Pinakbet

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons (30 ml) vegetable oil
  • 2 medium garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 small (4 ounces / 115 g) yellow onion, finely chopped
  • 2 plum tomatoes (about 8 ounces / 225 g), cored and chopped
  • 2 ounces (¼ cup / 60 g) bagoong alamang
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • 1 ea. (about 8 ounces / 225 g) bitter melon, halved lengthwise, seeded, and sliced ¼ inch thick
  • 1 small (about 8 ounces / 225 g) sweet potato, peeled, quartered, and cut into ¼-inch slices
  • 8 ounces (225 g) string beans, stem ends trimmed and beans cut into 2-inch lengths
  • 1 medium (about 6 ounces / 170 g) eggplant, halved lengthwise, and sliced ½ inch thick
  • 8 ounces (225 g) okra, caps trimmed, pods cut in half on the bias
  • Cooked white rice, for serving
Pinakbet

Photo: BrokenSphere / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0

Procedure

  1. Heat a skillet over medium heat.
  2. Add the oil, then garlic to the pan. Sauté briefly until aromatic.
  3. Add the onion, and cook until softened.
  4. Add the tomato, bagoong alamang, and salt; simmer for 5 minutes.
  5. Add the bitter melon and sweet potato. Cover and cook until almost, but not quite, tender.
  6. Add the string beans, eggplant, and okra. Cover and cook for a few minutes until all the vegetables are tender.
  7. Serve the vegetables with rice.