Ang init! Makapag-nilaga nga...

I really love eating soup despite the weather (just like drinking hot black coffee). I think I got that from my Dad. I remember when I still lived in Bicol, Papa used to ask us what he's gonna cook for lunch or dinner and we almost always request nilaga, sinigang, or fish soup which we call "kusido". Wait, haha, the most frequent answers were "kahit ano", "ikaw bahala" and "ewan". Of course, Papa would *tatatatatatatatatatatat* because we wouldn't give a (proper) answer.

But enough of reminiscing, it's time to give you some steps on how to cook pork nilaga. Just like last time, I will post the prices of the ingredients all of which I bought from the wet market here in Sauyo, Quezon City.

Pork Nilaga

Ingredients

• 3/4 kg pork (pigue), sliced

• 3 pcs medium-sized potatoes, cubed

• 1 pc medium-sized onion, quartered

• 3 bundles of pechay

• 4 pcs young corn

• 1 pc Knorr pork cubes (optional)

• Salt and whole peppercorns to taste

• ~ 1L of water

You can change the vegetables such as using baguio pechay or cabbage. My mom also loves putting saba (banana) in it. Young corn is not usually used in nilaga but it tastes well with the soup and also, it's my partner's request, so yeah.

What you'll need

• a deep pan (kaserola)

• spatula

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LET'S GET COOKING!

1. Put the pork in a medium-sized pan. Add 1L of water (you can add more if you want more soup). Make sure that the water line is around 1 inch above the meat since you will still have the meat soften.

2. Add around 1/2 tbsp salt, 2 tsp whole peppercorns, and onion. Leave it for around 30 minutes under medium heat.

3. After 30 mins, check if the meat is already tender. The fat of the meat should look a bit like jelly. If it already is so, you can then add the pork cubes for added flavor. Let it simmer.

4. Add the young corn and potatoes. Simmer for another 10 minutes.

5. Lastly, put the pechay (or other leafy vegetables) and simmer for 2-3 minutes. We don't want the pechay to be overcooked because it tastes better when a bit crunchy instead of soggy.

If you cooked for 2 meals already (like lunch and dinner or dinner then breakfast), I would suggest that you don't put all the pechay at once. Add them once you reheat to maintain the quality of the vegetable.

Here is the price list as promised:

This can already serve 6-7 people. For Php 206.00, it's not bad right? Compared to eating outside where your 200-pesos is good for just 1 person :( (unless you're eating in a fastfood --- so unhealthy, 1/2 chos!)

Got any requests? Just comment them below! Hahaha (ang arte)