Cooking with Marlon: Beer Mojito and Filipino Coconut Shrimp

Lumpia Boys (Lester & Marlon)

A few good buddies of mine and myself share the same passion of cooking. We get together every now and then to try out unique recipes including deconstructed menus created from our own appetites. Just think of it as a group of musicians jamming together to the song they've just composed, and they might throw in a bunch of fresh notes to make it sound better. Cooking is a lost art in today's generation that needs to be looked upon. Especially with all the new and authentic restaurants being opened, its harder to say no to that delicious chicken burger with nutella and salted caramel milkshake on the side.   

Filipino Coconut Shrimp

My good friend Marlon has his own cooking session called, "Cooking with Marlon". Basically, he has a guest with him and he guides them to make food using recipes provided. The special guest is none other then my other good friend Lester. We've all been cooking together for about a decade and that's how we've managed to bond. Together, the three of us are known as, "Lumpia Boys".

Beer Mojito

Whether you're a beginner or an intermediate cook, "Cooking with Marlon" is a great way to be interactive in the kitchen and probably pick-up a few nifty cooking skills by the end of the session. The recipe that we've decided to use is a Filipino dish that involves coconut and shrimp. It was such a last minute recipe because we couldn't decided what we wanted to eat, but it all worked out in the end. We've also felt it was necessary to prepare beer mojito just in case our throats get parched for the filming. I'm telling you, cooking with your close friends and a few cases of beer; priceless.

Lester

Chicken Sisig Tacos

Chicken Sisig Tacos

Lets get this straight. Over the last few weeks, I've been wanting to get my hands on some authentic Mexican meal. If you said 'Tacos', then you are correct. For some strange reason, another part of my brain was convincing me, Filipino dish would be the better choice since I haven't tried any of my mom's cooking lately; I swear she's not that bad of a cook. This was my problem, going out to eat. I cannot make decisive decisions for my appetite when I crave a million different things. I was ready to just grab a Subway for their '$5' deal which became my go-to fast food restaurant, then a light-bulb just hovered over my head and I came to a conclusion, "Chicken Sisig Tacos".

Closer Look

I've been experimenting with a couple of recipes just to see how they turn out. Sisig Tacos had been on my list and was excited to work with the recipe. There was something about the idea that made me want to bring it to life, even though other people may have already come up with this concept. I still have yet to perfect the recipe and I'm pretty confident it will have hungry foodies salivating for this one pretty soon. 

Selfie with Sisig Tacos

Ramen Chicken Burgers

Ramen Chicken Burgers with Ketchup and Sriracha Sauce

The first ramen burger I made was more then I expected it to be, so I made a different variation using chicken instead of beef. As I predicted, the chicken turned out better then the original ramen burger I made. Maybe it was the incorporation of the seasonings and toppings I've added to my ground meat or noodles and chicken just works so well together. I'm not sure what it is, but I'm sticking aside with this recipe and play around with the ingredients till I get the taste that will make a cripple start walking again.

How to Cook Ramen Burger

If Someone asked me to paint a picture of either a tree or a river, I'd probably grab an oil pastel and paint the rainforest. They are both part of the life stream and I'd hate to choose just one because I wouldn't be able to express the full image I've captured. So now, that painting of the rainforest can now be accomplished all thanks to the idea of a Ramen Burger.


I'm a believer that the Ramen Burger will be a big hit in the food industry especially for those food junkies that want to get in on the new stuffs first. Just like the Cronut(s), the Steamed Bao(s), the Priest Burger(s), this new addition will have no problem finding it's way mainstream. I'm happy I was able to record the process of making a Ramen Burger to show how simple it takes to make one.

Quinoa and Sunny-Side Up Eggs for Breakfast

I'm not really a breakfast guy. If I want, I'll eat cereal because its the most simple kind of dish to prepare and clean up; a spoon and bowl all it takes. Lately, I've been craving quinoa for breakfast and not as a lunch or dinner meal for some strange reason. I do recall going to Taste of Toronto last Sunday and sampling one of the vendor's cereal which contained quinoa. It had a confusing taste which I did not get, but I'm starting to think that the concept with quinoa in cereal has subtly sneaked through my subconscious. That brings me to having quinoa with sunny-side eggs for breakfast. Rice and egg was my thing growing up. My parents always cooked some sort of egg for breakfast (scrambled, omelette, etc) and rice was always accessible 24/7 and still is through this day. I loved eating eggs and rice but times has changed and it was time to move on from the traditional rice and meal (ulam- filipino entree that goes with rice). I did just that and now I'm having vegetables on the side or either quinoa.... just to fill in the void.

Cooking Ramen

I've attempted to record myself cooking on my phone! This is not really a 'how to video' but more of me cooking inside my kitchen, just for fun. Next time, I'll try to get someone to record me so the video can look more professional.


I enjoy cooking ramen as much as I enjoy eating it with sriracha sauce. This video proves that I didn't go to any grocery store and buy instant noodles, just so I can pour in hot water to cook a meal. We're talking about japanese ramen from scratch! Sure, I could of just made instant noodles if I wanted to, but I wouldn't  get the same enthusiasm from making an authentic bowl of fresh ramen. I've skipped a lot of steps due to the disclosure of my secret ingredients and to shorten the length of the video. If your some sort of ramen guru, you'd probably be wondering where the other 100 steps are.