Foot and Fire

For this beef soup, use beef with bones which carry the marrow. This is a no-sweat beef soup. The trick is to quickly boil the beef and remove the froths and sediments forming above the water. Put more water and bring to boil until the meat is tender (This is the waiting part especially if there is no pressure cooker in the house). While boiling, put the Chinese Five Spice (Please see earlier post ). I have Cinnamon sticks and star anise in the house, so aside from the powder, I put some of it as I love the woody and earthy aroma of these two spices.  If the meat is tender, adjust taste with pepper and salt. When done with the taste, put the trimmed native pechay  and let vegetable cook covered for one to two minutes . Serve piping hot.   

By GERLIE M. UY Linaga nga Baka with Langka... Weekends are best as we have time to slow-cook like this linaga. Beef soup are best with slow cook so that one can get the real beef stock. It is always a treat! Once in a while, it is great to have meat protein for this vegetable girl. 1 kilo Beef (Cuts with bones) 3 liter water batuan (sour fruit popular in Visayas) 3 thumbs of ginger 1 knot of lemongrass leaves Jalapeno Chili Salt 1 T of Chinese Five Spice (optional) Slices of unripe jackfruit Wash the beef cuts and place in a cauldron with water. Bring to boil until meat is tender. At least 2 hours in charcoal fire. But this must be shorter in pressure cookers. Add crushed batuan, crushed ginger, and lemongrass. Bring to boil until the spices are in the soup. Add salt. Add jalapeno, more salt if needed, Chinese five spice and the unripe jackfruit. Let boil until jackfruit is cooked. Where we cooked it... Whole fresh batuan, crushed. Sliced unripe jackfruit.