The Happy Home Cook: Instant Pot Guinataang Sitaw at Kalabasa

The Happy Home Cook features cherished recipes of Filipino dishes from well-known foodies and contributors. If you have a recipe that you are proud of and would like to share, please send it along with a photo of the dish, your two-sentence bio and your picture to submissions@positivelyfilipino.com.

Instant Pot Guinataang Sitaw at Kalabasa (Photo by Elizabeth Ann Quirino)

As the holidays are fast approaching, you can avoid overloading the stove-top or oven when preparing several dishes at the same time for your family gatherings. Now you can prepare the classic Filipino Guinataang Sitaw at Kalabasa in the Instant Pot or any multi-cooker brand in minutes. Serve savory chunks of kalabasa (kabocha squash) and slices of sitaw (yard long beans) simmered in a rich blend of coconut and seasonings. The currently popular Instant Pot or most multi-cookers are not your mother’s pressure cooker. This counter-top kitchen appliance conveniently cooks dishes in minutes without losing the traditional flavors. Serve this vegetable dish as a side or entrée.

Reprinted with permission from Instant Filipino Recipes: My Mother’s Traditional Philippine Food In a Multi-cooker Pot by Elizabeth Ann Besa- Quirino. Available on Amazon.com 

Ingredients

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil

2 garlic cloves peeled and minced

1 large white or yellow onion, sliced

1-inch knob fresh ginger peeled and sliced

2 Tablespoons patis (fish sauce)

2 cups sliced sitaw (long green beans), cut into 2-inch pieces

3 cups cubed kalabasa (kabocha squash), cut into 2-inch cubes

2 cups organic vegetable broth

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 (15-ounce) can coconut milk 

Procedure

• Preheat the multicooker by selecting Sauté on high heat.

• When the inside pot is heated (about 1 minute), add the vegetable oil. Sauté the garlic, onions and ginger for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the patis.

• Click Cancel to turn off the Sauté button.

• Add the sitaw and kalabasa. Pour the vegetable broth into the pot. Season with salt and black pepper.

• Secure the lid. Check that the cooking pressure is on High and the release valve is set to Sealing.

• Select High Pressure* and cook for 8 minutes.

• ·       When cooking is complete, use a quick release and carefully open the lid.

• ·       Pour the coconut milk into the pot and stir the ingredients together.

• ·       Close the lid. Click Keep Warm for 8 minutes for the flavors to blend.

• ·       Serve warm with steamed rice.

*Note: After the initial Sauté, it takes about 17 to 20 minutes for the Instant Pot to preheat before the High-Pressure cooking time begins. For other multicookers, please consult the product manual.

Cook’s comments: As with all appliances, please read the user’s manual of your Instant Pot, pressure cooker or multi-cooker. Follow safety precautions and suggestions. Use cooking accessories which are made of metal or silicone or those specifically recommended for the Instant Pot or multi-cooker. Do not use glassware.

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Instant Filipino Recipes: My Mother’s Philippine Food in a Multicooker Pot

Elizabeth Ann Quirino

If you’ve been searching for a faster way to cook classic Filipino dishes using today’s convenient and popular multicookers, like the Instant Pot, this cookbook entitled, Instant Filipino Recipes: My Mother’s Philippine Food In a Multicooker Pot, is for you.

Traditionally, Philippine dishes often require long hours of braising, boiling, simmering, and roasting. Not anymore. The author, Elizabeth Ann Besa-Quirino, award-winning journalist, food writer, blogger, and recipe developer of the popular site, Asian in America, has put together this collection of 36 all-time favorite Filipino recipes kitchen-tested in her own Instant Pot multicooker.

Born and raised in the Philippines, Betty Ann, as she is fondly called, channeled her love for these heirloom recipes from her mother when she moved to America and transformed them to everyday dishes for her family with ingredients from nearby sources without losing the soul of classic Pinoy cooking.

With these recipes specially developed for the Instant Pot and most brands of multicookers, you can cook traditional Philippine dishes adapted for an American kitchen in half the usual time and with perfect results.

Find mouth-watering, full color photographs to match all Filipino recipes in this cookbook of over 100 pages. Some favorites are: Arroz Caldo, Tinolang Manok, Filipino Spaghetti with Meat Sauce, Pancit Canton, Chop Suey, Monggo Guisado, Alimango sa Gata, Adobong Pula, Kare-Kare, Pata Tim, Humba, Sinigang ng Baboy sa Bayabas, Chicken Pastel, Kuchinta, Putong Puti, Mango-Banana Bread, Pandan Iced Tea, Ube Haleya and many more.

And just like Mom’s cooking, the author helps you achieve the soft tenderness, succulent flavors of favorite Filipino main dishes, soups, appetizers, sides, and desserts. By cooking Philippine dishes in an Instant Pot or most multicooker brands, you have the advantage of hands-free, walk-away-from-it cooking that allows you to free up more of your precious time for other activities.

This cookbook and the author's other books are available on Amazon.com.

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