With the ongoing Enhanced Community Quarantine, everyone is tasked to stay at home and only go out if doing “THE ESSENTIALS” like going out to buy food. As much as we want to have fresh ingredients every day, we simply do not have that kind of luxury. So, I have listed down 5 Healthy Pinoy Meals that you might want to indulge while on quarantine.
These meals are all easy to make and can help you achieve the “Pinggang Pinoy” or the ideal type and amount of food that one should eat per meal.
1. Ensaladang Mangga (Green Mango Salad)
With the upcoming mango season, it is expected that the price of mangoes would eventually go down anytime soon. If you are lucky enough, you might be able to pick it up fresh from the tree of your neighbor (or maybe you have your own mango tree in your province).
This Pinoy-style salad is the perfect side dish for any fried or grilled food, may it be chicken, fish or pork.
Ingredients:
1 pc. Green Mango
2 pcs. Tomatoes
1 small Onion
Shrimp Paste
Procedure:
1. Dice all the ingredients.
2. Mix then top with shrimp paste.
3. Serve with any fried or grilled meat and enjoy!
2. Ginisang Monggo (Mung Bean Soup)
A dish usually eaten every Friday most especially during the Lent season. Boiling the mung bean might take some time but it is a sure hit in every table.
This dish is often partnered with fried galunggong.
Ingredients:
1 cup Mung Beans
4 cups water
1/4 kg Pork
Malunggay Leaves
Fish Sauce
Tomatoes
Garlic
Onion
Cooking Oil
Salt
Pepper
Procedure:
1. Boil 4 cups of water.
2. Wash the mung beans then put in the boiling water. Simmer until soft.
3. On a separate pan, sauté the garlic, onion, tomatoes, and pork. Add salt and pepper.
4. Put fish sauce and simmer until the pork is tender.
5. Once cooked, pour mung beans and simmer for a few more minutes.
6. Add in malunggay leaves. You can also add chicharon for added taste and texture.
7. Serve while hot and enjoy!
3. Pork Sinigang
Who would forget this dish? Aside from its versatility, it’s also nutritious as its ingredients call out for a lot of vegetables.
Ingredients:
2 kg Pork Belly or Buto-Buto
Water Spinach (Kangkong)
Fish Sauce
String Beans
Lady Finger (Okra)
Radish
Green Finger Pepper (Siling Haba)
Tomatoes
Onion
1 pack Sinigang Mix
2 L Water
Salt
Pepper
Procedure:
1. Put pork, tomatoes, salt, and pepper in the water and bring to a boil.
2. Once boiling, lower heat and put the sinigang mix and a bit of fish sauce.
3. Put green finger pepper, lady finger, and radish after a few minutes.
4. Once the meat is tender, add the string beans and simmer for a few minutes.
5. Add water spinach, turn off the heat, and cover the pot. Leave it covered for a few minutes.
6. Serve hot and enjoy!
One of my favorite places to have sinigang when dining out is Manam and the one we have in Quezon Province, the Kamayan sa Palaisdaan.
4. Kwatro Kantos (Winged Beans in Coconut Milk)
Since coconut is abundant here in the Philippines, there’s a lot of dishes made with coconut. But buying it fresh from the market would be a bit hard nowadays. Good thing, packed coconut milk is also available in the supermarkets.
Kwatro Kantos is also known as Gising-Gising.
Ingredients:
Garlic
Winged Beans
Dried Anchovies
Coconut Milk
Cooking Oil
Water
Salt
Pepper
Procedure:
1. Heat oil in a pot and sauté onion and garlic.
2. Add dried anchovies (or you can also use shrimp paste) and cook for a few minutes.
3. Pour coconut milk and bring to a simmer.
4. Add the winged beans and continue to cook for a few minutes or until the vegetables are tender.
5. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
6. Serve and enjoy!
5. Chicken Tinola
Another healthy Pinoy meal that’s super easy to make!
Ingredients:
1 kg Chicken
Cooking Oil
Green Papaya
Hot Pepper Leaves
Onion
Garlic
Ginger
Fish Sauce
Water
Salt
Pepper
Procedure:
1. Sauté garlic, onion, and ginger.
2. Put in chicken and cook for a few minutes.
3. Add fish sauce, salt, and pepper to taste.
4. Pour water and bring it to a boil.
5. Add green papaya and for it to cook along with the chicken.
6. Add hot pepper leaves and cook a minute.
7. Serve hot and enjoy!
Eating a balanced meal every day while on quarantine is easy and affordable with these healthy Pinoy meals! You can also check out our flexible quarantine meal ideas.
