thekimsioco

[thekimsioco]

Vegan string bean Adobo recipe and my first field work as a journalist.

When I was in college, I had the opportunity to intern for one of the top broadsheet newspapers in the country. They called me to ask if I can help cover the May 2013 Elections. And being a journalism student at the time, it was a dream come true.

During the election coverage, I was assigned to a low-income and high crime rate area. And I would stay there until the wee hours of the morning because I had to finish the vote count.

One night - at around 2AM - I realized that I was so busy with the vote counting (vote counting happens inside the municipality building) that I forgot to eat dinner. The thing with hunger is that the moment you realized you're hungry, the hunger pangs get worse from there.

I went outside to look for a 24-hour restaurant or anything with food. It was raining. The first thing I noticed is this small cart in the corner that sells homecooked meals for less than a dollar. Perfect.

Men gathered around the cart, waving their crumpled money. I put my backpack in front of me and tiptoed to take a look at the food. I ended up ordering string bean adobo with rice and Coke.

There are makeshift tables and chairs on the side. One of the men stood up so I can sit down. I said thank you and ate quietly. They are all staring at me. A small 19-year-old girl, eating with middle-aged brusque men.

It was supposed to be embarrassing. But I was so hungry that I didn't really care. It was probably one of the most memorable meals I had in Manila. The sauce of the adobo over the rice. The combination of string beans and pork (I wasn't vegan back then). Even the Coke taste good. And for the record, I hate string beans before!

Today, I'm recreating that dish that saved my sanity on the 16th of May 2013. Back when I still have a different vision for myself. When the task of walking through an overpass alone at 4AM in the morning scares the shit out of me.  

Adobo is probably one of the Filipino dishes that every Filipino household knows how to make. It's salty and sour and sweet and garlicky. It's easy and straightforward. And very, very home-y (if that makes sense).

I want to share the vegan version of the recipe with you and take you with me to the night of my first field work as a journalist.

Vegan String Bean Adobo Recipe Ingredients:

firm tofu (thawed twice)

cornstarch

string beans, cut to desired size

cooking oil

garlic

1 cup water

4 tbsp soy sauce

4 tbsp white vinegar

1/2 tbsp brown sugar

salt and pepper

bay leaf

How to make Vegan String Bean Adobo:

Remove the excess water from the tofu. To do this, simply wrap it in paper towels and put something heavy on top of it. Like a pan, or your cat, or whatever floats your boat. We want the texture to be crumbly. It makes the tofu soak the flavors better.

Coat the tofu with cornstarch. It doesn't have to be thickly coated. In fact, I don't advise it to be thickly coated.

Fry your tofu until golden brown. Set Aside.

Sautee Garlic in cooking oil. Add your string beans and a pinch of salt. Add water and bring to a boil.

Change to low-medium heat. Add soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, and pepper. Add your tofu and bay leaf. Simmer until reduced.

Once reduced, the sauce should be slightly thickened. Remove from heat and serve with rice.

Notes:

You can add mushrooms, potatoes, spinach, or even pineapple.

the sauce is the same if you're planning to do chicken or pork adobo.

I like adding coconut milk in my adobo. But the string bean I ate in 2013 doesn't have coconut milk so I removed it. But anyway, you can do it if you like.

[thekimsioco]

Veganism and whatnots.

June this year, I decided to finally be vegan. It’s not hard, even I am surprised about the easy transition because I’ve been a notorious meat eater and was in love with dairy products before switching.

I was first introduced to veganism 8 years ago. When I met people who are practicing the vegan lifestyle. Honestly, I really wanted to switch back then, but the vegan community is so toxic. I hate conflicts so that scares me. Even the vegan people who introduced me to veganism acted like they are morally superior than me - a mere meat eater. 

Because of the pandemic and probably because it seems like I’ve been forced to self-reflect more often than the previous year, I’ve decided to finally be vegan. I mean, I’ve been promoting kindness and compassion and understanding. Veganism extends that to animals. I’m totally cool with that. 

I joined groups in reddit and facebook for tips and recipes. I watched the documentaries. I even read books about it so I’ll know better and make better decisions.

Lately, I’ve been bashed because I tried to stop a fellow vegan from spamming hateful comments and reporting a small business owner’s facebook page just because the business sells dairy products. 

In my defense, the business is not attacking the vegan community. There’s literally no point in harming the livelihood of those people in the time of COVID 19. My fellow vegan replied something along the lines of “So you’re okay with them harming animals?”

And for a second, I’m having a vegan identity crisis. Of course, I’m not okay with cow exploitation but at the same time, there are other ways to educate without being rude. It’s a small business catered to non-vegan people who probably relies to their social media for sales. 

There are conglomerates who make milk and whose farm are far more devastating and inhumane. Both are wrong in a vegan standpoint, but if you’re telling me you want to ruin a small business, but you’re buying your almond and soy milk from the same company that manufactures cow’s milk and dairy, that’s the epitome of hypocrisy. And that’s selective compassion.

The truth is, there is no perfect vegan. I’m staying away from meat vs non-meat eater arguments because veganism is more than a diet. Your perfect plant-based food doesn’t make you a perfect vegan. We’re destroying a millennia’s worth of animal cruelty. And vegans being angry doesn’t help the poor animal who is going to the slaughterhouse tomorrow. 

Anger and hate, when cultivated, will have the tendency to harm whether emotionally or physically. It’s another form of cruelty. 

I didn’t became vegan for that. 

[thekimsioco]

Blogging, vulnerability, and personal stories.

Being in the digital marketing space sure has its ups and downs. I've been second guessing everything I read on the internet. While also - ironically speaking - believing everything it says. 

I've been blogging since 2009 using different platforms. Prior to that, I've been keeping a diary. Notebooks full of dainty scripts and ugly doodles. Back in early 2000s, that's how I roll. Seeing how blogging changed through the years is probably one of the reasons why I became so interested in what goes beyond content. 

Back when I started, personal blogs are a thing. We don’t have influencers back then and certainly, we don’t have sponsored posts. All we ever had are our personal experiences. It’s honest, vulnerable, and sometimes, poignant.

Lately, I’ve been thinking of how Everyone is literally one chat and videocall away. I know what’s going on to everyone’s lives through social media but at the same time, I don’t really know them. We are both connected and disconnected at the same time. It’s almost like a paradox. Or maybe it is.

Anyway, I’ve decided to start blogging again after being in hiatus for a year. I want to do an experiment using personal stories and vulnerability as the cornerstone of good content. 

I hope that this blog will empower and inspire women to not be afraid to stand up, to be more compassionate, and go after what they want out of life. My life is not at all inspiring and I think that my personal journey is ordinary. 

But I still hope that I’ll be able to reach out to people who think that they are too much or too little for something.