Overshadowed by the more popular KBL (Kadyos, Baboy, Langka), another classic dish that makes Ilonggos crave and yearn for that simple but delicious eats is the combination of kadyos, native chicken and ubad.
The ever popular-to-the-Ilonggos-but-alien-to-others is kadyos – pigeon pea. Soft beans with hues playing from dark purple to black and gives a distinct violet shade to the broth it makes. READ MORE
Chicken also provides protein for this dish and to make it more Ilonggo, most of the time native chickens referred to as “Bisaya” or "darag" are used. NATIVE CHICKEN LITSON
And then there's ubad – it’s no typo error; yes it’s ubad with an “A”. Not to be confused with ubod, both are different yet share a similarity. Ubod is the pith of the coconut tree while ubad is the center of the banana trunk.
To get the fresh ubad, one has to peel the banana trunk to obtain that fleshy and white core that looks like a fluorescent lamp.
The prepare the ubad, the banana pith washed then is chopped then crushed and using a stick – one removes the weblike remains of the “hardened” sap.
Cooking this dish is quite easy as it mainly involves boiling of the ingredients and seasoning.
Here's the simple recipe for Kadyos Manok Ubad.
Ingredients
- 1 whole native chicken, cut into serving pieces
- 2 cups fresh kadyos, adjust
- 5 cups chopped ubad, adjust
- 5 cloves garlic, pressed
- 1 pc medium-sized onion, quartered
- 1 thumb-sized ginger, peeled and pressed
- 1 bundle tanglad (lemongrass)
- 2 pieces siling pansigang
- 2 pcs chicken bouillon cubes, optional
- Oil for sauteeing
- Salt and Pepper to taste
- 8 cups water, adjust accordingly
How to Cook Kadyos, Manok kag Ubad
- In a pan, boil kadyos beans in 3 cups water for about 10 minutes or until tender. Set aside.
- Over medium heat, saute ginger, onion and garlic one after another then add chicken. Stir fry for about 5 minutes.
- Add ubad and saute/stir fry for another 3 to 5 minutes. This is optional as you can proceed to boil the ubad.
- Place water in the pan enough to cover the chicken then add the kadyos beans. Bring to a boil then simmer.
- Season with salt and pepper. Adjust taste with chicken bouillon cubes, if desired.
- When chicken is cooked (tender and soft) add tanglad and sili pansigang. Make final taste adjustments.
- Simmer for another 5 minutes or everything is cooked.
- Serve as soup or as viand with rice.
The measurements for this recipe are just guides on cooking kadyos, manok and ubad. Just follow your cooking instincts in making this dish as if your own creation.
This dish doesn't have to be very strong in taste, so go easy on the seasonings. As the ubad becomes a delicious sort of extender in a good way, it tends to tame the over-all taste of the dish thus making it having a lightly pleasant tasting dish.
Another option is adding batwan, the quintessential Ilonggo souring fruit. It gives the broth a mild sourness.
At times, malunggay leaves are added as greens creates contrast on how it looks not to mention more nutritional benefits.