Beef Caldereta

I don’t cook much tomato based viands coz it’s my hubby’s least favorite. But I want to try cooking one to break the usual soup based like tinola,sinigang and nilaga.  So I decided to trybeef caldera.  This would be my first try.  As I was preparing; I kept praying,“Lord, please let this be taste good!”

God is so good!  My hubby rated it with five stars (five isthe highest).

Ingredients:
500 g Lean Beef (cut into bite size)
85 g Liverspread
90 g Tomato Sauce
½ cup Grated Cheddar Cheese
5 tbs Soy Sauce
5 tbs Vinegar
½ tsp Brown Sugar
1 pc Medium Onion (minced)
3 gloves Garlic (minced)
1 pc Carrot (diced)
1 pc Medium Potato (diced)
1 pc Medium Red Bell Pepper  (diced)
2 ½ cups Water
Salt and Pepper

Procedures:

1. In a sauce pan, combine soy sauce, vinegar, brown sugar, onion, and garlic.
2. Add beef and mix thoroughly. Marinate for an hour.
3. Bring to boil the marinade mixture with constant stirring.
4. Add water and bring to boil.
5. Simmer beef under low fire for about an hour or until tender. 
6. Add small amount of water when beef tends to dry up.
7. In a wok, stir fry carrot and potato under medium fire then add liverspread.
8. Add beef together with its sauce. Stir.
9. Add tomato sauce.  Stir and season to taste with salt and pepper.
10. Remove from fire and add cheese & bell pepper. Stir.
11. Serve while hot.

Makes 3-5 servings.

Tip:  You may use pressure cooker to shorten the cooking time of the beef.  Please refer to your pressure cooker cooking guide.

Pork Adobo with Fruit Cocktail

Though it’s one of their favorites, my kids got tired of my usual Adobo.  I told myself that I must come up with another variety.  In the commercial, Juday’s version has pineapple in her adobo.  But we have allergy in pineapple!  Too much pineapple is not good for us.  Maybe I can try fruit cocktail, since it has less pineapple.  And it worked!  Kids and hubby love my new adobo.

Ingredients:
500 g Pork Kasim (shoulder pork cut “picnic”)
400 g Fruit Cocktail in heavy syrup
2 cloves Garlic (minced)
1 tbs. Brown Sugar
½ cup Cane Vinegar
½ cup Soy Sauce
2 pc. Laurel Leaves
5-10 pcs. Black Peppercorn
2 cups Water

Procedures:

1. Cut pork into small bite proportion.
2. Drain fruit cocktail, set aside and save syrup.
3. Dissolve brown sugar in fruit cocktail’s syrup.
4. Add vinegar and garlic.  Stir.
5. Marinate pork in the syrup for an hour.
6. In a saucepan, cook the pork with the syrup and add 2 cups water.
7. Bring to boil and remove the white bubbles.
8. Lower the fire and simmer pork until tender.
9. From time to time stir the pork while simmering.
10. Do not let it dry while cooking. 
11. When pork is almost tender, add soy sauce, laurel leaves & peppercorn.  Stir.
12. Turn off fire when pork is tender and add fruit cocktail.  Stir.
13. Serve while still hot.

Makes 4-5 servings.


Tip:  If it tends to dry while cooking, add small amout of water from time to time until meat is tender.