Catch the Eco-Market

If you have not discovered the on-going "Samut-Sari 2005" Eco-market this is your last day to visit it. Organized by the Zero Waste National Movement of the Philippines Foundation , Inc. in cooperation with the Alternative Lifestyle Marketing and Consultancy, this has been going on for three days, today being the last. The venue is the National Ecology Center on East Avenue in Quezon City, fronting the Philippine Heart Center. It will be open until 5 p.m.

"Samut-Sari 2005" is a display and sale of eco-friendly products that include healthy organic food, arts and crafts, personal and home care products and many more. It is set amidst the cool canopy of tall trees in the area. If we catch the market today, we’ll have more about the products in a subsequent column.

From the Asia Rice Foundation based in Los Baños, we got the information that the organization is now actively promoting brown rice, because it’s healthier.The foundation is a non-profit organization that safeguards the well-being of both producers and consumers. Brown rice has only the outer hull removed with the bran layer left intact. This layer has vitamins, nutrients, minerals and oils which make it nutritious. It has good quality protein and four times the insoluble fiber found in white rice.

In our kitchen experimentation we have substituted brown rice where recipes call for wild rice. It is much faster to cook and softer when done. Some months ago we stuffed small (one kilo) chickens with brown rice which we sauteed and seasoned with herbs and spices. A more recent concoction is our Pastry Puff Wrapped Salmon stuffed with brown rice and cream. Both are delicious.

You might be worried about taking too much carbohydrates, if and when you start enjoying brown rice (or even white rice). Not to worry; the latest mailer from the San Miguel Good Food Club debunks the myth that too much carbs in the diet is bad. In the first place, we read in the past that it is not rice that gives you the extra bulge, but what you put in the rice, such as rich sauces, oils and yummy dishes (of meat or fowl). San Miguel’s Culinary Center contends that while no carb/low carb diets are gaining popularity, we should not completely take it away from our meals. Carbs must comprise from 55% to 70 % of our Total Energy Allowance.

Carbohydrates are the chief source of energy, protein savers, regulators of fat metabolism and have gastro-intestinal functions. Lest we think that grains and root crops are the only source of carbohydrates, think again. We get it from legumes (beans, nuts, peas), vegetables (squash, cabbage, lettuce, broccoli and tomatoes), fruits (mangoes, papaya, apples,melons, strawberries and grapefruit). There you are, there’s actually a lot of choices if and when one needs to carbo load.

We took a day off (from the hassle of the city) and motored to Lipa, Batangas with a jolly group of close friends. It was a cool day spent in good company. Amid small talk and admiring nature (once again), the ladies were served, fresh from the grill, succulent tilapia and flavorful barbecued chicken, the latter marinated in soy sauce and catsup. The salad, something all of us gave a "10" to, was made of julliened guaple, cucumber and kani (the fake crab meat) with very light mayo dressing. On the drive back, a couple of the ladies asked what delicacy is native to the province. It was a shame that we could not think of any except the matamis na mani. To us Batangas has always meant fresh tawilis fried crisp and steaming bulalo broth with beef made so tender from hours and hours of simmering.

An alternative source of seafood for residents of Parañaque is the Dampa market, along Ninoy Aquino Avenue. For nearly P500, we got half a kilo of tanguingue fillet, half a kilo of kitang, half a kilo of mangosteen, three pieces of kalabaw mangoes and a cantaloupe. Native garlic was selling at P120 a kilo and therefore it was a wise decision not to get it from there. We found Dizon’s at the tiangge-type market by the entrance to ShopWise in Alabang, which sells it for P80 a kilo.

Have Sunday lunch with your family. Bonding is great!

* * *

Email comments and questions to: [email protected]