeeze the sili. Rinse and soak in water until ready to use. Oh... make sure you drain the sili before adding to the Bicol express.


Note: You may use other vegetables such as sitaw, squash or anything you like instead of the sili. This is a basic recipe for any ginataang vegetable dish. You may add shrimps at the last 5 minutes of cooking.