How to Cook Philippines’s Pinakbet

Today I am learning another dish, a familiar food wherever you are in the Philippines. I am cooking Pinakbet, which is a mix of vegetables sauteed in fish or shrimp sauce. It does not only sound delicious, but it also tastes delicious.

There are many versions of this dish in my home country. Today, I am following the way my family prepares it in Cebu.

Here are the ingredients:

• Garlic, minced

• Onions, chopped

• Tomato, chopped

• Okra, trimmed

• Pumpkin, cut into bite-sized pieces

• Eggplant, sliced

• Bitter melon

• Fermented fish (bagoong)

• Pork belly, cut into cubes

• Salt to taste

Heat oil in a pan. Fry sliced eggplant. Set aside once it turns brown.

Saute garlic, onion, and tomatoes.

Then add the pork belly.

Add diced pumpkin.

Add three tablespoons of Bagoong.

Pour water depending on your preferred volume. Let it simmer for 15 minutes. Mash the pumpkin.

Then add the bitter melon, okra, and the rest of the pumpkin. Simmer again for 15 minutes.

Add your sliced eggplants and season to taste.

Mix and wait for a couple of minutes, and it’s ready to be served. You may add more ingredients.

Mangaon ta (let’s eat).

Talk to you soon.

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P.S.

This post is part of my 30-day diary, an assignment for my Journalism in Public Life subject. All the embedded links and visuals are attributed. Feel free to leave your comment below or send me a private message if you have questions or clarifications. Thanks for dropping by.