Togi/Wild root starch

I just started some long beans seeds (sitaw). Not all of them showed up yet but this is what it looks like when they emerge from the soil. It’s not quite ready for transplanting yet. I have to wait for what they call “true” leaves before moving them to the garden bed. I already set…

Patola is what we call the luffa gourd. There are two types of this gourd but I am only familiar with the one that has angles or ridges on the skin. This is the specie called Luffa Acutangula. The other specie must have been introduced in the Philippines at a later date. We call it…

Chinese Broccoli also known as Kai-lan or Gai-lan is one of my favorite vegetable to grow. It is also my favorite vegetable to stir-fry. I first encountered these delectable leafy vegetable when I traveled to Hongkong a decade or so ago. Most of the restaurants in Hongkong serve these delicious leafy greens mixed with meat,…

Kamatis or tomato is the ever popular vegetable in the world, rightly so because of its versatility in the culinary world and also for its nutritional value. Regarded as either a fruit or a vegetable, either way, tomato is good to eat by itself or combined with other foods especially in salad or salsa. There…

Sweet Basil (also known as Italian Basil) is the most used herb nowadays. That’s why I have it in the garden so I can readily pick the leaves if I need to make pesto or just plain use the leaves in pasta. I particularly like it in Penne Pasta Alfredo with Shrimp or Chicken. Sweet…

Bixa Orellana Achuete is probably the most important ingredient in the Filipino cuisine. The bright red color that imparts in the food makes the food more palatable and presentable. It is most used in recipes that we inherited from the Spaniards like the dish we call “menudo” or the famous “paella”. Achuete is an evergreen,…