Summer thrills

You must be planning to go to the beach, either in the South or North (Cavite and Batangas, or Ilocos and Pangasinan) of Luzon, or way down south to Cebu or Talisay, or along the soothing coastline of Bohol. Wherever you are going, you need to organize. As promised, here are some suggestions/tips to help you experience a memorable, enjoyable time with family and friends.

To start, every member of your party must agree on the place. Decide whether it is going to a day trip or an overnight adventure. Find out what facilities are available and what are allowed, specially if you are visiting a private beach. Everyone would know what personal things to bring — swimsuit, floaters, towels, etc.

Now, food is always a major concern. Because it is summertime some foodstuff tend to be spoil more easily. Count how many meals will be required and how many people will eat. Note that snacks, meaning junk food, whether we like it or not, must be in your picnic baskets. If it is going to be a potluck type of outing, coordinate well with those who are bringing food, so you don’t end up with all-adobo meals and/or too much rice (from experience there are those who would volunteer to take care of the easiest thing to prepare...rice!). Bring fruits; buying them from the roadside could be more expensive than if you get them from your market suki. Likewise, buy your softdrinks from your supermarket. Include plenty of ice, as well as paper plates, plastic spoons and forks, serving spoons, a sharp knife, paper towels, napkins, wet wipes. And for proper management of waste, bring garbage bags.

If there is a barbecue pit or griller where you are going, thank your lucky stars, because half of your food preparation problem is solved. Otherwise get permission to bring one of those portable butane gas burners. Ko-Nice is a good brand, at a little less than P1,000; it will be good to have it in your house anyway. It comes with a 220-gm cartridge. This is a very efficient cooking tool. Bring some frozen hotdogs (by the time you arrive at the beach they’d be ready to grill)–a selection of the cocktail variety (Purefoods or CDO), Santis’ or Price Smart’s German and Italian sausages (schublig, kilbasa) or the ones sold at Shopwise. Garnishings may consist of mayonnaise, catsup, mustard, tomatoes and onions, but never any leafy vegetables (like lettuce) because they’ll be no good after a long drive in the heat. Other than that, you can also take along some hamburgers. Here is an old family recipe we are sharing here with you.

We don’t use any enhancers or binders, but top quality beef. For half a kilo of meat, chop two medium-size seeded tomatoes, mince a medium-size onion, a tablespoon of sweet relish, a tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce, and ground pepper. Mix very well, then form into patties. Wrap in twos in wax paper, freeze and when ready to go, put in an insulated bag. Don’t forget the bread.

Now, the main dishes. We do not advise you to bring any fresh salad greens because of fast deterioration. You’d do well with native achara–papaya, okra, radish eggplant, etc. If you are lucky you can even make a sinigang on top of the portable burner, if one fisherman happens to pass by with a fresh catch, as what happened one day when we were in Subic. Adobo, then chops, chicken quarters and maybe steaks to grill. Season fresh meat yourself. We recently bought some spoiled Korean barbecue-flavored ribs from a popular meat chain. We suspect they used their unsold, therefore old, stock. We have resolved never to buy this again. Never bring native pancit–luglug or Malabon; they’re the worst "travelers" and you’ll likely end up getting sick. Of course, there must be seafood. Inihaw na isda, stuffed with tomatoes, onions and bell peppers, steamed crabs and shrimps with the proper sawsawan. The fish you can cook on the beach; the others can be pre-cooked. And more–fresh tomatoes, manggang hilaw, crackers, a variety of dips, cakes that are not messy like brownies or lemon squares, and maybe puto and cuchinta.

Then you’re off!

Keep in mind that someone has to be in charge if cooking is done on site. Kids (even adults) have to be told to use the garbage bags for their trash. And at the end of the day, be sure to tidy up.

Have a good day at the beach!

* * *

Email comments and questions to: [email protected]