Mongo Madness (stewed mung beans)

A bowl of Mongo Madness and rice

Tonight I'm making mongos. "Mongos", also spelled "monggos", "mungos" or "munggos" are dried mung beans and are very similar to lentils. Mongos are typically prepared as a soup or stew. I make mine a bit differently, shall we say, compared to the typical Philippine way. It's kind of my own secret recipe, but I'm willing to share. My wife, a Cebuana, says I make better mongos than she does. I call this dish Mongo Madness as originally I added whatever I happened to have lying around, such as leftover pechay, so it was a bit different every time until I finally standardized my recipe as is given here.

This dish is easy to make but requires quite a bit of preparation, some of which can be done beforehand, finishing up about an hour before you want to eat. It's a great comfort food when you're not feeling well or for during the cooler rainy season, as it is here (it just started.)

Please read the recipe thoroughly, including the notes at the bottom, before going shopping. (Recipe details continue after the jump.)



Ingredients:

One 250mg bag of dried mongo (mung) beans

Pork ham (raw and uncured) or belly with the fat and skin left on, cut into small cubes: about one cup of meat when cut

One large purple onion, chopped*

One head of garlic, about 10-12 cloves, peeled and slightly crushed

One potato, peeled and diced

One carrot, peeled and diced

Two red bell peppers, cored, deseeded and diced*

Three ripe tomatoes, chopped*

One each of the following bouillon cubes: pork, chicken and tamarind**

2 tablespoons oil

2 tablespoons soy sauce

Water

Salt and pepper to taste


Optional:

Two cups of any green, leafy vegetable such as spinach or bok choy

Four sili mahaba  (sword peppers) or jalapeños, whole

Four pieces of fresh ginger root, peeled: each piece about an inch long



Preparation:

Soak the mongo beans in water for at least three hours, or overnight. Drain.

Prepare the meat and vegetables as per the above.

Cubed pork (left) and potatoes, tomatoes and red bell peppers (right)

Place your mongos and the diced carrot in a large saucepan, cover very well with water, heat until it bubbly. Lower heat and simmer, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking and scorching, until carrots are tender and mongos can be easily squished against the side of the pan with a fork: about 40 minutes. Add water as required. When ready, remove from heat, drain, and set aside.

Precooked mongos and carrots (left) and garlic and onion (right)

Place your pork in a large, nonstick skillet. Add enough water to halfway cover the meat. Heat on medium or medium-high until the water boild. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally and turning the meat over, until all the water has boiled away and the meat's thoroughly cooked. Make sure all the water has evaporated to prevent splattering and burns in the next step.

Pork cooking in water

Reduce heat. Add the oil and stir. Add the onion and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion pieces separate and start becoming translucent: about two to three minutes.

Add the soy sauce and the bouillon cubes. Cook, stirring, until the cubes have dissolved and the meat is nice and brown-colored.

Cooked pork, oil, garlic, onion, soy sauce and bouillon cubes

Add the rest of the vegetables and enough water to cover everything quite well. Heat on medium or medium-high until the water begins to boil.

Add the precooked mongos as well as more water, if required. Stir. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until the potatoes are very tender: about an hour. Stir occasionally to prevent sticking, and add more water if required. Consistency should be that of a thick soup or thin stew.

Season with salt and pepper to taste (you can also add a bit more soy sauce if you like.) Serve over serving plates of hot rice. Serves four to five.

*Note: many vegetables in the Philippines are a lot smaller than their American or European counterparts. For example, most onions are only around the size of golf or ping-pong balls, with the largest being around the size of a large hen's egg. Tomatoes are roughly the size of Roma tomatoes in the US (which may be used in this recipe), and bell peppers are just tiny: half of a standard-sized red bell pepper, diced, will be enough for this recipe. Likewise, half of a standard medium-sized onion  will do.

**I don't know how difficult tamarind cubes will be to find in American or European shops or supermarkets. If all you can find is powdered tamarind, use two teaspoons. If all else fails you can omit the tamarind entirely and the dish will still taste good, but you'll be missing that wonderful, slightly sour, unique flavor it imparts. Vinegar is no substitute: however, adding a little lemon juice in place of the tamarind might work OK. Haven't tried it myself. Let me know if you do so.