Loco over Sinampalukang Manok in Buco :)

Two weeks ago I had a wonderful time (as always) with my beloved Gelatins. We had the most fun road trip that brought our happy feet to the shores of San Juan, La Union. We savored the sights, the sounds, and most importantly the tasty food that the province has in store. My friend Cathy brought us to this place called Halo-Halo de Iloko, where we had a good dinner. The restaurant is located in one of the side streets of San Fernando City. They have the best tasting ukoy, bagnet (well, I did not actually taste this but looking at my friends' faces as they were eating it, I guess it was delicious :P), and of course their Halo-Halo was superb! But what really caught my attention was their Sinigang/sinampalukang manok in Buko. My friend mentioned that its like an Ilocano version of Chicken Binakol. But I haven't tasted any of those two dishes, so I was curious with how the dish tastes like. So after waiting for a while, the chicken concoction was served in a huge coconut shell, steaming with its savory goodness. I was really excited to taste it! :)

The hot soup was of course, sour, but it is also a bit sweet (I'm guessing because of the coconut juice). It has a hearty mixture of chicken pieces, string beans, radish, fresh tamarind, kangkong leaves and stalks, young coconut meat, and tomatoes and onions. So with that mental note, and with the help of my friend Jem's nice photos, I tried to replicate it a few days ago. To my surprise (or maybe it was just my imagination hehe), this replica is actually good. :) Its really easy, just like cooking sinigang and tinola in one dish. ;) So I'm sharing the recipe with you so you can also try it at home. :)

Jem's photos of the dish by Halo-Halo de Iloko:

SINAMPALUKANG MANOK IN BUKO:

Ingredients:
1 whole chicken chopped in serving pieces
2 cups of string beans sliced in 2 inch strips
3 cups of young kangkong leaves and stalks
8-10 pcs. whole fresh tamarind
4 whole ripe tomatoes, quartered
1 medium onion, quartered

1 small chunk of ginger sliced into big pieces

Meat and juice from two young coconuts (About 2 cups of meat, and 5-6 cups of juice)
2/3 medium sachet of sinigang in sampaloc mix
1/2 small sachet of seasoning granules
2-3 tbsp of Fish Sauce (add according to your taste preference)
2 tsp white granulated sugar
2-3 tsp of iodized salt
1/2-1 tsp ground black pepper
6 cups water

(NOTE: You can add more veggies if you like. Eggplant and radish will be good for this dish.)

Prepare soup base: In a large soup pot, pour in all the buko juice, water, tomatoes, onions, tamarind, 2 tsp iodized salt, pepper, and 1/2 of the contents of seasoning granules sachet. Bring to a boil, stir occasionally, until the tamarinds are soft (but not mushy). Taste, then add the fish sauce and sampaloc mix, add more or less according to  your taste preference. I like intense flavors so I added a bit more than usual.

Brown chicken: Pour a little oil in a hot skillet, saute ginger for a minute, then add chicken pieces, cook until brown or until the bloody bits are gone.

Incorporate: Transfer the browned chicken from the skillet to the prepared soup base and bring to a boil until chicken is fully cooked. Add 2 tsp white sugar. Add more fish sauce or sampaloc mix when necessary. When the chicken is about done, add string beans. When the string beans are a bit soft, add the kangkong leaves and stalk. Boil for another minute (don't overcook the veggies), then turn off the stove. Mix in the coconut meat and let sit for about a minute or two.

Serve in coconut shell (if you wish) or a simple bowl. Serve hot with steamed rice. hhmmm... Enjoy! :)