Mongo Guisado

INGREDIENTS

mongo beans

garlic, chopped

onions, sliced

pork

pork cubes

lemon

salt and pepper

COOKING INSTRUCTIONS

1. Boil the mongo beans with pork broth and once soft, crush them

2. On another pan, saute garlic and onions

3. Add the pork and stir fry until the meat is brown and tender

4. Add the meat to the mongo and adjust the taste to your liking with salt and pepper

5. Squeeze in lemon or calamansi, about a tablespoon or two

I love mongo guisado and a good friend of mine who is Dubai, told me to add a squeeze or two of lemon, and it gives it a citrus zest that is just perfect. If you read my personal blog, you will know that my very first try at mongo was a total failure. I put the mongo in the pot and boiled it and then I served it to Bon while it was still hard. It was so embarrassing. After that, I received some mongo cooking tips from his mom, who told me that I had to soak the beans in water for quite some time, first, and then to actually crush them. I did not know that. I've been eating mongo all my life and I thought it was so simple to cook. 

Anyway, I usually soak my beans for a few hours before I cook --- sometimes overnight. It is just a little scary to keep them under water for so long because they start to grow and become mongo spouts. Anyway, you really have to try this dish with some lemon because it  makes a big difference. It makes a subtle yet great difference, that Bon actually noticed, without me telling him. He said: "Did you put something in the mongo?" I said, "Yeah... it's a secret.", but I told him eventually, of course.