If there is one thing that this COVID-19 lockdown has taught me, it would be a new level  of appreciation for freedom, human connection and food – these things I will never take for granted again, ever in my life.

Isolated, I have to find ways to survive and be a strong independent woman that I have always been.

Photo by Pascal of Paper and Moon

Quarantine Cooking

Having little projects at home (like a cooking project) kept me productive and motivated these days. Every single recipe is an opportunity to learn, be creative and celebrate small victories. Now, cooking has become one of my most important daily routines. Other activities that keep me productive during this lockdown are highlighted on my other blog – Quarantine Life of a Traveler.

Rice Cooker Hacks: Cooking Simple Meals Using the Rice Cooker

I don’t have a kitchen or stove in my rented unit because on normal days, I don’t really cook. That’s why I haven’t actually invested in it. My rice cooker is the single-most available cooking appliance I have and I can say, it is my savior these days. I’m grateful that at least I have a rice cooker so I can eat satisfying home-cooked dishes while on quarantine. It is easy to use, less possibility of burning the food (and myself) and it is capable of cooking really good dishes.

I have been using a rice cooker for a couple of weeks now, not only to cook rice but also to cook simple dishes. I google the recipe or sometimes I message or call my mom to ask about the foods that I miss from home or experiment on my own. I use basic, local and economical ingredients. As a replacement for meat, sometimes I also use canned goods which are often given as relief during calamities or crises in the Philippines.

When going to the market,  I only buy enough supplies for myself – to save money and avoid wastes. I visit the nearby wet market twice a week to buy food supplies and local ingredients that can suffice for the next 3-4 days. Even going to the market is all new to me, but the more I do it, the more that I get better at doing it, even at picking the “must” buy essentials. My mama must have been very proud to see me do this (Haha).

Rice Cooker Recipes: Pinoy Foods

Tuna Pasta

Ingredients:

• 500 grams pasta 
• 500 ml spaghetti sauce (here I used 2x 250 ml because it is the only size available at the grocery)
• 1 canned tuna (I used Century Tuna Hot & Spicy Tuna because it is my favorite and I like it spicy)
• 5 cloves garlic
• 1 onion
• Salt
• Pepper
• Sugar (optional if you want it sweet)
• Water (for boiling the pasta)
• Oil

Cooking Process:

1. Boil the pasta for 15 minutes or until the pasta is cooked. Add a sprinkle of salt, to taste and a small amount of oil to prevent the pasta from sticking together. Do not overcook the pasta and constantly check. Drain and set aside.
2. While boiling the pasta, you can start preparing the ingredients for the sauce. Mince the garlic and onion. Drain the oil from the tuna – you only need the tuna flakes and not the oil.
3. Saute the garlic and onion until translucent or brown.
4. Add the tuna flakes and saute for 2-3 minutes.
5. Add the spaghetti sauce.
6. Add pepper and salt to taste. You may also add sugar to make it a bit sweet if you like.
7. Let it simmer for 5-10 minutes and remove from heat.
8. Mix it with the pasta. You may also add grated cheese to add flavor.

Chocolate rice porridge (locally known as Champorado)

Ingredients:

• 1 can coconut milk
• 1 pack unsweetened chocolate powder (locally known as cocoa)
• 1 / 8 sticky rice (good for 3-4 serving only)
• Water
• Sugar (brown or white sugar)

Cooking Process:

1. Boil the sticky rice with water. Let the rice pop or expand than its normal size.
2. Add the coconut milk. Let it boil for a few minutes.
3. In a clean bowl, dissolve the cocoa powder and sugar in a half cup of hot water. Add the cocoa mixture to the pan. Stir until completely dissolved.
4. Let it simmer for a few minutes.
5. Adjust the sweetness or the cocoa according to your taste. Remove from heat.

Tip: Serve in separate bowls and use evaporated milk or powdered milk as toppings to add a sweet and creamy taste. Some say Champorado is best partnered with dried fish (locally known as tuyo).

Sauteed Bitter Gourd (locally known as Ginisang Ampalaya)

Ingredients:

• 1 medium size bitter gourd (locally known as Ampalaya)
• Pork (you may also use leftover meat which I usually do to avoid food waste)
• 4 cloves garlic
• 1 onion
• 2 Tomatoes
• 2 eggs
• Salt
• Pepper
• All-in-one onion and garlic powder seasoning (Magic Sarap or Ginisa Mix, for more flavor)
• Water

Cooking Process:

1. Prepare the ingredients. Begin with cutting the bitter gourd in half. Scrape the seeds using a spoon and cut it thinly. If you want to remove its bitter taste, you can sprinkle a teaspoon of salt, rub it into the bitter gourd and let it sit for 3-5 minutes. Then, wash away the salt with water. Continue with cutting the other ingredients such as the garlic, onion and tomatoes.
2. Saute the garlic and onion until translucent or brown.
3. Add the tomatoes and saute until wilted.
4. Add the meat and saute until crisp or brown.
5. Add the bitter gourd plus a little amount of water (I used 1 / 4 cup).
6. Season with salt, pepper and Magic Sarap seasoning. Cover the pan and simmer for 15 minutes or until it gets soft.
7. Beat the eggs in a clean bowl and add to the pan. Wait until the egg is lightly cooked before mixing it with the rest. Let the egg cook and remove from heat.

Sauteed Chayote (locally known as Ginisang Sayote)

Ingredients:

• 1 Chayote (sayote)
• Pork (you may also use leftover meat which I usually do to avoid food waste)
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 onion
• 3 Tomatoes
• Salt
• Pepper
• All-in-one onion and garlic powder seasoning (Magic Sarap or Ginisa Mix, for more flavor)
• Water

Cooking Process:

1. Prepare the ingredients. Begin with cutting the sayote in half. Remove the seed and cut the sayote thinly. Continue with cutting the other ingredients such as the garlic, onion and tomatoes.
2. Saute the garlic and onion until translucent or brown.
3. Add the tomatoes and saute until wilted.
4. Add the meat and saute until crisp or brown.
5. Add the sayote plus a little amount of water (I used 1 / 4 cup).
6. Season with salt, pepper and Magic Sarap seasoning. Cover the pan and simmer for 15 minutes or until it gets soft. Remove from heat.

Corned Beef with Potato

Ingredients:

• 1 can corned beef
• 1 small size potato
• 1 onion
• Salt
• Pepper
• (The scrambled egg, chopped cheese and bell pepper seen on the photo are for omelet, not for corned beef)

Cooking Process:

1. Prepare the ingredients. Peel the potato and cut in small cubes. Cut the onion in thin slices.
2. Saute the onion until translucent.
3. Pour the corned beef.
4. Season with salt and pepper. Saute. You may also add a little water if you want it saucy.
5. Add the chopped potatoes and mix well. Cover the pan and simmer for a few minutes or until the potatoes are soft.

Fried Pork Chop

Ingredients:

• 1 / 4 pork
• Salt
• Pepper

Cooking Process:

1. Sprinkle pork chop with salt and pepper. Let it sit for at least 30 minutes.
2. Fry the pork until golden brown.
3. Serve with ketchup or soy sauce with calamansi or vinegar, depending on your preference.

Fried Chicken

Ingredients:

• Chicken legs / thighs or any parts of chicken that you like
• 5 tablespoon fish sauce (locally known as patis)
• 5 calamansi (local lemon/lime which is smaller in size)
• 4 cloves garlic
• Salt
• Pepper
• Flour
• All-in-one onion and garlic powder seasoning (Magic Sarap or Ginisa mix, for more flavor)

Cooking Process:

1. Marinate the chicken in the mixture: fish sauce, calamansi juice, minced garlic, salt, pepper. Let it sit for at least 1 hour.
2. In a separate bowl, mix flour with Ginisa Mix. Dip the chicken to the flour mixture before frying to make it extra crispy.
3. Fry by batch until brown and crispy. 

Pork Steak

Ingredients:

• 1 / 4 pork
• 4 tablespoons of soy sauce
• 6 cloves garlic
• 1 onion
• 6 calamansi (this is a local lemon which is smaller in size)
• Salt
• Pepper
• All-in-one onion and garlic powder seasoning (Magic Sarap or Ginisa mix, for more flavor)

Cooking Process:

1. Marinate the pork with the mixture: soy sauce, calamansi juice, salt, pepper and Magic Sarap seasoning. Let it sit for at least 30 minutes.
2. Fry the meat by batch until brown.
3. Once everything is fried, put it all together in the pan and pour the marinated sauce. Cover the pan and let it simmer for 5-10 minutes. Remove from heat.

Adobo

Ingredients:

• 1 / 4 pork belly
• 4 tablespoons of soy sauce
• 4 tablespoons of vinegar
• 6 cloves garlic
• 1 onion
• 1 bay leaf
• Salt
• Pepper
• All-in-one onion and garlic powder seasoning (Magic Sarap or Ginisa Mix, for more flavor)
• Water

Cooking Process:

1. Prepare the ingredients. Cut the garlic and onion.
2. In the pan, put together all ingredients: pork, soy sauce, vinegar, sliced garlic and onion, salt, pepper, Magic sarap, bay leaf and add water until the meat is submerged.
3. Let it simmer for 40 minutes or until the meat is tender.

Adobong Natural / Adobo sa Asin / Adobong Puti

Ingredients:

• 1 / 4 pork belly
• 6 cloves garlic
• 1 bay leaf
• Salt
• Pepper
• Water

Cooking Process:

1. In the pan, put together all ingredients: pork, crushed garlic, salt, pepper, bay leaf and add water until the meat is submerged.
2. Boil for 40 minutes or until all water is absorbed and evaporated. By then, the meat will produce its own oil.
3. Fry the meat to its own oil until brown. Constantly stir meat to avoid sticking to the pan.
4. Once the brown meat is achieved, remove from heat.

Sardines with Pechay

Ingredients:

• 1 can sardines
• 1 bunch pechay
• 3 cloves garlic
• 1 onion
• 1 tomato
• Salt
• Pepper
• Water

Cooking Process:

1. Prepare the ingredients. Wash the pechay thoroughly and cut the leaves including the stems by half or 1 inch. Cut the garlic, onion and tomato.
2. Saute the garlic and onion until translucent or brown.
3. Add tomatoes and saute until wilted.
4. Add the sardines and add a little bit of water, depending on how much sauce you want.
5. Season with salt and pepper.
6. Add the chopped pechay. Cover the pan and simmer for 10 minutes or until the pechay gets soft. Remove from heat.

Pork Broth with Tomatoes (locally known as Sinabawan sa Kamatis)

Ingredients:

• 1 / 4 pork
• 1 bunch pechay (you may also add other vegetables like radish, potato, water spinach or kangkong)
• 4 tomatoes
• 1 onion
• 5 cloves garlic
• Salt
• Pepper
• Tamarind powder (Sinigang Mix original flavor)
• Water

Cooking Process:

1. Prepare the ingredients. Wash thoroughly all ingredients including pork and vegetables. Cut the garlic, onion,  tomatoes and vegetable.
2. Saute the garlic and onion until translucent or brown.
3. Add the tomatoes and saute until wilted.
4. Add the meat and saute for a few minutes.
5. Add water and season with salt, pepper and Sinigang Mix. Cover the pan and simmer for 30 minutes or until the meat gets soft.
6. Add the pechay and let it simmer for a few minutes. Serve hot.

Fried Foods

These simple rice cooker recipes can be helpful to students, dormers, stranded travelers or workers who are staying in a studio room with no kitchen or cooking equipment. This can also be a good starting point to people like me, who have a low or zero background in cooking.

When I posted about these rice cooker hacks on Facebook, some of my friends sent me private messages telling me how surprised they were to learn what a rice cooker can do. For instance, one of them (she’s living in a dorm) bought her own rice cooker after seeing my post. She said it will be a big help so she can take a break from mostly eating delivery foods during this quarantine. It’s good to know that my simple post brought a little positivity in their newsfeed and in their quarantine life. 🙂

This lockdown has allowed me to discover many parts of myself I never knew existed, like this cooking skill. Never in my wildest dream did I ever imagine that I will write something about cooking. I’m not a chef or anything close to it, I’m just an ordinary person who learned how to cook during a pandemic.

Have you also tried to cook simple dishes using a rice cooker? Feel free to add more to my list. What other easy and creative cooking recipes have you learned during this quarantine? Comment down below 😉