Kare-Kare
For years ive been cooking Kare-Kare but not for family's meal. If someone, not my family, asked me to cook for them this famous Filipino dish, that's the only time my family can eat it coz i have to add extra so we can have it too. The reason is that my fifth son is allergic to peanuts. And i dont want him to "feel sorry" by eating different when we are all sitting and having a nice meal, eating Kare-Kare.
I feel sad but we tell him that continue praying maybe one day the good Lord will allow him to eat peanuts. One time,Ton-ton told me that when Jesus comes again, he will ask Him to let him taste peanut before taking him to the "new land". But we are thankful his allergy to peanut is not that severe. Other people just smelling peanut will have adverse reaction to them. My Ton-ton only reacts when he eats it.
Then one day my older kids who are working in Woolworths said there are new products in the supermarket including cashew nut spread. Then i thought about trying to do Kare-Kare using cashew nuts instead of peanuts. Question is, will it taste the same? I know Ton-ton is not allergic to cashew nuts. But to make sure, before adding the new product cashew nut spread to my Kare-Kare, i let him taste the spread a teaspoonful and let him stay beside me. After 30 minutes there was no reaction! oh my! thank you, thank you! Usually after just few seconds upon eating peanuts he will feel different. Although the product use cashew nuts, still we dont know if its really pure cashew nuts they used.
That was the very first day we all enjoyed dinner having Kare-Kare. The taste is the same as using peanuts. My Ton-ton was very happy. Finally he can eat Kare-Kare. But only if cashew nut is used.
Cashew Spread
My Kare-Kare version:
1/4 cup canola oil
7 cloves garlic, crushed
1 whole onion, sliced
1 pk annatto
2 kls beef, sliced approximately 7 cm cubed
1/3 cup patis
6 cups warm water
250 g Cashew spread
4 pcs eggplant, sliced diagonally
20 pcs string beans
3 buckchoy
1 can banana blossom
1/8 cup or according to taste white sugar (optional)
bagoong alamang, to serve
1. Heat oil in a pan.
2. Saute garlic then onion.
3. Add the beef. Fry for about 1 to 2 minutes.
4. Add the annatto.
5. Season with patis.
6. Pour on the warm water. Cover and simmer until beef is tender, adding more warm water if necessary.
7. Add the banana blossom. Cover and simmer until the blossom is a bit soft.
8. Add the cashew spread. Keep on stirring until no more lumps from the spread. Then add the sugar if the spread is not that sweet.
9. Add the eggplant and string beans. Cover and simmer until the vegetables are half cooked.
10. Add the buckchoy. Cover. Turn off the heat.
11. Let rest for a few minutes and serve with bagoong alamang.
12. Enjoy with hot steamed rice.
This is a speedy version. My longer version is using pumpkin puree instead of annatto or using both. Replacing half of the spread with crushed to powdered roasted cashew nuts and adding rice flour as thickener. And i dont use tripe coz nobody in my family wants it plus I use beef that has less fat.
