Please don’t blame my Mama. She’s a great cook, the type whose dishes (most popular: lasagna, adobo, kare-kare, fried chicken -- iba talaga! -- and siomai) are requested during family reunions. My personal favorite is her pork binagoongan (yum!).
She’s always tried to lure me into the kitchen. But I’ve always been afraid of the stove! I had my baking phase back in high school but even then, Mama was the one who placed the goodies into the stove, not me (ibang klaseng diva noh?).
But marriage changed everything.
Since I became Mrs. M, my kitchen adventures began. No one forced me into it. I wanted to finally learn. I wanted to cook for my husband. I wanted to feed him, to take care of him. I was especially enthusiastic when we had to save up for the condo. Less eating out, more dining in the house (hehe).
For my first experiment, I cooked J’s favorite ulam – chicken and pork adobo. To our surprise, it was good. J loved it! Sinimot niya!
My family couldn’t believe J’s raves. They had to try my adobo for themselves. So I cooked for them. And the best compliment came from my dear sister P – “Parang adobo ni Mama!”
So I went on trying other dishes. Unfortunately, not all the next dishes were as successful as my adobo attempt. There were those I had to throw – ako mismo, di ko kinaya ang lasa! Yuck!
But I haven’t given up. Tuloy ang laban sa kusina. Thanks to J who’s been very encouraging. He’s been very honest with his comments – “Medyo matigas pa ang karne,” “Kulang sa suka,” “Sobra sa calamansi,” etc.
Very recently, I tried doing Bistek Tagalog, another one of J’s favorites. I didn’t like it, ang tapang ng timpla! But he was so sweet – he finished everything! Naawa ata sa akin. He said I was too harsh on myself.
My Bistek Tagalog (in our red, black & white condo)
Me: Edible?
J: It’s good. Inubos ko nga eh.
Me: You must really love me!
I guess it's OK to be no kitchen diva especially since we have something better -- the right ingredients for a happy, loving marriage. Mmmm!
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