Adobong Sitaw (Vinegared Long String Beans)

This year's spring and summer season came and went faster than the speed of light it seems, but it doesn't mean that I forgot about being a foodie and a cook altogether. Actually, I was busy traveling and continues to enhance my skills in the kitchen, which includes cake decoration and food preservation for the past few months...and blogging, well, is a different story. Let's just say, my lack of time on the matter is the real culprit.


Anyway, the other day my friend, Irene gave me a bunch of long string beans (called 'sitaw' in Tagalog) that were picked fresh from her garden. How sweet of her to share her beautiful bounty with me. So today, I blanched all of them, then I kept a bunch enough for this dish, and saved the rest in the freezer...all two quarts of it! How incredible is that and I just can't thank her enough for her thoughtfulness.


So for dinner tonight, I decided to make a simple vinegared dish, in which we call "Adobo" in the Philippines that is lightly seasoned with soy sauce, garlic, onions, bay leaves, and black peppercorns. Normally, ground or cubed pork is added to this dish, but since I only have ground beef on hand it still worked out great! I've also added some mushrooms, sweet n' hot peppers that my husband brought home the other day, a gift from one of his patients. We are indeed lucky to have these fresh veggies from the people we know. There's nothing better than eating vegetables and knowing that they are home grown. And I just can't thank them enough for sharing their bounty with us.


Below you will find my version of Adobong Sitaw with a lil' twist!


2 lbs of ground meat (pork or beef)
1/4 cup vinegar
1/4 cup soy sauce
3-4 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 sweet onion, sliced
 2 bay leaves
1/4 tsp whole and crushed peppercorns
1 hot banana pepper, seeds removed and sliced
1 hot red peppers, seeds removed and sliced
2 cups of sliced mushrooms
1 bunch of sitaw (long string beans)
2-3 Hard boiled eggs


In a large sauce pan in medium-high heat, add ground meat with the vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, onions, bay leaves, and peppercorns. Bring to a full boil. Add hard boiled eggs. Let it simmer uncovered in medium heat. Stir in sweet and hot peppers. Then add mushrooms and long string beans. Mix and simmer for 5-7 minutes until mushrooms and beans are cooked through.


Serve over steamed white-brown Basmati rice or any rice of your choice. And that's it! What a quick and hearty meal! Enjoy!