Chef JR Royol against the notorious soft-shelled turtle! | Farm To Table
Aired (October 29, 2023): Because of the soft-shelled turtles, Chef JR Royol's speed in catching the animal was put to the test. Will they defeat him, or will he be able to capture them?
Transcript
00:00 One of the most astounding characteristics of Filipinos is our rock and roll.
00:04 Especially when we have problems, or we have peste.
00:10 We're the ones who experience it.
00:12 Like when we went on a food adventure here in St. Isidoro, the Farmer Resort.
00:18 Where they use ingredients that we consider as peste.
00:23 But instead of being a salad, we Filipinos know that
00:27 as long as it's edible, as long as it's not poisonous,
00:30 the only way we can address that is by cooking them.
00:34 And of course, we're enjoying this delicacy.
00:36 Come on, join me on this adventure.
00:39 We'll get some exotic ingredients and solid dishes that we'll make later.
00:44 They say that a frog is fast or slow?
00:47 Slow.
00:48 Slow. Let's see.
00:50 It's not fast.
00:52 Hey!
00:53 It's not fast!
00:54 It's still young.
00:56 Yeah!
00:57 This frog is fast.
01:00 One of the ingredients that we'll be using today,
01:02 one of the ingredients that we'll be foraging or hunting,
01:06 is what they call "Ahas Pagong".
01:08 This is a soft-shelled turtle that is being eaten by fishpond.
01:13 Where they eat seabass and medium-sized fish.
01:18 And that's it.
01:19 The fishpond owners got a headache.
01:23 Why are we here? I thought the fishpond owners are the Ahas Pagong owners.
01:27 Yes.
01:28 One of their hidden talents is that they are good at fishing.
01:32 -They also do fishing? -Yes.
01:34 You should be careful when you catch a fish like the Ahas Pagong.
01:39 Because they're very sharp.
01:41 They bite.
01:42 Yeah.
01:43 They bite because they're a bit painful.
01:46 -Is it painful or just a bit? -It's painful.
01:47 It's painful.
01:49 It's bloody, right?
01:50 You can't cut their fingers.
01:52 You can't cut their fingers but you can't let them go.
01:54 There.
02:02 Their nails are strong.
02:12 Their feet are strong.
02:14 So you really need to be careful.
02:16 So normally, sir, how big is the fishpond owner's catch?
02:21 More than 1 kilo, sir.
02:22 1 kilo? So this is still young.
02:25 What do you normally cook here?
02:35 We make sisig and adobo.
02:38 -Sisig and adobo? -Yes, sir.
02:41 I think I can make sisig.
02:42 But I think I can make adobo better. Let's try that.
02:45 Yes, sir.
02:47 The food adventure continues in Pampanga
02:49 where we went to St. Isidoro Farmer Resort
02:52 for a unique delicacy.
02:55 The "ahas pagong".
02:57 It's a soft-shelled turtle
02:59 that's considered a pest by the fishpond owners
03:02 because it's only found in the peninsulas and small fishing boats.
03:06 They say that pagong is fast or slow?
03:11 Slow.
03:12 Slow. Let's see.
03:14 -It's not fast. -Hey!
03:17 -It's not fast! -Hey!
03:20 My line is dead!
03:22 -It's not fast. -That's one.
03:23 -It's not fast. -It's not a turtle.
03:25 It's a lie. This turtle is fast.
03:27 Let me see, sir.
03:28 -It's a turtle. -Let me see.
03:32 -Let me see. -There.
03:34 See? It's a big one.
03:36 The wood cracked.
03:37 After catching a few "ahas pagong",
03:42 I helped prepare this for cooking
03:44 from Marvin, one of the locals who ate it last.
03:48 I have no idea why Pectus is waiting for him at St. Lucidor.
03:54 Well, he's busy facing
03:57 one of his most exciting food adventures in Marangle.
04:01 I'm about to face him now.
04:03 Oh, no!
04:06 [music]
04:08 If you ask me what my favorite meat is
04:20 to cook and eat,
04:23 it's not chicken or pork, but this.
04:25 Our gansa.
04:26 For me, the gansa meat is tastier.
04:31 And the meat is not that hard, even though it's that big.
04:34 So, for me, if you have a better or a better meat to cook,
04:41 I think the gansa is one of the best meat to cook.
04:45 Since we're here in Pampanga,
04:47 we thought we could use one of the most famous condiments
04:53 or seasoning or sauce
04:56 that Pampanga has, which is their buro.
04:59 This is not the first time we use buro.
05:02 If you remember when we visited Tarlac,
05:05 we saw how to make burong hipo here.
05:09 We used it to cook half of the carp and tilapia.
05:13 [music]
05:15 Once we portioned our gansa,
05:21 the oil is hot, so we can sear our tarlac.
05:26 [music]
05:32 The browning is looking good in our wok.
05:36 Let's now start searing.
05:39 We'll add the onion, garlic, and ginger.
05:44 [music]
05:46 We can already smell the onion, garlic, and ginger.
05:56 Here, our buro is ready.
05:59 [music]
06:02 [sizzling]
06:04 To balance out the flavor,
06:13 we'll add some sugar.
06:16 I'm adding sugar to balance out the sourness of the buro.
06:22 It's not to add sweetness, but to enhance the flavor.
06:28 Finally, some salt.
06:31 And to enhance the color and aroma,
06:36 we'll add the annatto powder.
06:38 And then, the chicken stock.
06:42 [music]
06:46 We've let this boil for almost two hours and the meat is tender.
06:54 The sauce has reduced nicely.
06:57 To finish off our dish, we'll add some chili.
07:03 And of course, our labuyo.
07:07 [music]
07:09 This is now ready to be served.
07:23 What's your favorite rock band?
07:28 What?
07:30 Gansan Roses.
07:32 [laughter]
07:35 Chef, the food is a bit spicy, but it's delicious.
07:39 Spicy.
07:41 This is delicious.
07:43 Pigat?
07:44 Pigat.
07:45 Pigatsu.
07:47 I love it.
07:49 But how did it become a pest?
07:51 The rice plants are now being drained.
07:54 And the neighbors are getting ahead.
07:56 Yes, they'll have holes.
07:58 The rice plants can't hold water.
08:01 Who's the favorite action star of the Gansans?
08:04 Who?
08:06 Edu Gansano.
08:08 [laughter]
08:14 [music]
08:16 [speaking Filipino]
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10:01 [speaking Filipino]
10:04 [coughing]
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