Tropical Cooking with Travel Man: 7th Main Dish - Tropical Pasta

Craving for the usual pasta, I let my imagination worked as I gathered the available ingredients to make my own young coconut pasta. Instead of the wheat pasta noodles, I used young coconut strips in order to satisfy my palate. Instead of the tomato paste or sauce, the alternative I used is shrimp paste.

An old man used to peddle a P20-peso bundle of shrimp paste.It is already salty, so. adding salt is not needed anymore. I also found a very good taste enhance, the rat ear mushroom that is also rich in protein, usually found on decaying mango tree or tree trunk. Instead of ground meat, I used malunggay leaves and green papaya.Cooking time will be 15-20 minutes.

I will not worry of the word al dente in cooking the pasta. This is gonna be a very quick dish but the nutrients on it is gastronomic. Trust me!

If you can omit the shrimp paste, try using tomato paste or sauce instead for a complete vegetarian pasta.

Main Ingredient/s:

500 grams young coconut meat, stripped

For the sauce:

100 grams shrimp paste

250 grams green papaya, cut into bite size

100 grams malunggay leaves

50 grams garlic, minced

50 grams rat ear mushroom

1 teaspoon vegetable cooking oil

500 ml water

ground pepper

young leaves of pepper

How to cook:

1. Saute minced garlic in a little oil until brown.

2. Add the sliced green papaya.

3. Add half of the water. Cover the pan.

4. Add malunggay leaves when green papaya is half-tender.

5. Next is the rat ear mushroom and the young coconut meat strips. Add the remaining water, simmer.

6. Garnish with young pepper leaves.

Serves four. Bon apetit!!!

(Copyrighted and Personal writings by travel_man1971 aka Ireno Alcala)

The protein-rich young coconut meat is ideal for the islanders and visiting westerners as you search for more authentic tropical cooking in the Philippines.

By incorporating my background in professional cooking, I've been able to modify some of the existing ingredients for my pasta.

It's not expensive but the nutrients that you can get in my Tropical Pasta is also in comparison with the required food intake by health experts and nutritionists.

Home-cooked dishes are more fun to be shared with the members of the family and friends. They'll be the ones making 'real' comments on how you fare at the kitchen.

It's nice to be called 'chef' at home. It's nicer to provide them healthy food that you create, not only to satisfy them but also hone your skills in culinary.

Well, for the readers that will adopt this as one of their menu in food business, please leave comments or requests regarding this hub.

This hubber will be glad and will positively oblige on your request.