how one family meal led me to master Bicol Express

recreating the classic Bicol Express: pork belly stewed in rich coconut and chilies

when I took my partner to my parent’s hometown he was most excited about the food. he even did a little bit of research and read up on our region (Bicol) and learned it’s famous for coconut and chili peppers - two of our favourite things! i do have to give it to edwin - he’s as white as it comes (blond hair, blue eyes) but he really breaks the white-people-can’t-handle-spicy-food stereotype.

i told him i was most excited about having jollibee again and my dad’s chicken adobo.
yes, we do have jollibee in london. no, it’s not the same.
nevermind the price of the chicken joy bucket here but the lack of burger steak is a crime. no kids running birthday parties, no bee mascot dancing to the soundtrack - all we get are underpaid uber eats drivers waiting in line for their deliveries. where’s the joy? where’s the fun? where’s my burger steak?

my mum was actually around this time so of course no jollibee for us. instead, we headed to Chef’s Doys, a small restaurant we usually go to when i was young whenever there were special occasions (like my mum finally coming home once a year). the setup is always the same: we beg for the only table outside, my brother and I gets to choose the ulam (main meal) that goes with our rice, my mum gets her sinigang in bangus (tamarind soup with milkfish), and my dad grills the servers about portion sizes.

my dad is a 6'2" retired army soldier, and his voice alone silences a room, not because he’s trying, that’s just how he talks. so when he starts grilling the already terrified servers about portion sizes, it’s not to assert dominance, it’s because he needs to know if the dish feeds 2–3 people because that dish is for him, and no, we can’t have any. he’s not being rude - he’s just hungry. and honestly? respect.

doing a food order with my family is like clockwork. not sure if it’s a filipino thing but as a family even though we get together as a whole, maybe once every 5 years, the routine around food just doesn’t go away. we started shouting out our orders to the server, and as expected, we get hit back with the most disappointing responses. but, my brother and i are seasoned veterans at this point so we moved quick with our plan b. here’s how it unfolded:
- sinigang na bangus? yes to sinigang but no to bangus - only pork. i look up to my mum - she didn’t say anything. that’s a firm no. soup plan b: chicken tinola. great, they have it.
- kare kare? a classic, surely they have it, and yes they do - thank god.
- laing? my dad’s favourite: taro leaves stewed in coconut milk, it’s available. great, 3 orders for that, of course, my dad will have 2 orders for himself when he still eats like he’s still in military training
- pork sisig? edwin looks at me nervously. he has no plan B. but the food god smiles upon him, they have it.
- a big bowl of garlic fried rice? if a filipino restaurant doesn’t have sinangag, actually shut it down immediately
- crispy pata? my brother lets out a sigh and orders it anyway, knowing full well they never have it. and guess what, they still don’t! the server gives us that same look of pity we’ve been receiving since we were kids. i’m pretty sure i was 12 the first time i heard "sorry, not available" at Chef Doy’s, and the menu hasn’t changed since

so carl and i pivoted. if crispy pata is off the table (again), there’s only one thing that can rise to the occasion: Bicol Express

bicol express is a popular regional ulam in Bicol: tender pork in creamy coconut milk, rich bagoong (filipino shrimp paste), and loaded with bird’s eye chillies. after having it at Chef Doy’s, edwin has been begging me to recreate it since and i’ve always said it’s too much of a hassle to make. but the truth is, i’ve not had it enough to be inspired. but since i’ve been on this journey of cooking more filipino dishes, i realised i haven’t really explored much of the bicolano flavours.

i’ve also wondered what really sets binagoongan apart from bicol express. turns out, they’re pretty similar: same key ingredients and cooking style but bicol express kicks up the heat and made creamier with coconut milk, while traditional binagoongan skips the coconut altogether.

for this version, i wanted to elevate the usual bicol express. and for me, the only way to do pork belly justice in asian dishes is to deep-fry it until it’s crispy.

first, i boil it low and slow with some aromatics: bay leaf, whole peppercorns, and garlic. then slow-cooked low in the oven for an hour and a half until tender. and finally, deep frying until the skin crackles to crispy perfection 😙🤌

for the bicol express sauce, i sauteed some shallots, garlic and some chillies, along with binagoong (shrimp paste), then added the coconut milk and stewed it down to make it thick. serve it over rice, sprinkle with some spring onions and fried garlic, and you’ve got one of the most indulgent, comforting filipino dish ever made!

so now we’re obsessed, our kitchen smells like shrimp paste twice a week, and we’ve somehow become that person who deep fries pork belly on a casual tuesday - all because Chef Doy’s ran out of crispy pata. once again.

so what’s next on the list? more coconut, chillies, and bicolano flavours 🔥🥥