They are putting a plant-based twist on the classic adobo meal
If you are among those who are against the standardization of home-cooked meals, well, we have one tasty meal for you to try. Foodie Instagram page A Home Kewk partners with chef Miko Calo of Metronome in bringing a vegan twist to the Filipino favorite adobo.
Green and flavorful, the special plant-based dish features the delicious goodness of adobo beets paired with coconut-lemongrass rice, homemade atchara, and Baguio beans. Its star component, the beets, are slow-cooked in adobo sauce, pureed with roasted onions and garlic. The homemade atchara and blistered Baguio beans over glistening coconut-lemongrass rice are the perfect side to let the adobo beets' flavors sing.
“I made adobo for a pop-up dinner in Paris and I garnished it with roasted beets and it went well together,” says Miko of the dish’s origins.
“I’m a huge fan of beets,” says Bea Ledesma, creator of the Instagram page. “A little earthy, a little sweet and, when you’re prepping it, it actually bleeds so you feel like you’re not missing out on the meat, you know?”
As seen on its first pop-up last July 2021, A Home Kwek is known for its sandwiches like the Happy Egg Sando and the Very Veggie Burger. This collaboration with chef Miko marks its debut in offering plant-based rice meals.
This wasn't the first time they met and worked together. The two have known each other since they were 13 as they attended the same high school.
“We were hanging out since we were teens so there’s a shorthand to the way we communicate. We both know each other’s preferences, so figuring out our common likes when it comes to food is pretty easy,” says Bea.
“Bea has been bossing me around since we were 13 years old! (laughs),” Miko adds.
Empowering Filipino home cooks everywhere, the A Home Kwek page presents stories of happiness and delight given by food during the pandemic. It also shares recipes so any home cook can whip up the dishes in their own kitchen and experience and share the joy of home cooking with their loved ones.
“The IG @AHomeKewk is an homage to all the home kewking I’ve done over the past year and all the home cooks I admire. I enjoy seeing people’s process when cooking at home, how they put together a meal, the ingredients they love and the food they turn to when they’re looking for comfort," Bea muses. “Part of this home cooking project is to explore the way food is meaningful to us—how we interact with it and enjoy it, how we share it with others."
“Food—and sharing the process of making it—is deeply intimate and indicative of the way we live, how we grew up, where we’re from, what we’re interested in now. And it’s fun to explore the ways we’re all different and we’re all the same when it comes to food,” she ends.
The adobo beets (P400 per order) will be launched today, Aug. 23, 2021, at 2 p.m., and are available for pre-order until Thursday. Pickup will be on Saturday, Aug. 28, 2021, in Makati, between 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. via preferred courier.
Get updated by following @AHomeKewk on Instagram.