Bicol Express

Ingredients:

2 pounds pork shoulder, cubed
4 pcs. long green chili peppers, (seeded)
2 cans (13.5 ozs.) coconut milk
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 medium onion, chopped
2 thumb size ginger, cut in strips or shredded to make 2 teaspoons
2 tablespoons shrimp paste or bagoong alamang
salt and pepper to taste

Cooking Procedure:

1. Heat oil, saute the garlic and onion and ginger, and half of the chili peppers.
2. Add in the cubed pork and shrimp paste and saute for 2 minutes.
3. Add the coconut milk, stir until it boils.
4. Turn down the heat to simmer, stirring occasionally, until half the liquid is evaporated, about 15 minutes.
5. Stir in the rest of the chili peppers, and continue simmering until the meat is tender and coconut milk has rendered fat, about 10 minutes.
6. Add salt and pepper to taste. Adjust the heat if it's not hot enough, by adding the seeds that you removed from the peppers.


Tips:

•For those who don't mind eating a chunk of ginger, you can just cut it into strips instead of shredding it.
•When buying coconut milk, look for one with 0(zero) sugar content on its Nutrition label. You don't want a hint of sweetness for this dish.
•You don't have to suffer from a very hot and spicy Bicol Express if you can't handle the heat. If you like the dish but can't withstand the powerful heat, use just one or two chili peppers (seeds and ribs removed) stirred in during the last few minutes of the cooking process.
•Very Important! Make sure you wash your hands (and the knife and cutting board) right after handling the chili otherwise your hand will feel a severe burning sensation that's very uncomfortable, and sometimes really painful.