alukon and sweet potato tuber: a perfect baradibud

Gotta get back to more dinengdeng, more veggies ngarud as is my wont. And now, it's alukon season, and the first that came into mind when I got an alukon is to pair it with bagas ti kamotig--into a baradibud:

I made it with tarong and some kalunay, and with some bits of tinapa (smoked galunggong):

So sweet, so starchy, terrific!

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More baradibud/baradibod dishes:

• Baradibud a tugi, lesser yam vegetable stew

• Baradibud a kamangeg, samsamping, parda ken kabatiti; wild yam with blue pea, hyacinth bean and sponge gourd

• Buridibod nga ube (puraw), white yam stew with veggies and fried fish

• Yet another buridibod, with marunggay pods, shucked clam meat and grilled malaga

• Buridibod, buribod, baradibod: camote with alukon and marunggay stew

• Buridibod yet again: camote, petchay and alukon

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dinengdeng/baradibud a kamangeg, samsamping, parda ken kabatiti; wild yam with blue pea, hyacinth bean and sponge gourd

Samsamping, parda ken kabatiti a nabaradibudan iti bagas ti kamangeg.

Yet another rare chance, opportunity, if you will, to find something like these wild bounty of the land right in a local market in the city--yessir, that's the rare wild yam kamangeg (Dioscorea luzonensis), a one of a kind edible tuber that grows wild just in the wild "deeply embedded in hardened soil in forested and mountainous areas" in the Ilocos; and to top it, there's another wild vegetable that yet again just grows wildly: samsamping (Clitoria ternatea Linn; in some areas it is called kalumpagi; blue pea in English).

I always see a yet another delicious starchy dinengdeng called buridibud when I see kamangeg, So this is yet another opportunity to make one, what with the perfect willd veggie fruit of a samsamping to pair it.

Luckily, I also got another so-called "native" Ilokano vegetable fruit: parda (Dolichos lablab Linn; hyacinth bean) which is just so good a pair for my buridibud.

So, there, this parda:

And the samsamping:

I also got the smaller and sweter native kabatiti (sponge gourd; not photographed) as another veggie fruit for that perfect buridibud. Together they will grace my platefuls of steamed rice. But first things first, I boiled some bugguong in a minimal amount of water, with some slices of onions for aroma and flavor. Afterwhich I simmered into the bubbling bugguong mixture the cut kamangeg, let it cook for about 20-30 minutes and then into it the kabatiti, samsamping and parda. Here it is, stewing and becoming thick and starchy:

And here's it, done! The broth is just as rich and thick and so flavorful and deliciously starchy and sweet. The fruit veggies are just cooked right not overcooked, to retain it's gorgeous color and crispness:

A really simple and easy dish but so good and healthy. Just plain dinengdeng/buridibud without sagpaws or add-ons to really savor the veggies and the rare kamangeg. Absolutely amazing Ilokano food!

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buridibod a kamangeg nga addaan pallang ken kalunay sa nasagpawan tinapa, wild yam stew with winged beans and spinach and smoked fish

Buridibod a kamangeg nga addaan pallang ken kalunay, nasagpawan tinapa.

Kamangeg (Dioscorea luzonensis) is one of the edible wild yam which is becoming so rare nowadays. It was usually found in forested and mountainous areas in Northern Luzon especially in the Ilocos region and is prized for its distinct and unique flavor and texture compared to more popular and/or ones like tugi, ubi, buga and balinghoy. But the denuding of forest covers and the slash and burn style of upland farming as well as the incessant hunt for this kind of tuber delicacy reduced it to almost an endangered plant. So you’ll just found yourself lucky if by sheer chance you can find it sold in some local wet markets along with other wild tubers and vegetables gathered in the hinterlands.

Just like any other yam, besides being plainly boiled/steamed or cooked with getta (coconut milk) as a very comforting merienda, kamangeg is best for that starchy signature Ilokano dish buridibod (baradibod, buribud) with other ubiquitous Ilokano leafy green vegetables and fruits.

The kamangeg I found somewhere, isn’t it gorgeous? I paired it with pallang (winged bean) and kalkalunay or kuantong (native spinach, or amaranth):

This is a “native” pallang, which is more palatable than the long green hybrid ones:

Peeling off the "skin" and cutting the kamangeg:

The pallang as well:

And the kalunay:

I cooked the kamangeg first in the bugguong broth, with the deboned tinapa (smoked fish):

When the kamangeg is tender enough, put in the pallang, and then the kalunay, put to a boil just as quickly so the the pallang and the kalunay is not overcooked but crisp and green:

Done, with some broth:

The most delicious buridibod I have todate—the kamangeg as a vegetable for dinengdeng is phenomenal, really, it’s sweet, rich, thick and has a unique starchy and yammy flavor and aroma that only prove its becoming a rarity and therefore kinda exotic of sort:

The smoky flavor of the tinapa even enhanced the buridibod and it becomes a truly exceptional dish and an exclusive experience having the opportunity to partake this distinctive Ilokano blend:

More buridibods:

• buridibod, buribod, baradibod: camote with alukon and marunggay stew
• yet another buridibod, with marunggay pods, shucked clam meat and grilled malaga
• dinengdeng/buridibod nga ube (puraw), white yam stew with veggies and fried fish
• dinengdeng/buridibod nga ube, purple yam stew with veggies
• dinengdeng a bunga ti singkamas, jicama fruit stew

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dinengdeng a bunga ti singkamas, jicama fruit stew

Buridibod a bunga ti singkamas, pallang, ken tugi.

Been years, decades even, since the last time that I’ve got the opportunity to enjoy dinengdeng a singkamas, yes, singkamas, jicama, but I’m not talking about its delicious root, but of the fruit. Specifically the fruit or the young pod of singkamas vine growing wild and abundant, climbing up shrubs and trees in Casantolan, my place of birth, in Nueva Vizcaya.

Unfortunately, I didn’t see any jicama fruit in the local markets I’ve been to on my market forays here in Cagayan. I was wondering why, perhaps Cagayanos didn’t like, or maybe even didn’t know that singkamas fruit is edible and perfect for dinengdeng and pinakbet?

In Casantolan, we usually cook singkamas fruit as a dinengdeng soured with young salamagi (tamarind) fruit. The sourness maintains the crispness and texture of the singkamas pod and neutralizes its mild bittery taste. It’s good as a solo dinengdeng. Or with saluyot. Or with pallang and sabunganay and patani or with alukon. It’s also a perfect companion for that sweet buridibod. It also goes so well with pinakbet.

My quest for singkamas fruit here in Cagayan was finally over when I saw this singkamas vine on a wall of a certain house right in the center of the town no less, in Allacapan:

How so lovely, the pods are:

And I was so lucky that day, indeed, for when we stopped over at the talipapas along the highway in Nassiping, Gattaran, I saw this, behold, the elusive vegetable fruit of my childhood is right there before my still unbelieving eyes:

I dreamt of a sinalamagian (tamarind-soured) dinengdeng a bunga ti singkamas, but then I can’t find salamagi amongst the goods being sold. I instead saw this bunch of tugi (lesser yam):

The tugi will make a good buridibud with singkamas. I also bought some pallang. And here’s my bounty for the day:

Gorgeous pods, aren’t they?

Singkamas fruit has tiny brownish hairs on its skin, this is itchy to the skin and may cause an allergy of sort, so be careful handling the pods:

Small “native” pallangs, which is just the right partner of the singkamas fruit:

Here, wash and rinse the singkamas pods thoroughly and repeatedly to discard the itch-causing hair:

When it’s immaculately cleaned, cut the “starts” and “end” and then break open the pods in twos:

Do the same with the pallang:

“Skin” the tugi and cut it:

The trio is ready:

Cook the tugi first with the boiling water diluted with bugguong and with some slices of onion. When the yam is cooked, put in the singkamas and pallang. Get to a quick boil. Do not overcook the veggies, it should be crisp, green, but tender:

Heres’s the buridibod, it’s so insanely delicious though it’s just a simple basic dinengdeng/buridibod  (I didn’t add any sagpaw;  though, if it’s available, it will be great with grilled fish like tilapia, bangus, dalag or paltat, or with dried fish and shrimp, or with smoked fish, or even with grilled chicken). I mashed some tugi cubes into the little soup for a thicker and sweeter broth:

I really relished this dinengdeng, eating with so much gusto while reminiscing my childhood days in Casantolan…

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