Wednesday, January 18, 2012

The Ibanag Longanisa Experiment

I can't tell you how gratified I was when Nami of Just One Cookbook blog fame featured my Arroz Ala Cubana. One of the goals of my blog is to promote Filipino food, and I'm glad I have been able to do so. Nami, who has a Japanese background, sharing that her family loved my Filipino dish is just one example of my goal.

I also appreciate readers who email me to share how my blog has inspired them to cook. Recently, I received emails from two of my readers. These two emails have made me doubly excited because the readers who sent them are from my hometown. Mae, who balances her time working at DENR and being a mom wrote:

I enjoy reading your blogs which I find heartwarming and inspiring. Like you, I love going to the kitchen, too. I'd like to believe that it is in the kitchen where we, moms, put our magic wands to good use. Isn't it that the best ingredient that we sprinkle in every dish is LOVE?:-)

She further shared that when she tried one of my recipes, she was so pleased with the finished product. More than that, her kids showed their approval by overwhelming her with hugs and kisses.

Melisande describes herself as a novice in the kitchen and she emailed me saying:

I used to hate cooking but not anymore... and that's because I find a lot of inspiration in your blog... I don't think I'll ever become as good as you are in cooking but I hope I become a good mom like you.. God Bless!

I share my stories and recipes to inspire home cooks like me to be creative in the kitchen and to celebrate family life around their dining tables. Nothing thrills me more than knowing that some readers try the recipes and appreciate the family stories I share. I thrive on feedback, so all these emails do me a great favor.

So with Mae and Melisande in mind, I was inspired to make this dish using ingredients that are readily available in my hometown of Tuguegarao. I took a breakfast staple, Ybanag Longanisa,which I shared a few posts ago, and mixed it with an unexpected partner: tahong (mussels). An easy and inexpensive fix; yet I'm sure it will bring forth love and warmth around the dining table.



Tahong con Longanisa (Mussels with Sausage)

Ingredients:
6 pcs. Longanisa
2 lbs. mussels 
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 medium tomato sliced
maggi seasoning
3/4 cup white wine


Procedure

Cook the longanisa in a large sauté pan with 3/4 cup water over medium heat until they turn golden brown on all sides. Set aside. Using the same pan (but pour out excess fat, use only about 2 tbsp) saute garlic, onions and tomatoes.

Toss the mussels into the pan, and increase the heat to high. Cover lightly with a lid and cook over medium heat for 2-3  minutes or until the shells have opened.  
Meanwhile slice the longanisa into halves.  Add it back to the pan.  Toss and cook a little more.  
Pour in the white wine,  to deglaze the pan.  Scrape the brown bits from the bottom of the pan.  Stir until the wine reduces by half.  Season with maggi seasoning, salt and pepper.

Garnish with toasted garlic and cherry tomatoes.

Enjoy




14 comments:

  1. I do a clam dish on the grill with sausage - so am loving this combination. The briny and the spicy.

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  2. This is a great combination. Massingo nga pulutan.

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  3. Hi Malou-the only way to cut out the points in fat...is to eliminate the sausage. The mussels, are incredibly delicios!

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  4. Claudia: grilling it may sound a lot healthier. yum
    Taga tugue: diefinitely nasingo nga pulutan yaw
    Elisabeth: hmmmm i should... ok i promise to behave better haha.thanks for the reminder!

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  5. I bet the vinegar in our Ybanag longganisa complimented the tahong perfectly! Great combo, can't wait to try it someday! :)

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  6. This dish is completely new to me but I know you well enough that if you post it, it will be delicious. Have a wonderful evening. Blessings...Mary

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  7. Congratulations on being featured on Nami's blog...she's just terrific! Whenever I get an email from a reader I do the happy dance - it is SO gratifying that someone has taken the time to write and/or ask a question.

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  8. I've never seen mussels with sausages before! How awesome! I'm not a big fan of mussels but I can enjoy sausages while my husband enjoys mussels! What a great recipe!

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  9. If this is your experiment, I will be a willing participant as a taste tester! The only thing I ask is give me a glass of beer to push these down. Looks good, Malou!

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  10. I'm back again, Malou to let you know I just had to get some sausage...not just any sausage, but from my favorite Italian meat market. Forget about what I mentioned, cutting out the fat, I was probably mad at myself for trying to do w/out. I just have to eat great food like your amazing dish...sparingly!

    p.s. I also checked out your Arroz a La Cubana, did not want to leave a comment on that page, in case you won't see it. So incredibly good, with the egg on the top. That's what I call a hearty and superb breakfast or at any time:DDD

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  11. That looks and sound so delicious, Malou. I like anything surf and turf. This is really ingenious. Shall we eat this on rice... or grits perhaps?

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  12. Yum, I love longganisa and mussels separately...but your dish looks delicious!

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  13. Aww you are SUCH an inspiration malou! All of your recipes look wonderful. What a great mussels dish!

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  14. You are indeed an inspiration Malou! And this dish is just lovely, my kids would swap you for me as a mom in a heartbeat :)

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Thank you for stopping by and oh I would be thrilled even more if you could leave a comment... :) Cheers!

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