Wow Dinuguan!
It’s been quite a while after my last blog. Days and nights
had been hell busy but I always make it a point that I go back to either
reading or writing. God has always been good despite the troubles and HE has
given me time to write again.
Going home from an ephemeral night shift allows me to go
straight to the market and buy what our kitchen requires. I was wondering yesterday
if Dinuguan is a good “come back” article (LOL). And so I went straight to my “suking”
meat stall and bought few kilos of pork (instead of pig’s innards) and dugo
(pig’s blood). I would like to believe that not every cook or even chef in the
country can cook the perfect Dinuguan. And of course, I assume that some of you
have tried eating commercial Dinuguan maybe from Goldilocks, Mang Inasal or
even at Lydia’s Lechon. Among these
three, I am inclined to eat it at Lydia’s Lechon if I succumbed to my cravings
and come hell or high waters I won’t ever eat it at Mang Inasal.
Entering into a married life allows me to try new recipes
and to experiment. Honestly, I have only tried to cook Dinuguan when I got
married even though I know how to cook it way back high school and I owe to
father and my ales. I have learned that if you know your VINEGAR and what it
can do then you are off to a good Dinuguan.
We should also remember that one of the main ingredients of
this recipe is pig’s blood and cooking it with vinegar is the key to remove the
unwanted stench (lansa). More so, some are using ginger for the recipe but I
personally cannot consider that as an authentic Dinuguan. And I think that most
of you are aware of another Dinuguan variant called Tinumis. As far as I know,
the main difference is the consistency (Dinuguan is usually thicker than
Tinumis) and the use of “usbong ng sampalok” (tamarind sprouts) while some
other people use “kamias” to cook Tinumis.
In using vinegar on the recipe, we should take note that
vinegar should be well cooked. The sign that your vinegar is cooked is when the
pungent smell or taste is no longer there. Again, how you use your vinegar is
the best way to remove the stench on pig’s blood and to have a delicious
Dinuguan.
Furthermore, it is also essential how you add and stir the
pig’s blood after sautéing your pork with crushed garlic and onion. You have to
pour it gradually while continuously stirring it to avoid LUMPING of the blood.
It is like doing the basic rue technique in a way as far as I remember my
baking class way back.
Finally, do not forget to add your “siling pamaksiw” (green
chilly) to add flavor in your Dinuguan.
For recipes and suggestion, do not hesitate to shoot me an
email. By the way, I still owe 2 readers a recipe. Please bear with me, I just
need to get my act back together and I will send it to both of you.
Until next time. Boom!
