PINOY RECIPE - HOW TO MAKE PINAKBET [ ILOCANO STYLE ]\r
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Pinakbet or pakbet is a popular Ilokano dish, from the northern regions of the Philippines, although it has become popular throughout the archipelago. The word is the contred form of the Ilokano word pinakebbet, meaning shrunk or shriveled.[1] The original Ilokano pinakbet uses bagoong, of fermented monamon or other fish, while further south, bagoong alamang is used. The basic vegetables used in this dish include native bitter melon, eggplant, tomato, okra, string beans, chili peppers, parda, winged beans, and others. Root crops and some beans like camote, patani, kadios are also optionally added. The young pod of marunggay is also added. It is usually spiced with ginger, onions, or garlic. A Tagalog version usually includes calabaza. Most of these vegetables are easily accessible, and are grown in backyards and gardens of most Ilokano households. As its name suggests, it is usually cooked until almost dry and shriveled; the flavors of the vegetables are accentuated with shrimp paste. In some cases, lechon, chicharon, or other meats (most commonly pork) are added. It is considered a very healthy dish, and convenient in relation to the harsh and rugged, yet fruitful Ilocos region of the Philippines.\r
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The vegetable dish pinakbet is more than a regional cuisine. It is an enduring symbol of the Ilokano palate and a lucid display of the Ilokanos history of contestations and struggles with the physical and social environment. The recipe weaves intimations of the cultural productions of the Ilokanos transion to their arid and less productive land. (Caday, new)\r
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Pinakbet is similar to the Provençal (French) vegetable stew ratatouille except for its sauce.
