Cansi

One of the perks of having a Negrense for a husband is being introduced to their delightful and delicious cuisine. Whether we had our meal at a small eatery or a well-known restaurant in his province, the food always tastes good. My mother-in-law and sister-in-law Ate Era happen to be great cooks too so dieting is certainly not an option whenever we are there.

Two weeks ago, J and I along with our little Queen B have a short but extremely enjoyable vacation in Negros Occidental. As I have described here, we visited Sharyn’s Cansi House for their delectable Cansi. We had a wonderful lunch made more enjoyable because my little Queen B slept the whole time we were there. J and I were able to have our meal without distractions. I guess that’s why we had 2 cups of rice each.

The secret ingredient of Cansi is the batwan fruit, also spelled batuan. When J first introduced me to this fruit, he said it is endemic to the Negros and Panay islands but based on my further research it is not. It can also be found in other parts of the country but it is not as widely used like in their province. Garcinia binucao is the scientific name of this sour fruit. It is round in shape and greenish in color which turns yellowish when mature.

Batwan fruits. This photo is from makadto.com. 

Usually, we bring some Batwan fruit back with us to Laguna so we can also prepare Cansi or KBL (Kadyos-Baboy-Langka) for my family and our friends. Batwan is quite scarce during rainy seasons so we were only able to bring around ¼ kilo of very small batwan fruits with us this visit. It is usually 4-cm in diameter but what we had are less than 2-cm diameter fruits. Nonetheless, this did not deter me from cooking Cansi for my family. So today, let me share to you the recipe of my version of Cansi.

Cansi

Ingredients: A kilo of beef shank 1 medium-sized onion, julienned ½ kilo gabi (taro), peeled and cut into chunks ½ kilo pechay Tagalog, ends trimmed 1 beef cube 2-3 tbsp of fish sauce 1 tsp of ground pepper 10 cups of water Several pieces of batwan fruit 1 packet of Tamarind Seasoning Mix (optional)

Instructions:

1. In a pot, put in the beef shank, onions, and pepper. Pour the water and bring to a boil. Continue boiling until the meat is tender (usually 2-3 hours). I used a pressure cooker so my cooking time is shortened to 25-30 minutes. I made use of the natural release method once the cooking time is completed. 

   

   
   

2. Add the gabi and beef cube. Let the mixture boil for 5-10 minutes or until the gabi is tender.
3. Add the batwan fruits and fish sauce. Boil for 2-3 minutes.
4. Mash the batwan fruits. I used a fork to mash the fruits in a ladle. Mix back the mashed batwan fruits in the soup. Add the Tamarind Seasoning Mix.

   

   Mashed batwan fruit.

5. Add the pechay Tagalog and let it boil for 2-3 minutes. Turn off the heat.
6. Serve and enjoy while hot!

   

   Best eaten with rice! 

Last summer after my little Queen B’s first visit to J’s hometown in Negros, J and I also brought back batwan fruits and prepared Cansi for our overnight swimming with our friends. We kept it hot by transferring it to a rice cooker. We just place the pechay leaves when we want some. The continuous heating of the soup replicates the long but (I admit) better cooking time of the meat. The flavour of the meat is more enhanced when slow cooked rather than when pressure cooked.

I’m more adept in using fish sauce as my source of salt especially in soups. I also find that it brings another depth of flavour to my dishes.

Sharyn’s Cansi don’t have vegetables in it which is great for meat lovers but if you are like me who loves veggies in their food I hope my recipe will suit you.

I can't live without veggies! Pechay Tagalog and Gabi.

 I’ll share my KBL recipe next. Happy cooking and eating!

My little Queen B's Cansi. Without salt, of course!

Like mommy, she likes pechay too!

 #xoxo