Chicken Menudo a la Kam

First and foremost, Happy New Year everyone! I hope you are all as excited for 2012 as I am. :)

My brother (let's call him Yams :b) from Manila is in town for the holidays and he is a complete health buff, so in an attempt to eat healthier, we have been tweaking rich and greasy Filipino dishes to make them lighter versions. I admire his discipline on food (FYI: this brother used to eat a whole bag of Hershey's kisses like potato chips). 

So here's my version of the Filipino Menudo, no it's not the same as the Mexican one. Filipino menudo is  a stew that is usually eaten with rice (like every other Filipino dish) while Mexican menudo is a spicy soup made with tripe (I bet it's a good hangover soup). 

What you need:
- Around 4 chicken breasts, skinless and boneless, cubed
- juice of 1/2 lemon (you will use the other half for the stew)
- 2 tbsp. dark soy sauce

- 1 tbsp. Olive oil
- clove of garlic, minced
- small onion, chopped
- 1 medium potato, cubed
- 2 carrots, cubed
- Around 1.5 cups stock (chicken or vegetable)
- juice of the other half of the lemon
- 1 small can tomato sauce
- green peas or cubed bell peppers  (optional, great for pops of color)
- salt and pepper to taste

How it's done:
Combine soy sauce and lemon and marinate chicken for around 30 minutes. 

Heat up a wok, add the olive oil. Saute garlic and onion. Once onion is translucent, add chicken and cook until all sides are brown. 

Add stock and let simmer for around 5 minutes. Add in potatoes, carrots, lemon juice and tomato sauce and simmer for another good 10 minutes. 

Add in green peas/bell pepper and simmer for another minute. 

Season as you wish, you can either do fish sauce or salt and pepper. I like adding a little bit of rosemary. 
Serve hot with rice :)

Kam's Tips:
- Like pork? Substitute the chicken with 1 lb. pork and add another 5 minutes simmer time. 
- Some add chick peas and raisins, two things that I am not a fan of, you can add them towards the end if   
  you prefer.
- Want it spicier? You can either add a little bit of red pepper flakes or a few drops of tabasco sauce :)   

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