Spicy Gourmet Tuyo Lemon Pasta

Craving for Tuyo (dried herring)?

Gone are the days wherein you have to endure the stinky smell while frying "Tuyo" and that smell can last for hours even after eating it heartfully with steamed rice. Nowadays, one just needs to buy a bottle of gourmet Tuyo (Get it from Mhei's Kitchen: https://www.facebook.com/MheisKitchenPH/) and you definitely will succumb to its taste. 

With this, it's evidently easier to prepare Tuyo Pasta as gourmet Tuyo is complete with herbs and spices in olive oil, thus, this kind of pasta can be made by anyone: teens, on the go moms, and even those who don't have that inclination in cooking. 😊 

Preparation:

You will need the following:

1. Mhei's Kitchen (https://www.facebook.com/MheisKitchenPH/) Gourmet Tuyo Spicy 250g

2. 1/2 lemon, sliced

3. 500 grams pasta noodles of your choice

4. Black Olives, pitted

5. 2 table spoons basil leaves, chopped, fresh or from the bottle (Mc Cormick has one in the market) 

6. 1 teaspoonful olive oil (on top of the olive oil from the gourmet Tuyo) 

7. Salt and Pepper to taste

Cooking Instructions:

1. Cook the spaghetti pasta noodles in water according to the package instructions. Drain the noodles from water after around 11 minutes (or once al dente) and set aside. 

2. In a skillet, over medium heat, add the olive oil from the bottle of gourmet Tuyo plus additional one teaspoon of olive oil. 

3. After a minute, add the remaining ingredients: Tuyo from the bottle, minced garlic (optional), sliced pitted black olives, and chopped basil leaves

4. Sprinkle with lemon juice

5. Season with salt and pepper according to your taste buds. 

6. Add the cooked pasta noodles and mix. 

Serves 5 to 6.

Preparation and cooking Time: 20 to 25 minutes. 😊 

TRAVEL GUIDE: Maniwaya Island in Marinduque

Maniwaya Island. 

This hidden jewel is a must see when you go to Marinduque, which is famous for the annual tradition of Moriones Festival, celebrated during holy week. 

This pristine island is situated in Sta. Cruz, Marinduque, which is just less than an hour boat ride from the mainland. 

Surprisingly, this haven is still undeveloped with only more than a handful of resorts found near the shoreline. It even used to be powered by a generator and the place was just recently granted 24/7 electricity, luckily, the day before me and my travel partner went to experience its serene environment. 

Aside from the wide stretch of white sand, turquoise seawater, scattered corals, and majestic view of the sky and ocean meeting halfway, Maniwaya Island is also beckons stunning sand bar and perfectly shaped rock formations, that you will run out of battery for taking too much instagramable pictures. 

There were only a few guests, having the entire island by ourselves during our stay which made it worth remembering. They said it can get really crowded during Holy Week due to Moriones Festival. 

To add cherry on top, the people are really friendly, to the extent that they will chitchat with you until dawn, with unlimited supply of woods for your bonfire, to keep you warm on a cold night whilst sipping on your favorite drink and gazing on the sky full of stars. What else? Meeting new sets of people from different parts of the country which is a plus. 

HOW TO GO TO MANIWAYA ISLAND? 

1. Via Dalahican Port

Ride a JAC Liner bus in Buendia or Kamias stations bound for Marinduque. Alight the bus in Sta Cruz. From Sta. Cruz proper, ride a jeepney to Buyabod Port. Charter an outrigger boat to take you to Maniwaya Island or your preferred resort.

Ride a JAC or JAM Liner bus to Lucena/Dalahican Port. Board a ferry to Balancan Port, Marinduque. From Balancan Port, ride a jeepney to Sta. Cruz and alight in the town center then ride a tricycle to Buyabod Port. Charter an outrigger boat to take you to Maniwaya Island or your chosen resort.

*We took this route as we went to Torrijos in Marinduque proper the day before our Maniwaya trip. We got a boat ride for only 80 pesos per pax, which is by far the cheapest boat ticket I got in my entire life! 😍 We rode a habal-habal from the port going to our resort. 😊 

2. Via General Luna Port

Ride a JAC or JAM Liner bus to Lucena Grand Terminal. From there, ride a van to General Luna Port. Once you get to the port, charter an outrigger boat to take you to Maniwaya Island or your chosen resort. There is one passenger boat to Maniwaya which leaves everyday at 10AM and fare is P150.

3. Rented Van/ Private Car Via General Luna/ Calauag Fist Port

Drive to SLEX taking Calamba exit. Continue to CALABARZON Express Way. Drive until General Luna via Pan-Phil Hwy passing by Lucena, Pagbilao and Candelaria. Once you get to the port, arrange for a parking service with the locals (if you would leave your car) then charter an outrigger boat to take you the Maniwaya Island or your chosen resort.

WHAT TO DO IN MANIWAYA ISLAND? 

Go to Palad Sandbar. Long stretch of powdery sand bar awaits you, which is strategically situated in the middle of the sea. 

Check out Ungab Rock Formation. This is situated in Mongpong, wherein you see outstanding rock formations, crystal clear water, and different shaped corals on the sea shore. 

Snorkel – Dive into the water and see the plethora of beautiful creatures underneath.

Water Activities - There are so plenty of activities that can be done in any island: banana boat, jet ski, and island hopping among many others. 

Sunset and Sunrise Watching - The picturesque sunset and sunrise are usually witnessed in a tranquil island as beautiful as Maniwaya. 

Unlimited Photo Ops - One of my reasons for going to places: those Instagram worthy pictures

Bonfire - What else is more amazing than having bonfire while stargazing with a bottle of rum in the middle of a paradise?

Swim, swim, and SWIM - Bask into the clear water, enjoy and get a good tan!

SOME HELPFUL TRAVEL TIPS FOR YOU:

1. Bring enough cash. You won't find any ATM in the island. You'd have to go to the mainland which can take upto an hour (boat and land travel). 

2. Camping is allowed. The resorts have tents available and pitching of tents I believe is possible with a corresponding fee. 

3. To witness Palad Sand Bar, you have to be in the area during low tide, approximately 6-8 AM and 3-6PM.

4. It is advisable to visit the island during low peak seasons as it can get really crowded especially during Holy Week. 

5. You may opt to buy food and other necessities before arriving at the port. 

Food Food Food and more FOOD @ Yakimix

I have been to so many places and I have tried buffet on different restaurants in Manila. Sometimes you'll feel that it's so affordable because there are so many selections and your cravings were satisfied. Yet sometimes, you'll feel that it will drill a hole in your pocket specially if you're not a true blooded food fanatic. It has been our habit (Miguel and I) to check the restaurants with eat-all-you can deals. Ofcourse, aside from the variety selection of dishes you can choose from, you can eat and eat until you're all bloated and you wanna go home and promise yourself that you will not look at any food for the next 5 days.

Yakimix - Sushi-Smokeless Grill-Restaurant is definitely a place I can recommend everyone to go to. For only PHP 480 during lunch on weekdays and 580 on dinners and Sundays, you will definitely enjoy the wide range of Asian cuisine, from sushi to siomai to hotdogs to ice cream and even more!

It has three branches as of the moment - Tomas Morato, Q.C., SM Mall of Asia, and HK Sun Plaza along Macapagal Avenue.

What's good about Yakimix is you get most of the dishes fresh and you grill it in your table. So, it's up to you if you want your beef well-done or half done. You will never be full right away because you'll get tired of grilling and waiting for your meat and veggies to be cooked.

If you are craving for Japanese cuisine, there's sushi, sashimi, stir-fried octopus, shrimp, and a lot more. If you want Chinese, there's yang chow rice, sweet and sour pork, chicken and corn soup, seafood roll, and so on. You can feel Korean too by checking out beansprout kimchi, white raddish kimchi, among others. The best part of 'em all for me is the different taste of beef and pork strips. I'm a big beef fan. So I enjoyed grilling beef strips in teriyaki sauce, and veggies rolled into tiny beef strips the most.

And if you get tired of eating grilled food, there are also a variety of mouth-watering dessert you can pick from. They have cakes, tarts, fruits and even ice cream with different toppings.

The only thing that will hinder you from going to Yakimix is having to wait for an hour or so to be served , but I can guarantee you, it's worth the wait and worth every penny you've spent.



♪♫♪ mhei ♪♫♪