Three Dishes for My Birthday Party

Last Friday was my birthday, but I had an overactive stomach that day, so we did not have any party. However, yesterday, my sister-in-law(Charo Jambalos Levin)and Merlet Perlas from Palo Alto visited my wife and me to have a celebration of my birthday. They brought with them two whole Dungeness Crabs a gift from my wife's niece, Elaine Lazarte Chalfin of Mountain View, California. They also brought with them two other dishes, the chicken adobo sa gata and the Chicken Quesadilla dish. The recipe of the three dishes are as follows:

A.Dungeness Crabs in Oyster Sauce

1. Divide and crack the whole steamed Dungeness Crabs into small portions. Save the Butter.

2. In a separate pan, saute ginger, and garlic with vegetable or olive oil.

3. Place the cracked crabs into the pan, stir until it simmers.

4. Add the crab butter with enough water to transfer all the butter into the pan

5. Add 2 tbs of oyster sauce, then the scallions.

6. Continue stirring until it simmers. Serve Hot.

B. Chicken Adobo sa Gata(Coconut Milk)

1. Chopped one whole chicken into small edible portions. Take out most of the skins and wash the meat

2. Saute garlic and onion in vegetable or olive oil in a pot. Put the chicken in the pot, stir and mix. Add a tsp of powdered black pepper. Boil the chicken for 10 minutes or until cooked without adding any water. Add about one tsp of tumeric powder* ( dilaw or yellow in Pilipino) and simmer another 10 minutes.

3. Add 1 can of coconut milk and simmer until the dish turn yellow. Then add ½ cup of vinegar, and mix. Add slices of green and red bell peppers, salt and pepper to taste. Serve Hot. Total time should be around 30 minutes.

* If you are rich, used safron instead of tumeric

C. Chicken Quesadilla ( Excellent for Left over Baked Chicken)

1. Shred the baked chicken. Place the chicken in a tortilla flour. Add Cheddar Cheese.( Any kind of cheese will do).

2. Close and flip the tortilla. Place in a hot skillet ( no oil). Invert tortilla and cook until the cheese melts. Add your favorite salsa( mild or hot) and sour cream. My favorite salsa is the HOT Pecante sauce. My wife prefers the MILD version. Bon Apetit!

Again thank you, Charo, Merlit and Lanie for my birthday treat!