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New eats: Try adobo sushi, uni palabok at Nobu Manila

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Karen Flores, ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2017/life/04/08/mike-de-jesus.jpg"/><figcaption><div class="embed-desc">Head chef Mike De Jesus showcases Filipino flavors at Nobu Manila. <cite>Handout photo</cite></div></figcaption></figure></div><p>MANILA – Nothing beats a pot of home-cooked adobo, but it’s not every day that you see it in gel form and used as a sushi topping.</p><p>Whitefish Adobo Sushi is one of the Filipino-inspired dishes currently available at Nobu Manila, one of the restaurants owned by Japanese celebrity chef Nobu Matsuhisa. It has the familiar flavors of Filipino food but is still very light and delicate, still true to Nobu’s artful simplicity.</p><p>Nobu Manila head chef Mike De Jesus said adobo was one of the first things that came to mind as he and his team crafted the Filipino-inspired menu, which is available at the restaurant until June 30.</p><p>“Adobo has vinegar and soy sauce, which are ingredients we use already,” he told ABS-CBN News during a recent media preview.</p><p>Aside from adobo, De Jesus also tapped ginataan, salted egg and sisig for inspiration. Each of the sushi counterparts provided a pop of Filipino flavor, with the Seared Tuna Sushi with Ginataan stealing the show.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2017/life/04/08/sushi.jpg"/><figcaption><div class="embed-desc">A selection of Filipino-inspired sushi. <cite>Handout photo</cite></div></figcaption></figure></div><p>WAGYU KARE-KARE, SISIG BUNS</p><p>This is the second time that Nobu Manila is dabbling in Filipino cuisine, following the success of the restaurant’s omakase dinner featuring De Jesus and another Pinoy chef, Nobu New York executive chef Ricky Estrellado.</p><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="http://news.abs-cbn.com/life/09/28/16/what-these-pinoy-chefs-learned-from-nobu">READ: What these Pinoy chefs learned from Nobu</a></li></ul><p>One of the dishes from last year’s event, Beef Short Rib Kare-kare Anticucho, is making a comeback this summer. “Kare-kare, most definitely, is one of my favorite things to eat growing up,” De Jesus said.</p><p>Nobu Manila’s version, as expected, is as pretty as it is delicious. Braised Wagyu short rib, Japanese eggplant and baby bok choy sit on top of kare-kare sauce flavored with anticucho for a Peruvian touch, with the salty bagoong cutting through the richness.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2017/life/04/08/karekare.jpg"/><figcaption><div class="embed-desc">Wagyu Short Rib Kare-kare Anticucho. <cite>Handout photo</cite></div></figcaption></figure></div><p>The Kurobuta and Foie Gras Sisig Buns, meanwhile, are an interesting way to present a well-loved beer accompaniment. De Jesus used Kurobuta pork belly as filling for the fried bao buns, which were topped with luxurious foie gras.</p><p>The resulting dish is smooth and clean – far from the greasy original – but is nevertheless delicious.</p><div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2017/life/04/08/buns.jpg"/><figcaption><div class="embed-desc">Kurobuta and Foie Gras Sisig Buns. <cite>Handout photo</cite></div></figcaption></figure></div><p>“Some people don’t really like the idea that they’re eating pig’s brain, so we put a little luxury with foie gras. As a chef, I’ll probably have it (foie gras) a little softer, but I tried to have the texture of the brain, which is kind of gummy,” De Jesus said.</p><p>UNI PALABOK</p><p>It was safe to say that the star of the meal served during the media preview was the Nobu Palabok, which effectively combined the Filipino taste with the subtlety of Japanese culture.</p><p>Udon noodles were coated with a creamy sauce made from shrimp stock, dashi and uni or sea urchin, with tiger prawns and a slow-cooked egg on the side. Topping it all off is bacon furikake in lieu of chicharon.</p><blockquote class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-version="7" style="background:#FFF;border:0;border-radius:3px;box-shadow:0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15);margin:1px;max-width:658px;padding:0;width:calc(100% - 2px)"><div style="padding:8px"><div style="background:#F8F8F8;line-height:0;margin-top:40px;padding:49.53703703703704% 0;text-align:center;width:100%"><div style="background:url(data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAACwAAAAsCAMAAAApWqozAAAABGdBTUEAALGPC/xhBQAAAAFzUkdCAK7OHOkAAAAMUExURczMzPf399fX1+bm5mzY9AMAAADiSURBVDjLvZXbEsMgCES5/P8/t9FuRVCRmU73JWlzosgSIIZURCjo/ad+EQJJB4Hv8BFt+IDpQoCx1wjOSBFhh2XssxEIYn3ulI/6MNReE07UIWJEv8UEOWDS88LY97kqyTliJKKtuYBbruAyVh5wOHiXmpi5we58Ek028czwyuQdLKPG1Bkb4NnM+VeAnfHqn1k4+GPT6uGQcvu2h2OVuIf/gWUFyy8OWEpdyZSa3aVCqpVoVvzZZ2VTnn2wU8qzVjDDetO90GSy9mVLqtgYSy231MxrY6I2gGqjrTY0L8fxCxfCBbhWrsYYAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC);display:block;height:44px;margin:0 auto -44px;position:relative;top:-22px;width:44px"> </div></div><p style="color:#c9c8cd;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:17px;margin-bottom:0;margin-top:8px;overflow:hidden;padding:8px 0 7px;text-align:center;text-overflow:ellipsis;white-space:nowrap"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/BSQSqJGA2Ri/" style="color:#c9c8cd;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-style:normal;font-weight:normal;line-height:17px;text-decoration:none" target="_blank">A post shared by Karen Flores (@karenmflores)</a> on <time dateTime="2017-03-30T07:52:14+00:00" style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;font-size:14px;line-height:17px">Mar 30, 2017 at 12:52am PDT</time></p></div></blockquote><script async="" defer="" src="http://platform.instagram.com/en_US/embeds.js" type="text/javascript"></script><p>“Every time I eat palabok, I always thought growing up that it was a cheese sauce,” De Jesus revealed, drawing laughter from members of the media.</p><p>Explaining his decision to use uni in their version of palabok, he continued: “Actually, I used uni in a dish in Las Vegas. Back then, there was a craving for steak with blue cheese and balsamic onions. In Nobu, we don’t allow blue cheese back then. We weren’t allowed to use cream or cheese in any of the dishes.”</p><p>“So the one thing I experimented with by accident was uni. And it had that really funky blue cheese smell and had that cheesy element to it. We added it to steak and onions, and that killed it,” he continued. “We have an uni pasta, too, but we don’t use shrimp stock. But for this one, I thought it would go well.”</p><p>Nobu Manila’s Filipino-inspired dishes are offered just in time for Flavors of the Philippines, an annual gastronomy festival by the Department of Tourism and the Tourism Promotions Board.</p>

<p>This is the second time that Nobu Manila is dabbling in Filipino cuisine.</p>

New eats: Try adobo sushi, uni palabok at Nobu Manila

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New eats: Try adobo sushi, uni palabok at Nobu Manila

Karen Flores,

ABS-CBN News

Published Apr 08, 2017 09:30 AM PHT

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Updated Apr 08, 2017 09:42 AM PHT

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