Ochi In The City

Kitchen Chronicles : Easy Banana Smoothie

Ever since I quit smoking, I've gained a tremendous amount of weight. I would momentarily try to shed some of it off but for some reason, my diets and detoxes aren't as effective compared to when I was smoking. Not sure if nicotine plays a huge role in weight loss or it's just my body slowing its metabolism down. Eitherway, from 45kgs, I'm not at 60kgs in a span of 10mos, and yes I'm alarmed. I've tried to eat healthy but somehow my oral fixation would get the best of me and I'd end up binge eating again.

But lately, I've been more determined to lose this added weight since it doesn't make me feel good at all. My clothes don't fit and I'm in no mood to socialize since my weight gain apparently has also taken its toll on my mental health. Anyway, enough of that heavy shit. Since my birthday, I've decided to be more dedicated to this plan and not do on crash diets orr detoxes anymore. I'm trying to be more active although that's proving to be the most difficult part about it. The easy part is the food. I love cooking and experimenting so in the past 2 weeks, I've been having this breakfast smoothie and it feels great. I haven't lost any weight but I feel lighter so, shall we begin?

INGREDIENTS
Bananas
Soy/Almond Milk
Chia Seeds
Ice Cubes

PROCEDURE
1. Place your bananas in a ziploc bag and freeze overnight.
2. In a blender combine the frozen bananas, 1tbsp of chia seeds, soy/almond milk and ice cubes.
3. Blend until you get the consistency you want.

Some notes, you can add or use any fruit that you prefer. You can also add vegetables, protein powders and whatever it is that tickles your fancy. Personally I haven't experimented with vegetables yet but I might do it next week. If I do, I'll make sure to share it with you guys. Enjoy!

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, by Ochi Bernadas

drug eggs

Kitchen Chronicles : Mayak Eggs

Aside from Japanese food, one other cuisine that I'm pretty much obsessed with is Korean food! I mean who's not obsessed with Samgyeupsal? It's on the verge of replacing Adobo as our national dish, loljk. But seriously, Korean food is soooo good! Their instant noodles are also to die for! While not necessarily healthy, I indulge in it once in a while. Which is why when you look at my Youtube recommendations, I mostly have Korean mukbangs of spicy noodles or Jjajangmyeon or sushi!

Aside from my Korean mukbangs, I also get bouts of Korean recipes here and there. This is how I discovered the recipe I'll be sharing today. Last year I tried a Japanese recipe for soy-marinated yolk so when I saw what Mayak eggs are all about, I was immediately all over it. The recipe looked pretty simple and required little effort and you know I'm all about that lol. Let's begin!

INGREDIENTS
Fresh Eggs
Soy Sauce
Green Onions
Red/Green Chilies
Sugar
Sesame Seeds
Water

PROCEDURE
1. Boil the eggs for strictly 6 minutes then transfer to a container with cold water.
2. Peel the eggs and set aside.
3. For the mixture, combine 1/2 cup of soy sauce, 1/2 cup of water, 1/4 cup of sugar, 1tbsp of sesame seeds, chopped green and red chillies and chopped scallions.
4. Add the peeled eggs and keep in an airtight container.
5. Refrigerate for at least 5 hours. (I did mine overnight)
6. Serve on top of hot rice and drizzle with sesame oil.

And voila, Mayak eggs! I loved this recipe because it was's as salty as the soy marinated yolks that I tried before. While that was good, this one is even better! I easily had 3 in one sitting. I guess the danger there is having to control yourself lest you want to die of high cholesterol lol. Let me know if you're making this recipe! Enjoy!

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, by Ochi Bernadas

Betamax

Food Diary : Mang Larry's Famous Isawan

EVERYBODY LOVES ISAW. There, I said it, fight me lol. But no seriously, Isaw is the best. I remember being exposed to it as early as 7yo since I grew up in a palengke. And my dad loooooved streetfood. From fishball to barbeque to betamax--we had it all because of him! Of course my mom would only let us have hotdogs but my dad would secretly give us isaw, fishball and whatever he's having when my mom wasn't looking. My mom was right to be worried because I had amoebiasis when I was younger so streetfood was a no-no because my tummy would always feel uneasy after eating quite a handful. But as a proof of cleanliness, I don't feel that uneasiness when I eat at Mang Larry's which is why this is my go-to place for streetfood!

Anywaaaay, for today's blog, I'm sharing a few of my favorites from Mang Larry's! During our visit they recently just transferred to a new location which is in front of the Fine Arts building. It's more spacious and there are also more chairs and tables around. Won't be putting in a lot of text in this post and I'll let you guys see for yourselves what I had when I visited! Please subscribe to my channel if you haven't yet! Enjoy!

MANG LARRY'S ISAWAN

Budget - P50 - P150

Open daily from 10AM to 9PM

UP Diliman, Along Jacinto st. Near College of Fine Arts

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, by Ochi Bernadas

Cebu

Food Diary : Tuslob Buwa at Azul

Do you guys watch The Best Ever Food Review Show? I do! I used to not like him because I thought he's just another white person banking off of views from developing countries but turns out he's more than that. Anyway, not here to promote him or his channel but I wanted to give an overview of his channel before diving in on my next topic. Y'all know I love exploring and discovering new cuisine which is why I was surprised because I've seen one of his episodes wherein he eats "Pork brains gravy" also known as Tuslob Buwa.

I watched the video thinking this might just be another one of the common street food we'd usually have but with a different name, and boy was I wrong. I went through all the nook and crannies of Cebu and paved my way over to Azul just to have a taste of this controversial dish!

Before you even wonder what the hell is Tuslob Buwa, don't cringe. It's just like any other street food you'd usually have like Kwek-Kwek or Isaw, it's just that this one is made of Pork brains. Pretty similar, yeah? Tuslob Buwa is a street food native to Cebu a street where diners dip puso (wrapped rice) in a simmering mixture of fat, pork liver, pig brain and intestines. So see, it's not all pork brains. I'd rather it be called brain gravy because it's closer to what it looks and tastes like! I won't say much on this blog but I've attached a vlog so I can be more graphic about it! Haha And yes, you have to do the cooking yourself! Just look at how much fun I've had. Enjoy!

AZUL

Budget : P250 for 2 people

Open daily for 24 hours

Taft Business Center, Gorordo Ave, Cebu City, 6000 Cebu

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, by Ochi Bernadas

bone marrow

Food Diary : FULL STOP Café + Bar

I remember being extremely disappointed when I first tried the famous Bone Marrow Pares. The place where I tried it at was the place everyone was raving about--Shorthorn Pares. I've lost faith since then and would almost always just scroll past anything that involved Pares or bone marrow in a sentence. I was thinking, could bone marrow actually be that tasteless if you were to just torch it and pair it with Pares? I was utterly disappointed. You know how I love bone marrow when it comes to Bulalo so I had really high hopes for this.

Fast forward to about three weeks ago, a friend kept raving about this bone marrow place saying it would make me forget all the heartbreak (lol) I experienced with Shorthorn. The only thing is that, its's in Bulacan. But you know me, I wouldn't mind going the distance but I do mind a queue lol. Is that weird? Anyway, let's begin.