ginataang labong w/ saluyot

i’m back.  it’s good to be back on track.

for more than a year now i’ve left off my monkey diet-it’s not actually a diet because diets don’t work, it’s just a simple food program i’ve created-which is not really called monkey diet in the first place, but by a longer, much longer, name, ahm, needless to say.

it was about the time of year (last year, no, last, last year) when good friends are dear, the time of year when the world sincere ruins any and all attempts you make at keeping your weight in check and at par and you find everybody else agreeing with you (eventually, or so you’ve convinced yourself) that “it’s christmas and diets are suspended during christmas!”  well, at any rate, it’s good to be back on track, after more than a year’s leave not just from my diet-which-isn’t-a-diet but likewise from my taking pictures of the various foods i prepared at that time.  our point-and-shoot digicam broke!  at any rate, the people i live with (that would be my wife and 2-3 children-who-are-no-longer-children) now have phones that are equipped with cameras.  we also have a pet dog named “doorstopper” but probably, i guess, you’re not interested in that.

thanks to a friend of mine who said, “you’ve done it before, you can do it again!” 

this viand is a classic, or a variation of a classic dish (whatever that means.)  ginisang labong was a favourite of mine growing up.  my mom prepared this viand often as i still recall (it’s never easy to forget) that spine-chilling odorifarious grub fresh from the market (it’s fresh but it’s actually been chemically processed.)  but i don’t recall her cooking it ginataan, it was (as i recall) always ginisa-and never with saluyot because she isn’t a G.I.

stories abound (do they?) about the saluyot being the national plant or shrub (whatever) of ilocoslovakia.  i remember reading long before how the inimitable max soliven never so often mentions this in his editorials in the philippine star.  i read pdi nowadays.  anyway, the analogy goes something like this: the saluyot is a hardy plant, you can plant it anywhere and it thrives in any kind of soil against the most adverse conditions, just like the genuine ilocano, he can prosper anywhere in the world and in the most adverse economic conditions.  ahm, for the most part, that’s it.  mabuhay ang mga G.I.!

now, for our recipe you will be needing...

about 1/4 kilo labong (bamboo shoot)

saluyot (leaves) from about 6-10 stems

3/4-1 cup coconut cream, pure (kakang-gata)

2 cups coconut cream, diluted

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1 medium onion, sliced or diced

1 thumb-size ginger, sliced or diced

1-2 red chili peppers, optional

100 grams whether pork, shrimp whatever (if you use)

salt or bagoong (or whatever flavoring you use)

some vinegar for boiling

here’s how: (this is assuming everything is washed and clean)

1. boil the labong in water with some vinegar (okay, about 2 tablespoons vinegar.)

2. drain.

3. combine the diluted coconut cream with the garlic, onion, ginger, pepper, pork (or whatever), salt (or whatever) in a saucepan.  bring to a boil.

4. add labong and bring to a boil.

5. add the saluyot and simmer until labong is tender to the bite.

6. adjust taste.

7. add the pure coconut cream (kakang-gata) and cook further  for 1 minute.

8. turn off heat.  mix and serve.