Memories of BICOL EXPRESS

I got my first taste of this in Bonita's restaurant.She was a classmate,group mate, sister in Church way back in La Salle medical school.Nowadays, to my consternation, the restaurants like hers are no longer found in Roxas Boulevard.Perhaps it was due to some infrastractures and new reservations or reconstructions of the government.I also loved Bonita family's seafood karekare.We went there once after our group in Community medicine (Commed) went around Metro Manila Hospitals for our paper in acupuncture.It was then when Elaine Buendia and Aidalyn Carino laughed when they saw my mom lying on a couch in our office .We happened to drop by in my parent's office because many of the hospitals are just near (the office.). Medical school was where friendships were made ,and eventually become stronger by trials and ties were bound.The last time I saw Bonita was when she was a junior intern in Jose Reyes Memorial Hospital in 2000,months before I took the board exam.


Popular Bicolano dish for the hot and spicy lovers
Preparation Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 30 minutes

Ingredients
2 tbsp cooking oil
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tbsp ginger, crushed
1 small onion, diced
100g pork belly
2 tbsp bagoong alamang
1 1/2 cups coconut milk
¼ kg siling panigang, halved, seeded and sliced

Procedure
1. Heat oil, sauté garlic, ginger and onion until limp. Stir in pork and cook until it changes in color.
2. Add bagoong alamang. Cook for another minute. Pour in coconut milk and bring to a boil.
3. Add siling panigang and cook until sili is cooked or about 5 minutes. Simmer for another minute before serving with hot steamed rice.