My favorite ingredient: Banana Catsup

While browsing the web and looking for a banana catsup articles, I found an article from Manila Bulletin about using catsup as one of the ingredients. It’s intertesing so I post it here. Read the article below:

Original article: http://www.mb.com.ph/issues/2009/02/08/20090208147407.html

My favorite ingredient: Banana Catsup
by Sol Jose Vanzi

Jafran was the very first banana catsup our family patronized. Later, we tried other brands and discovered them to be almost identical in taste and texture. They were all good as sauce or dip for fried fish, broiled pork, omelets, fried eggs, fried rice, lumpiang Shanghai, and lechon kawali.

From sauce to ingredient

One day, my grandma added banana catsup to her escabeche, thus thickening the vinegar-and-sugar sauce while adding a tart, chili flavor. The success of her first experiment with banana catsup encouraged her. Soon, she was stirring banana catsup into menudo, caldereta, and even sarciado.

Convenient, cost-efficient

As grandma’s kitchen disciple, I carried on her tradition of experimentation after I left home and ran my own household. My list of banana catsup recipes grew longer when husband Vic and I inherited five kids from my Japan-based younger brother. They were always hungry, but I was busy working for an American TV network; I had to develop recipes that were quick, inexpensive, nutritious, and pretty to look at.

Compare brands

The amount of catsup I consumed in the kitchen also led me to compare different brands and their prices. Of course, many housewives remain loyal to their brand of choice and claim their children can tell the difference. These days, my choice is the brand Dip which costs less than P60 per gallon. That’s equivalent to the price of two small bottles of other brands of banana catsup.

Recipes:

Pinoy barbeque sauce and marinade

Ingredients

1 kilo chicken, pork, beef, or fish
1 1/2 cups banana catsup
1/2 cup brown sugar or muscovado
1/4 cup vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup beer, wine, or any soft drink
1 crushed red chili pepper
1 tbsp salt

How to cook:

• Make the sauce by mixing everything except meat or fish.
• Marinate the meat or fish in half the sauce for an hour or more.
• Broil over high heat. Brush leftover sauce frequently over the pieces as they grill.

Note: The marinade and any sauce left after cooking should be boiled briefly before being served at the table to prevent any contamination. The catsup and brown sugar coat the meat pieces with a sticky covering that encourages slow, even cooking while at the same time providing an appealing burnished crust with several burnt spots.

Guandong steak

Ingredients

1/2 kilo very thinly sliced pork or beef loin
2 tbsp banana catsup
1 egg
1/2 cup corn starch
1/2 cup beer, wine, or water
2 tbsp soy sauce
Oil for deep frying

How to cook:

• Mix everything until smooth except meat. Coat all meat pieces with the marinade. Keep in refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
• Deep-fry very briefly meat pieces individually, about 1 minute per side. Do not overcook. Serve with cucumber or achara on the side.

Note: The catsup–cornstarch marinade tenderizes the meat and prevents shrinkage, allowing for more servings per recipe. This recipe can also be used with boneless chicken and fish fillet.

Ginisang bagoong

Ingredients

1 cup cooking oil
3 tbsp crushed garlic
1 cup chopped onions
2 long red chili peppers
1/2 cup #3 brown sugar or muscovado
1/2 cup banana catsup
1 kilo bagoong alamang

How to cook:

• Saute garlic and onions in hot oil until limp. Add peppers, sugar, and catsup; stir until oil separates. Pour in bagoong and cook over low heat, stirring frequently to avoid scorching.
• Simmer until reduced by 1/3 and bagoong changes color. Taste and add more sliced chili if needed.

Note: The catsup adds a hint of color to the drab bagoong, while improving its texture with the banana fruit’s natural viscosity. The tamis-anghang character of banana catsup balances the saltiness of preserved baby shrimp.

Sawsawan (dip) for lumpia, okoy, prito, fishball, kikiam, or inihaw

Ingredients

1 cup vinegar
1 cup banana catsup
1 tbsp crushed garlic
1 tbsp minced onion
1 tsp minced ginger
1 chopped chili pepper
1/4 tsp coarse black pepper

How to cook:

Pour everything in a bottle; shake and let stand for at least one hour before serving. Keep refrigerated when not in use.