Recipe 101: Sweet-and-Sour Gluten

Today I will post the recipe for the Sweet-and-Sour Gluten.

Gluten is a special type of protein. It is found in rye, wheat and barley.

*Not good for people with celiac disease.

Here are the ingredients for the Sweet-and-Sour Gluten

• 3/4 kilo gluten, sliced, fried

SAUCE:

• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1/2 medium-size carrot, cut into flowerettes
• 1/2 cup pineapple tidbits
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 4 pieces medium-size calamansi
• Salt to taste

Mix cornstarch, sugar, soy sauce, calamansi juice and water in a saucepan until smooth. Cook over medium fire. Add salt to taste. Stir until boiling. Add carrots and pineapple and cook until half done. Add gluten and cook for 5 minutes more. Serve hot.

Recipe 101: Fried Vegetarian Tocino

Tocino is made healthy with this simple recipe.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 kilo vegetarian tocino, sliced
• 2 pieces medium-sized cucumbers, sliced
• 2 pieces medium-sized tomatoes, sliced

Here's what you need to do. Slightly fry vegetarian tocino. Arrange on a platter. Garnish with cucumber and tomato slices. Serve hot!

Recipe 101: Sauteed Mongo Beans

Mongo Beans or Mung Beans are small ovoid shaped green beans. To sautee means to fry in a small amount of fat.

Sauteed Mongo Beans have the following ingredients:

• 2 cups cooked mongo beans
• 1 cup tokwa, cut in medium-size strips, fried
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon garlic, crushed
• 1 piece medium-size onion, sliced
• 1/2 cup tomatoes, chopped finely
• 2 cups hugas bigas
• salt to taste

Saute garlic, onion, and tomatoes. Add noiled mongo beans, and hugas bigas. Season with salt. Simmer for 3 minutes and stirring while cooking. Add tokwa. Cook for another 3 minutes. Serve hot.

Recipe 101: Tokwa Adobo

Here's the recipe for Tokwa Adobo.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 kilo tokwa, sliced or diced
• 1 cup vegetable oil for deep frying
• 1/4 cup calamansi juice
• 1 head garlic, minced
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 tablespoons soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon cream of mushroom powder(optional)
• Salt to taste

Marinate tokwa in calamansi juice, garlic, bay leaf, soy sauce, salt, and cream of mushroom powder overnight. Drain. Fry tokwa to desired browning. Serve hot.

*Good for 6 persons. 1 slice or 1/2 cup diced per serving.

Recipe 101: Potato-Egg Omelet

Here's one of the recipes from the previous article.
Potato-egg omelet seems to be an easy food to cook and is better served with these tips:

Ingredients:

• 1/2 kilo medium-size potatoes, peeled, diced
• 1 cup oil for deep frying
• 1/2 piece medium-size red pepper, chopped
• 1/2 piece medium-size onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 3 eggs, well beaten
• Salt to taste

Boil potatoes until almost cooked. Drain. Mix all ingredients well, except oil. Fry in small individual servings unless you want to make the continent of Asia in your omelet and cut them later. Place on an absorbent material such as table napkin or cheese cloth or what we Filipinos commonly call as katsa to reduce fat. Serve hot with sauce or ketchup.

*Good for 6 persons unless you're as big as the biggest losers on TV.

Balanced Diet: 3-day Meal Plan

Day 1
Breakfast
6:00 am - 7:00 am

• Banana
• Potato-egg omelet
• Whole wheat bread with margarine
• Unpolished rice
• Soy coffee with milk

Lunch

11:45 am - 12:15 pm

• Tokwa adobo
• Sauteed squash and string beans
• Unpolished rice
• Baked, boiled or fried nuts

Supper

6:00 pm - 6:30 pm

• Ginataang vegemeat
• Unpolished rice
• Fresh Pineapple

Day 2

Breakfast

6:00 am - 7:00 am

• Papaya
• Fried vegetarian tocino
• Boiled camote with butter
• Unpolished rice
• Warm milk, no sugar

Lunch

11:45 am - 12:15 pm

• Sweet-and-sour gluten
• Boiled camote tops
• Unpolished rice
• Baked, boiled or fried nuts

Supper

6:00 pm - 6:30 pm

• Sauteed mongo beans 
• Unpolished rice
• Fruit gulaman delight

Day 3

Breakfast

6:00 am - 7:00 am

• Apple
• Tempura chunks
• Pandesal with cheese
• Champorado
• Salabat

Lunch

11:45 am - 12:15 pm

• Vegetarian apritada
• Boiled malunggay
• Unpolished rice
• Soymilk

Supper

6:00 pm - 6:30 pm

• Chili beans
• Unpolished rice
• Fresh buko

*This is the 3-day meal plan for the balanced diet. I will post the ingredients for each mentioned recipe above on my next blog. Happy eating!

Diet 101: Balanced Diet

Balanced Diet aka General Diet aka Regular diet aka Full Diet aka Complete diet. 

What is a balanced diet? A balanced diet is a food preparation which provides complete nutrients as well as supplies carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals and fiber in their normal proportions. It is the basis for all diet modifications.

Tips:

• Eat 3 meals a day instead of frequent ones or eating between meals.
• Establish a regular eating habit. When you eat breakfast at 6 am, do so regularly.
• Eat a heavy breakfast, a moderate lunch, and a light supper. 
• Eat food of the right kind, at the right time and interval, in the right amount, and in the right condition of mind, so eating in a relaxed atmosphere is ideal.
• Have at least a 5-hour interval between meals for digestion to be efficient. Last meal of the day should be taken at least 3 hours before sleeping unless you want to commit suicide by eating a heavy meal before sleeping to increase your chance of pancreatitis.
• Eat more fresh fruits instead of rich desserts but can you really resist a mango float, it has fruits. :-?
• Eat at least one serving of dark green leafy vegetables a day.
• Eat more unrefined, unprocessed foods.
• Avoid tea, coffee, alcoholic and carbonated beverages. For those who can't be satisfied with plain water after eating, try drinking soft drinks instead of water and maybe you'll tell yourself you've had enough. P.S. not for diabetics.
• Drink at least 6 glasses of water a day between meals.
• Include a variety of foods each meal. 
• Take time to enjoy your food. Do not hurry.

I'll have a 3-day meal plan written on my next article. :-?