Lutong Filipino

Category: Soup Recipes

  • Chicken Macaroni Soup (Sopas)

    Chicken Macaroni Soup (Sopas)

    Sopas is a term for “soup”. The yummy dish is a richer alternative to the American chicken noodle soup. The difference is how sopas uses milk to enrichen the flavor of the broth. Additionally, the bone of the chicken is left intact to give the sopas a bolder flavor. In culinary tradition, the bone of the meat maximizes the flavor. Sopas is a Filipino family favorite during the rainy season. Many families have their own twists that they pass down from generation to generation. You’re not just tasting Filipino cuisine, you are tasting how each family added their own personality to the dish. The nutrients in the dish help fight off colds and it’s very filling.

    Mirepoix is a flavoring made of chopped celery, onions, and carrots. As a base, it can be used with a broth with butter or olive oil. However, you can add spices, potatoes, rice, and beans to the soup. Elbow macaroni with a hard boiled egg on the side gives the dish color. If you don’t want chicken sopas, you can replace it with chicken liver, cut up hot dogs, pork, and even luncheon meats.

    There are no limits to how this dish can be prepared for your family. Preparation is pretty simple and easy. The best thing about Filipino cuisine is how the meals are simple and low budget, yet you are getting the best meal in a short amount of cooking time. Feel free to bring it to work in a canister and reheat it, or you can even create this dish while camping.

    [yumprint-recipe id=’31’]

  • Ginisang Munggo

    Ginisang Munggo

    Ginisang Munggo is one of Filipino favorites and it has been among the most common dish you can find in local restaurants or turo-turo. The plant munggo or mung bean (sometimes known as green bean) is native to Pakistan and India, which means it is original to Asia. When the plant reached the Philippines, it was then that it became the sensational ginisang munggo. But even though it is common, its taste can live you wanting for more.

    Apart from ginisang munggo, it can even be used as an ingredient in various desserts. Sautéed mung bean – as its other name – is one of the main dishes served during cold season.

    The mouthwatering taste it offers leave most Filipinos looking forward to the next time they would be able to eat the dish. It is served best with lukewarm rice and it compliments other ingredients as well.

    What’s great is that this dish is very satisfying despite being budget-friendly. The preparation of ginisang munggo is different in various locales as well as the ingredients used along with it. You can even prepare it in a vegan way by getting rid of any meat from the ingredients and use tofu in their place.

    Other times, malunggay or moringa is used as leafy vegetable ingredient considering how nutritious it is. It also offer thickness on the soup, which means you could always have the consistency you desired.

    Regardless of what ingredients you add and how you prepare the entire dish, its popularity among Filipinos is still the same. If you are going to try out a new Filipino dish, ginisang munggo is the right one to choose. It is common and easy but will surely make you feel like you’ve eaten the best.

    [yumprint-recipe id=’27’]

  • Nilagang Pata ng Baboy

    Nilagang Pata ng Baboy

    If you have been cooking Filipino dishes for a while, surely you’ve come across nilagang pata. This simple yet satisfying Filipino dish is one of the popular viands in the Philippines. It is a traditional dish that you can commonly encounter in many homes for lunch and even in small restaurants. It is cooked using pata (pork meat) with the addition of vegetables according to your preferences.

    If you want to taste a unique blend of pork meat soup with its spices and vegetables then nilagang pata ng baboy is one of the recommended dishes that you should try. Whether you’re learning how to cook Filipino dishes or visiting the country and would want to know which dishes are appetizing especially during lunch and cold season, nilagang pata ng baboy is just the recipe for you.

    It can be served for lunch and dinner on ordinary days so you don’t have to limit yourself with the appropriate time on when to serve the dish. It is served best with steamed rice and you can use fish sauce or commonly known locally as patis as well as siling labuyo or bird’s eye chili as its dip.

    Preparing the nilagang pata ng baboy is basically the same as when you’re cooking other meat soup in the Philippines. In fact, it is one of the easiest to prepare and cook and serve it in no time to your family, friends and visitors who are around during lunch or dinner. Do you cook to impress? Nilagang pata ng baboy is a simple dish but impressive in its way as well.

    With the right pork meat texture and enough time, the taste would be overwhelming even to the seasoned chef. All you have to do is choose a good set of spices and vegetable and you’re good to go.

    [yumprint-recipe id=’22’]

  • Nilagang Baboy

    Nilagang Baboy

    Among the simplest dishes available in the country, Nilagang Baboy is perhaps one of the easiest to prepare yet you can never undermine its pleasant taste. Underestimating what it does to your taste buds will only cause you to miss its very essence.

    The only thing you need to do is boil a pot of water, prepare the vegetables and other spices of your preferences and voila! You already have nilagang baboy. This may sound so bland and too direct but even so, as mentioned, you should not underestimate its luscious taste – not to mention the very essence of why you use baboy (pork) as meat. For some, especially those whose cultures would not allow the use of such meat may use a different set of preparation but still using the same process or method and arrive at a unique taste of nilaga.

    Nonetheless, in this case, you are using pork meat as the main ingredient. There is no hard and fast rule on what vegetable or spice you want to add to the preparation. However, the most basic ingredient you can find includes onion, peppercorn, potato and cabbage. You can experiment on other ingredients if you prefer but the classic nilagang baboy would have these basic ingredients.

    This type of soup is usually served during lunch and even during dinner on regular holidays. It is best serve hot and with dipping the meat on patis (fish sauce) with siling labuyo (bird’s eye chili).

    If you are looking for Filipino soup to complete your dining experience then nilagang baboy would do the trick!

    [yumprint-recipe id=’18’]

  • Nilagang Baka

    Nilagang Baka

    “Good things come to those who wait.” This is especially true when you are cooking nilagang baka. The reason is because it would take more time to boil beef and make it softer than any other meat. But, if you have patience and you want to enjoy the gentle beckoning of beef through your sense of smell then nilagang baka would be worth the wait.

    As most Filipino dishes, there are many ways that you can prepare nilagang baka. But there is such thing as preferences and you can infuse whatever flavor you want to taste to your soup. Regardless of what spice you want to use, celery, onion and other spices, you will still be able to experience its unique and unforgettable taste.

    Nilagang baka can be made more delicious by adding various ingredients such as cabbage, petsay and other ingredients that are esteemed for making a dish more flavorful. You can even add siling labuyo if you want it to taste a little spicy. But then, this depends so much on what your preferred taste. It may be one of the common dishes that you can find in many parts of the Philippines but it is also one of the dishes that are most wanted and most loved because of its delicious taste especially during the rainy season.

    Just like other nilaga recipe, nilagang baka is easy to prepare. You only need to boil water and add ingredients one by one depending on how much boiling they need. Of course, you would need to boil the meat first until it is tender enough so that you can achieve the best possible taste.

    [yumprint-recipe id=’20’]

  • Sinigang na Hipon

    Sinigang na Hipon

    When it comes to sinigang dishes, the list would not be complete without including sinigang na hipon. It is a sour soup created from the delectable mixture of shrimps, string beans, peppers, radishes and other ingredients deemed necessary to make this dish entirely and uniquely delicious. It is often seasoned with fish sauce but in many cases – it entirely depends on your preferences as the cook.

    Nonetheless, sinigang na hipon is one of the better alternatives when it comes to meat dishes during special occasions where pork meat is not allowed.

    Apart from being one of the famous dishes, it is common to have sinigang na hipon served on the table if the weather is not as friendly and is raining cats and dogs. It helps warm the body and keep the comfort inside your very own home.

    Preferences aside, fresh tamarind is traditionally used to give the dish its unique sour taste but today with the availability of sinigang recipe mix in the market this is only rarely used. You can even buy flavor mixes with gabi, sili and sampalok mixes. Still, nothing beats the taste of fresh tamarind. Flavor mixes may only be used in the absence of the traditional fresh flavoring.

    If you are the type who doesn’t mind to wait for a short while and you’d want to enjoy the rich sour taste of a soup then sinigang na hipon would be one of the best choices for you. However, you might want to be careful when boiling the shrimp because it softens easily. You might waste the entire preparation if you overcook them.

    [yumprint-recipe id=’19’]

  • Chicken Tinola

    Chicken Tinola

    Are you feeling ill or down in the dumps? Looking for the good old chicken noodle soup to revitalize your body? Well, the Philippines has its own version of chicken soup, known to all Filipino as Tinolang Manok. It is a famous Filipino comfort food that is simple to prepare, soothing and delicious.

    Tinolang Manok or simply called “Tinola” in Tagalog and Cebuano is a chicken ginger stew soup mixed with “siling labuyo” (chili pepper leaves) and green or unripe papaya. It is also called “nilayaan” or “la uya” in Ilocano, which literally means “ginger.” The ginger and the chili pepper leaves make for its distinct flavor.

    Customarily, the dish is prepared by sautéing the garlic, ginger and onion, followed by the “manok” (chicken) and then flavored with fish sauce. It is recommended to cook the mixture about 4-5 minutes to allow all the flavor of the ginger, fish sauce and chicken to blend well. Chicken broth is added and finished by adding chili pepper leaves and green papaya. “Native” or free range chickens are the best chicken to use and the green papaya facilitates in tenderizing the meat of the native chicken. This dish can be an appetizer or the main entree and best paired with rice.

    Other common variants of the dish makes use of the chayote squash as a substitute for the unripe papaya; instead of using the chili pepper leaves, others may use malunggay (moringa) leaves or spinach, especially when living abroad; and to an extreme case, others use seafood or pork instead of using chicken.

    Truly, Tinolang Manok has made its place in many Filipino household as one of its well-loved dishes.

    [yumprint-recipe id=’7′]

  • Sinigang Na Bangus

    Sinigang Na Bangus

    Sinigang na bangus is one of the favorite dishes in the Philippines. The sour taste makes it even more appetizing and appealing even to people who have tasted it for the first time. It involves different types of ingredients including mustard greens, tomato and even long green peppers. It actually depends on your preferred taste and the available ingredients in your area. Sinigang na bangus is a type of sour soup and it utilizes different types of souring agent, which may include Kamias or bilimbi.

    The recipe is pretty straight and direct. Within 30 minutes, the soup is going to be ready to be served. It will only require boiling of all ingredients, which makes it easier for you to prepare the dish. Since it requires no sautéing, the soup will not be oily and is healthy once you think of it.

    Bangus is just one of the varied fishes that you can use in sinigang. There are other variety of fishes that you can use such as tilapia and other types that are deemed appropriate for the soup. The soup is also similar to sinigang na baboy (pork), hipon (shrimp) and beef; and the way it is cooked is also the same only this time that the bangus is added towards the end of boiling so that its fibers will not get mushy or too soft.

    So, if you are fond of Filipino dishes and you wanted a uniquely different taste then sinigang na bangus is one of the recommended dishes on your first few attempts at cooking or feasting on Filipino dishes.

    [yumprint-recipe id=’17’]

  • Pork Sinigang

    Pork Sinigang

    Pork Sinigang is a native cuisine in the Philippines – particularly known for its sour taste. If you want to taste one famous cuisine among locals then this must be one of the first cuisines you must try. 

    Traditionally, sinigang is tamarind-based but calamansi, unripe mango, guava and bilimbi may also be used as souring agent. There are also seasoning powder available in the market that may be used as an alternative if natural sources prove to be challenging to find but if you already have the natural sources on your backyard be our guest!

    If pork is to be used, the main parts included in the soup are pork neck bones, spare ribs, pork belly and even baby back ribs. The bony parts of the pig are usually preferred by many when cooking this dish.

    The meat is usually stewed along with spices such as onions and tomatoes as well as its souring agent – tamarind for example. However, other ingredients may also be added to further enhance the taste such as okra, gabi, kangkong, eggplant, sitaw and labanos. These ingredients are often added to create another version of the traditional sinigang.

     

    [yumprint-recipe id=’2′]