Saturday NAT Live!

It was a gloomy Saturday but that didn't stop my scheduled meeting with one of my blog's avid readers, NATIE.

We met at Krua Thai in Smallville for lunch, introductions and what else, food! Though she is no blogger, she's an avid fan of Iloilo and Ilonggo blogs. It was a feast with Thai specialties in between talks about blogs, blogging and bloggers.

When her friend, Amy, arrived, dessert was the next thing in mind. We thought of going downtown but wasting precious minutes waiting for a cab amidst the rain, we decided to go to an aptly named specialty shop, Nothing but Desserts, at The Avenue.

After a visual feast on what they had to offer we finally settled for gelato, panna cotta, choco bites and drinks. Then talks continued where it was left. Amy being a blogger herself shared some of her thoughts about the Iloilo food scene and some things in between.

Plus she gave us a sample of her sumptuous home made ube halaya.Nat also talked about her family, her work and the people she met. Eventually I found out that she was the mom of a balikbayan batch mate in high school!

It was a day full of surprises, even Lee, was updated through text as events unfold. Saturday ended being "busog" not only with food but with stories, surprises and the fact that it won’t be our last meeting.

Mama's Kitchen and Sinamay House in Arevalo

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Ultimate Ilonggo Favorite: KBL Kadyos, Baboy, Langka

K.B.L. or Kadyos, Baboy, Langka is the ultimate favorite dish of most Ilonggos. It is also one of the most missed native dishes as kadyos and the souring ingredient, batwan , are hard to find when outside of the Ilonggo region. Basically, it is boiled/stewed pork dish owing its "deliciousness" to the combination of the soft and tender pork, the tamed sourness of batwan and the malinamnam na sabaw . One of the "secrets" of the malinamnamn na sabaw , is the fact that the pork, whether just the plain meat or pata (hocks) are first grilled or broiled. This gives the broth a rather smoky taste that makes it more appetizing.. Learn how to make the Ilonggo dish KBL (Kadyos, Baboy, at Langka) with the recipe below. Ingredients 1 kilo Pata (pork hocks) or pork cubes, GRILLED and sliced into bite size pieces 1 unripe Jack fruit, cubed 2 cups pigeon pea (kadyos) 6-8 pieces batwan fruit (or tamarind powder) 1 piece por...

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Easy Century Tuna Recipes

If you're looking for simple, easy and delicious Century Tuna recipes online, congratulations, you've found it right here! How about spicy tuna sisig or tuna sinigang ? Maybe stir fried tuna with pickles or just yang chow fried rice . I love Century Tuna from its flakes in oil variety, the spicier the better, but when I discovered the versatility of its solid variant, it became an obsession. At first I was just into the usual tested recipes; pasta and sandwich filling, but then it got simpler – I just eat it straight from the can! Usually with a piece of bread or an apple. I just add a few drops of vinegar to spice it up a bit. Then came the experiments. Yup I got tired of that habit that one day, I decided to test my skills in the kitchen. Serendipity, you might call it yet most of them turned into good recipes that I have shared now and then. Satisfying my Palabok cravings had me experiment on this recipe on the spot. With Century Tuna in lieu of the us...

FLAVOURS OF ILOILO

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