I'm Dreaming of ....

If that title led you to expect a sticky-sweet reminiscence of snowy Stateside holiday seasons past, a bit of wistful Christmas nostalgia from an American passing Christmas in a decidedly un-Christmasy land, well -- I'm sorry, but you've come to the wrong place. Living where we do for as long as we have has pretty much cured us of any thought of conjuring a holiday equivalent to what we'd be observing if we were in the States.

We last attempted to 'do' Christmas in Asia in 1996, when we lived in Shanghai. We erected a fake tree in a corner of our living room and paid an ungodly sum for a turkey. The weather, at least, should have cooperated, but the day dawned hazy (not unusual -- the Shanghai skyline never once enjoyed the backdrop of a clear blue sky when we lived there) and dishearteningly warm.

Dave had taken the day off work but the rest of the city was its usual weekday busy-bee self; it wasn't Christmas carols but the sounds of honking and horking that drifted up to our apartment from the street below. It didn't feel like any sort of holiday, let alone the second-biggest holiday of the year (for me, anyway ... Thanksgiving has always felt more important than Christmas).

After rising late and exchanging gifts we wandered the Bund for a while before ending up at one of the city's two new malls, where we celebrated the holiday with the purchase of an air purifier for our bedroom -- not to cleanse the air, but to drown out the 24-hours-a-day racket from the construction site behind our building.

That evening I made my mother's turkey dressing (which is absolutely the world's best, I'm sure -- and why shouldn't it be, when the ingredient list includes two whole sticks of butter?), jammed some in the bird and put the rest in a covered casserole, fired up the oven, and set the timer. But our cooker -- which we hadn't used much up to that point -- hadn't been properly vented when it was installed, and we discovered that the only way to keep the gas flame going was to prop the door open with the handle of a wooden spoon.

Not the most efficient way to bake a 12-pound piece of protein, as I discovered six hours later when I pulled the turkey -- golden in some spots, pale in others, dry at the breast but disturbingly pink at the bone -- out. Mom's stuffing was barely tepid (thank goodness for the casserole -- we reheated it for lunch the next day).

And so we gave up -- on the bird and on pretending to have a real Christmas in places that just aren't real Christmas-y.

 

But that doesn't mean we close our eyes to the season altogether.

For us the whole gift-ing aspect of Christmas lost its glow years ago. Dave and I both detest shopping, you see, even if (especially if?) it's for each other. And one of us really, really detests wrapping gifts. So we put the money we'd spend on stuff that neither of us needs into two things we enjoy together: travel and/or food.

This year, but for a brief sojourn in George Town, we'll be at home, so over the next week and a half I'll be cooking a few extravagant meals as a nod to the Season and its Excesses. Our 'extravagant' meals will incorporate ingredients more dear than is the norm -- no caviar in this house folks, but perhaps some fresh mussels or a nice cut of American beef -- and rather more rich and bad-for-you than is our habit.

Kicking off this year's Ten (on-and-off) Days of Gluttony: Philippine ulang sa gata, huge prawns cooked in coconut milk.

Two years ago we spent Christmas in Pampanga province, the Philippines, in the old family home of a Filipino friend. By my request, this is what we ate for lunch on Christmas Eve day. It's a dish that for me epitomizes an oft-overlooked characteristic of many Philippine dishes: beautiful ingredients, with minimal embellishments, that star in simple preparations.

For her ulang sa gata Lucia, our host's uber-talented cook, stews freshwater prawns averaging about 6 inches (15 centimeters) in length in lightly seasoned coconut milk until the liquid is reduced to almost nothing but a shallow pool of coconut-scented oil ruddy from the fat in the heads of the shellfish. 

As the prawns cook the coconut milk seeps underneath their shells, flavoring the meat. The real reward comes when you separate the prawn's head from its body: out spill delicate coconut milk-and-prawn-fat curds.

And if that's not unctuous enough to qualify as 'of the Season' I don't know what is.

 

Ulang sa Gata (Philippine Prawns Cooked in Coconut Milk)

This dish is dead simple, requiring not that many ingredients and little technique. But what you must have to make it work is fresh coconut milk (easily made with fresh OR FROZEN grated coconut, the latter available in many Thai groceries) -- or at least a very high-quality coconut cream, such as the one Andrea Nguyen writes about here -- and big, fatty shell-on prawns. Because the shellfish are cooked well past the 'barely-there' point frozen prawns would work; many Asian markets carry prawns like those in the photo above in the freezer case. Female crabs would substitute well or -- if you really want to take this dish over the top -- use a lobster or two instead of prawns (not that you may need more coconut milk).

White rice -- to sop up those prawny coconut curds -- is really all the accompaniment you need, but if you'd like to add a vegetable and want to keep with the Philippine theme try pinakbet, stewed mixed vegetables with bagoong or shrimp paste (substitute Thai shrimp paste if you can't obtain bagoong). Or perhaps follow with an orange, red onion, and butter lettuce salad -- something light and citrusy to chase the richness of the dish.

Note: do NOT stir the dish after the prawns are added, so that the red oil from the fat in the shellfish can rise to the surface of the liquid; this tells you the prawns are done. Chilies are left whole so that they don't add heat to the dish as they cook -- diners seeking spiciness can cut the chilies on their plate and eat with the prawn and rice.

How many this dish serves really depends on the size of the generosity of the host and the size of the prawns. Prepare to get dirty -- for these prawns hands are the utensil of choice.

About 2.6 lbs (approx 1.2 kilos) large shell-on prawns -- say 6 or 7 big ones

10 cloves garlic

1 red shallot, thinly sliced

1 small red onion, thinly sliced

5-6 mild long green chilies (cayenne), washed but stems -- or at least caps -- left on

1 3/4 cup thick coconut milk or coconut milk mixed with coconut cream

freshly ground black pepper

scant 1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 Tbsp patis (Philippine fish sauce - substitute Thai or Vietnamese - a lighter sauce is preferred), or more to taste

1/2 Tbsp white sugar

1 Tbsp white vinegar

1. Pound the garlic cloves to rough shreds in a mortar, or very roughly slice.
2. Heat oil in medium-sized heavy pot (eg. Le Creuset) over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and stir constantly until it starts to brown and crisp, about 2-3 mins.
3. Add onions and shallot, stir once or twice, then add coconut milk.
4. Add fish sauce, two very generous pinches of black pepper, sugar, and vinegar. DO NOT STIR.
5. Bring the coconut milk to a boil. Taste for seasoning and add a splash more fish sauce if necessary.
6. When the entire surface of the coconut milk is covered with bubbles lay the prawns into the pot side-by-side, and then in a second layer if necessary. Lay the chilies on top. Don't worry if the prawns are not completely submerged in coconut milk, as long as the milk is touching the top layer of prawns. DO NOT STIR THE PRAWNS under.
7. Bring the liquid to a brisk simmer and cover the pan. After about 8 minutes remove the cover and baste the shrimp with the coconut milk, but do not stir.
8. Continue to simmer the shrimp with the cover off, basting occasionally as the liquid reduces. When a reddish oil appears on the surface of the coconut milk the prawns are done. There should be a little thickened liquid in the bottom of the pot.
9. Serve the prawns -- and chilies, if desired -- with rice.

Comments

[Beth]

Goodness, those prawns look amazing! I'm salivating right about now.

[John Sconzo]

I am consistently in awe of your photography. The writing and content ain't too shabby either. Happy holidays!

[Linda Nelson]

Funny you wrote about Asia being "un-Christmasy". I grew up in Sarawak, Malaysia where our Christmas is singing Christmas songs in church, eating curried pork and chicken at community dinners, and having soccer matches in the village -- that's what a normal Christmas still feels to me. Now I live in the midwestern USA, and I feel decorating the Christmas trees, wrapping and opening presents, and having turkey and ham dinners are very "un-Christmasy". Everything depends on one's point of view. The prawns in your post look sumptious. Merry Christmas.

[meemalee]

I'm with Beth - drooling into my keyboard right now.

I love huge prawns - much more so than lobster.

[Charlotte]

I am so going to try this! Off to Chinatown to find these prawns!

[borneoboy]

Wow ! So decadent. It would cost a fortune in Kuching as fresh water lobsters (this is what we call these here) are highly prized here. Great post.

[Robyn]

Beth - they're pretty tasty!
John - thanks, from both myself and the photographer.

Hi Linda - well, of course those parts of Asia where a higher percentage of the population is Christian seems more Christmas-y, to me anyway. The Christmas spirit is very strong in the Philippines, as I imagine it would be where you grew up. On the Malaysian peninsula the whole Christmas thing -- Christmas trees and carols piped throughout malls, the odd decoration -- rings a little bit hollow. I suppose it doesn't help that I just can't get into the shopping aspect of the holiday. ;-)

On another note -- we've spent a few Christmases in Italy which, to me, felt so much more truly Christmas-y than any Christmas I've spent in the US.

Merry Christmas to you too, and best wishes for 2010.

Meemalee - I agree. And I love both much more than crab.

Charlotte - report back. Hope it turns out well for you!

Borneoboy - interesting, as in Pampanga where we ate this they also call them small lobsters.

[Meng]

The live prawn is a beautiful animal. The blue grayish color is exquisite. It will be hard for me to kill and devour it.

[Scott]

Hah, funny that you mention Italy, Robyn. B/c my wife and I too will be home in KL this year, in search of x-mas/eve meal ideas I was just reading your post from last June recalling one of your most memorable x-mas eve dinners, Provencal daube with Piemontese bue grasso beef

Oh, how we missed truffles this year. While the Prawns won't necessarily go with the Barolo we have been coveting, looks like we may have to give them a try : )

Please keep your "week of cooking a few extravagant meals" coming. Your ideas and Dave's pictures are great inspiration.

[Katy Biggs]

Germany is the best place to spend Xmas if you like the Xmas markets that type of things. Italy and France are heaven for those who are looking for gastronomic adventures - you get stuffed with 7/8 courses of meal starting from the eve!

[Sook]

Wow! Look at those seafood! Awesome!

[Lizzie]

Those prawns are the stuff of gastronomic dreams.

[Lina]

I just spent my first Christmas in Asia, in Dali, China. I tried to generate some sort of Christmas-y buzz and ended up with a deep-fried hamburger for dinner, which was delicious in its own way.

The locals do seem to enjoy Christmas though, many were wearing Santa hats and everyone was spraying each other (and complete strangers) with fake snow spray.

[Aljur - Sikat ang Pinoy]

oh no!! it's so mouthwatering. i will experiment at this on weekend. wow.. i love prawns but so far haven't tasted the Ulang sa Gata yet. wweeee

[singing teacher]

I'm looking for some unique recipes from the Philippines and I'm glad I stumbled upon this site. Thanks for this recipe, I needed it because two weeks from now I have a special guest who loves to eat Filipino dishes. Thanks for this post. :-)

[glory]

Your blog is beautiful! I'm Filipina and inspired to make this for my mom! How long do you think it is between adding the prawns and the red liquid floating up, please? I know you might say "the red liquid will tell you"! But any guidance would be great! Thank you!

[Robyn]

Glory - Thank you. It was about 15 minutes. Be sure not to bring the liquid to a full rolling boil. Something a bit more than a gentle simmer. If it boils too hard the red oil won't collect on surface. Also, you have to use prawns with plenty of fat -- or else no red oil!
Good luck.

[Memories of Pampanga]

Robyn,

I know Apung Lucia. My grandma taught her how to cook.

I should say I am a better cook than grandma bec I've tasted/tried/cooked dishes from diff Asian countries, including the local dishes. I've been living here in the states many years and travels to the Phils once in a while. Loved Pampanga dishes to name a few: pesa, chicken adobo, paella, etc.

My personal email address: [email protected]

M