I lived in the city of Makati from when I was a child until I graduated college. From what I can recall, we moved houses three times growing up. Each of the dwellings we moved into was homey to me. I could play outside from the minute I got home from school till the sun went to sleep OR at least till my mother shows up holding a hanger in her hand and begin yelling my name. You know you're in trouble when she yells out your full name. Yikes. The streets were made of cement. It was the perfect playground for our favorite games like tag, hopscotch, trumpo (a top), and Chinese garter. The streets weren't as busy then compared to now, but I guess not a lot of children play outside recently due to the gadgets they are absorbed in.
Now, I live in a province-like area in Cavite. It's breezy most of the time and the air is a lot cleaner compared to the city. It's sweltering during the summer but it doesn't feel sticky. Almost every house is guarded by an aspin and each time you pass by one, expect some barking. During the afternoon, you'll see some of your neighbors just chilling in front of their gates. When there's a party at your tropa neighbor, expect a plate full of different dishes. Most of the time, it would have a noodle-type of dish like pasta or pancit, an appetizer like lumpia, and a main dish like fried chicken.
Recently, our neighbor bestowed us with a long plate filled with spaghetti, Korean-style chicken, and baked baby potatoes. A bit fancy if you ask me. This is not the first time they sent us food and to be honest, the food they sent over is good. I wouldn't say that I am a chef or a gourmet but I am rather picky with the taste of food. Like Anton Ego said in Ratatouille, "I don't like food. I love it. If I don't love it. I don't swallow," char. I'm only picky when I eat at my house. The pickiness comes from growing up in a family whose main means of survival is food.
Our family used to own a concessionaire and a catering business. Back then, I thought all mothers can cook like my mother and the food that we usually had in our house was something people ate every day but I was wrong. Duh.
Now, back to our neighbor's plate! I woke up around 2 pm and my eldest sister told me to cook carbonara. Yes, I sleep late so I wake up late hehe. I'll talk about my sleeping problems another time. I know it was her favorite but we just had carbonara the other day. She told me it was not really for us but for the neighbor. I asked why and she responded that the neighbor sent us a plate of food and now we have to return the plate. She thought that it would be nice to return the plate with food in it instead of it being empty hence the carbonara. Well, she did admit that she likes my carbonara too so she told me to make a bunch of it. I like cooking pasta anyway so might as well just go with it.
The one I made was a street-style carbonara but a bit leveled up from the ingredients. When I say street-style, it's the one you buy from street stalls or vendors for PHP 20-30. It tastes like flour and cream and has rarely seen bits of ham and overcooked noodles. What do you expect? It's cheap but still, it has its own charm. Maybe it brings nostalgia, or the taste of slightly cooked flour is nice.
Most of the time I don't go looking for recipes on the internet. I cook based on how I remember the taste, look, and texture.
Before cooking my carbonara sauce, I made some roux. The roux helps thicken the pasta sauce but instead of cooking it with butter. What I do is cook the flour till it turns a bit brown then I add water till it turns to a paste. I'll add this later once the other ingredients are cooked.
I fry pieces of bacon in coconut oil and butter till they're done. I put the bacon aside and add in my diced shallots. I wait a few minutes for the shallots to turn transparent then, we add our garlic. Add your sliced mushrooms and diced bell peppers. Cook them till the mushrooms slightly turn browner.
Add in the roux, and pasta water (from the pasta that I've been boiling). I like using white pepper for white sauces so let's add some of that in and some chicken bouillon. I wait for it to boil on medium heat then I add some finely chopped broccoli. Broccoli doesn't taste like anything here but my sister likes green bits which add color to the pasta.
Turn the heat to low and add your all-purpose cream. Most people would kill the fire early but I like to slow boil it a bit but not to the point it coagulates. Just want to make sure the cream is cooked well so it lasts longer in the refrigerator. Combine the pasta and sauce.
I tried grabbing some pasta using a thong but it broke qnq. Once all of the pasta is coated with sauce, grab a fork and do a taste test. You can also add shredded cheese but we didn't have any. I added parmesan after I put the carbonara in a container.
Now you have street-style "real carbonara" ( lol. I brought some at my gym and the manager said that it was very good and tasted like real carbonara). The taste wasn't very complex since I was aiming for something simpler. Usually, I like adding herbs to my pasta but this pasta was simple yet tasted like how it was supposed to taste. Creamy, a bit smokey, the taste of bacon and its fat, the mushroom, a bit sweet from the bell peppers, and just the right amount of salt and umami from the chicken bouillon.
Here is the plate of my neighbor. My mother is bringing it over to them cus I'm shy uwu. I just hope they like it.
We didn't do anything like this back in the city so it's a new experience for me. A bit of pressure cus I'm just a home cook but it was enjoyable since I like cooking and feeding people. It's nice to get acquainted with your neighbor this way too.
Does your neighbor do the same? What is your favorite birthday dish? Also, If you miss this style of carbonara, why not give it a try and let me know how it comes out?
PS: As I was writing this, my sister came into my room holding a bowl of carbonara and bread. Haha, it smells soooo goood.
~nmore
All photos were taken by nmore.