Oh my Gulay (Pechay)!

My favorite veggie dish is Sauteed Chinese Cabbage or the commonly called Pechay (definitely not Prospero Pichay of Team Unity). I love it for its taste, nutritive value, and role in bowel movement. *hehehe*

Pechay, for me, is not merely a good food preference, it is food for one's good. It is not a sinful dish so a person may have a load of it--- I even prefer to eat it three or four times a week. Why not? it won't get me fat or have dyspepsia.

Whenever my mom asks me to buy any veggie at the barangay talipapa I usually buy Pechay--- what else?


So here’s my Sauteed Pechay.

Ingredients:
2 tbsp. oil
½ head garlic, macerated
1 small onion, sliced
3 tomatoes, sliced
1/3 cup shrimps, shelled and deveined
1 soy bean curd (tokwa), cut into cubes
3 bundles of Chinese cabbage (Pechay), sliced (separate the stalk form the leaves)
1 tsp. salt
Rice water

Procedure:
Fry soy bean curd (tokwa) until golden brown. Set aside. Saute garlic, onion and tomatoes in hot oil. Add shrimps and tokwa. Cook until done (sangkutsa). Add rice water to the desired amount and the Pechay stalks. Salt to taste. Let it simmer, then add the Pechay leaves. This ready to serve once the leaves are already wilted.

My mom always reminds me that the secret in cooking is the so called pagsasangkutsa or sauteing. It helps to bring the flavor of the meat ingredients.

Pechay leaves with lots of insect bites are bitter; it is then important to choose those with less holes. take note, do not include the holed portion of the Pechay leaves for better results.

Reminder: pechay, in whatever dish, will prompt you to go and find comfort, but one need not worry since it means the fibers worked well inside your tummy. ^_^