Lately I've been craving comfort food, food that reminds me of my childhood days at the dining table in our old Oakbrook house. For many people comfort food is mac and cheese, meatloaf, and apple pie. For me comfort food is Filipino food--a hearty, savory meat dish drizzled over a little hill of warm white rice. My mom cooked it, my dad cooked it, my grandparents, aunts, and uncles cooked it and would drop off some their food at our house. It just takes me back to when we all lived within walking distance of each other. My sisters, cousins, and I did not grow up helping in the kitchen, so as we've all entered adulthood, Filipino food is not found on our stove-tops very often.
Living on my own, I've relied on cooking the simple but tasty foods including pastas, baked salmon, salads, and quesadillas. With my busy schedule, it just seemed to work. Then I realized, if my mom and aunties can cook Filipino food with their busy schedules, working and parenting, I can totally do it as a single girl in the city! It wasn't until just a couple of years ago that I attempted to replicate my childhood classics. With help from only the internet, I decided to take a stab at one dish. Since then, I've added one more Filipino dish to my repertoire each year. And each time I make them, it gets easier and tastes better. Here's my short list. In another couple of years there will be more, and someday my children will think of Filipino food as their comfort food too.
- Pork and Vegetable Lumpia
- Tinola
- Adobo
- Kaldereta
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