January 3, 2025 | 12:43pm
MANILA, Philippines — Marketing executive and weekend kitchen warrior Ces Nepomuceno-Gamad is not a fan of kalabasa (squash). She eats Pinakbet but takes only a few pieces of kalabasa with her bites of the famous Ilocano vegetable dish.
In Ginataang Sitaw at Kalabasa, she makes sure she mashes the kalabasa with the coconut-based sauce so she does not have to chew mushy chunks of it.
Her whole perspective changed when she tried sweet roasted pumpkin in a breakfast salad in a Melbourne café last September. It had a poached egg and toast with it, and it was not mushy. She found it smooth, sweet and savory, and she actually enjoyed it. So, she thought she could make something like that — simple, yet colorful and flavorful.
Back home in Manila after the trip, Ces began working on it. She used mustasa (mustard greens) instead of lettuce or arugula, since she observed that in Pampanga, mustasa was used to pair with the Kapampangans’ creamy fermented fish called Buro. She had faith that the creamy sweet vegetal flavors of kalabasa would complement the minty, tangy flavor of mustasa leaves — and they did.
Here is the recipe of the salad she had just created.
Mustasa’t Kalabasa Salad
Ingredients:
For the salad:
2 segments kalabasa, peeled and seeded, sliced into cubes
1 bunch mustasa, stalks shredded, leaves sliced to about 1/2-inch widths
1/2 pc. white onion, sliced
2 pcs. Shiitake mushrooms, sliced (optional)
2 tbsps. kalabasa seed nuts, toasted
Salt and pepper to taste
For the dressing:
2 tbsps. mustard
1 tbsp. honey
1 tbsp. cashew vinegar or sukang Iloko
Procedure:
1. Prepare the dressing. Simply combine the ingredients and mix well.
2. In a hot pan, add a small amount of oil to grease the surface. Add kalabasa cubes and arrange evenly in the pan. Don’t stir right away to allow the edges of the kalabasa to brown. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.
3. In the same pan, sauté Shiitake mushrooms and set aside. Mushrooms add umami and protein in the salad. This could be substituted with leftover Lechon Manok or Longganisa slices.
4. In a salad bowl or container, spread the creamy tangy dressing on the bottom and sides. Add in sliced mustasa leaves, kalabasa cubes, and white onion slices. Toss with the dressing.
5. Top with toasted kalabasa seed nuts and sautéed mushrooms.
RELATED: Recipe: Lean and mean salad to try
Be the first to comment