13 Aug2010 Sayote Fries a la Wynn Wynn Ong.

Simply peel and slice a large sayote (chayote, merliton) as you would a potato for fries. Next, make a light batter with 1 cup of fine ground rice flour, 1 cup all-purpose flour, a teaspoon of salt, just under a teaspoon of ground turmeric and just enough ICE water to make a smooth batter. It shouldnt be too thick, nor too runny. Drop your sayote into this mixture and pop it into the fridge to chill until just ready to cook and serve.

Meanwhile, make the dipping sauce. The dipping sauce is essential to the success of this dish. Much of the flavor comes from the sauce. In a mortar, add 1-2 cloves of slow roasted garlic (I had no patience, so I took two cloves of garlic with their peel still on, popped them onto the floor of a hot oven that I was using to bake chicken, and removed them 2-3 minutes later). Peel the garlic and start from there. Add 5 pieces coriander root, 2-3 pieces of siling labuyo for heat or spice and smash this up for a few seconds. Add a couple of tablespoons of thai fish sauce (patis), a teaspoon of kikkoman or other light soy sauce, not heavy lorins or similar pinoy toyo, 1 tablespoon rice vinegr, 3 tablespoons of water, 1 teaspoon sugar and the juice of 2-3 kaffir limes or dayap. Add chopped coriander leaves for more flavor and color. Next, heat up some oil for frying and fry the sayote for a few minutes until it just begins to get a nice golden color. Drain on paper towels and serve with the sauce on the side. They are surprisingly CRISP and delicious. They do get soft after a few minutes sitting around, but so do regular fries in this countrys humid weather. Everyone in the house (except maybe the Teen) loved this dish. Dont think of them as substitutes for potato fries, just think of them as sayote fries with a wonderful dip. Excellent. The recipe is credited to Ms. Ong completely. Sweet and sour boneless tilapia fillets April 17, 2006 By Connie 13 Comments According to a local magazine, tilapia is St. Peters fish. Whether that has some historical connotation (Jesus and his disciples were fishermen, right?) or just a name given out of whim, I wouldnt know. But I do know that tilapia is one of the most common fish sold in Philippine markets relatively cheap, meaty and, when cooked correctly, juicy and tasty. .

Well, its possible. The sweet and sour boneless tilapia fillets in the photo is evidence of that. Ingredients : 750 g. of tilapia fillets salt and pepper flour a carrot, peeled and cut into thin rings about a cup and a half of chicharo (snow peas, snap peas), ends and sides trimmed 1 large red bell pepper, cored and diced a large white onion or 2 shallots, peeled and thinly sliced half a head of garlic, peeled and crushed a small piece of ginger (about the size of your thumb), cut into thin strips 3-4 c. of cooking oil For the sweet and sour sauce : 1 tbsp. of tomato paste vinegar (lemon or kalamansi juice tastes better and is more aromatic) water sugar salt pepper tapioca or corn starch Cooking procedure : Heat the cooking oil in frying pan (a wok is ideal). Cut the tilapia fillets into 2-inch pieces. Season with salt and pepper. Dredge in flour, shaking off the excess, and fry in batches (do not over crowd the pan) in very hot oil until crisp and golden. Drain on absorbent paper towels. Mix together all the ingredients for the sweet and sour sauce. Go by your preference. Some like it more sour than sweet; others, just the opposite. Normally, you will need about a teaspoonful of starch for every 3/4 c. of water for a rather thick sauce. Of course, thats not a hard and fast rule since the quality of commercial starch varies. Pour off the cooking oil until only about 2 tablespoonfuls remain. Reheat. Stir fry the carrot and chicharo for about 30 seconds. Add the rest of the vegetables and stir fry for another 30 seconds. Return the fish fillets to the pan. Pour in the sweet and sour sauce and cook, stirring, until thick and clear.