Ginisang Upo at Hipon

Ginisang Upo at Hipon (Sauteed Bottle Gourd and Shrimps) is a simple vegetable dish that my mother usually prepared for lunch or dinner. She usually had it served with fried tulingan (baby skipjack tuna). Bottle gourd was one of her favorite vegetables maybe because it is low in fat and cholesterol yet high in dietary fiber. It contains 96% water and is rich in iron and also has vitamins C and B complex.  It's rarely available here in Texas, so whenever I see some in Asian stores, I never fail to buy a piece or two.

Let me share with you how my mother used to cook bottle gourd. This is one of her simple, easy-to-cook recipes that I love cooking especially on Meatless Fridays.

I'm sharing this on Simple Lives Thurday, Feed Me, Tweet Me, Follow Me Home Friday, Fat Camp Friday, Friday Potluck@EKat's Kitchen and  Feed Me Friday.

Prep Time: 10 minutes                    Cook Time: ~20 minutes                       Servings: 4 

Ingredients:

• 1 medium-sized upo (bottle gourd), peeled, seeds and spongy interior removed and cut into approximately 1”x1’’ cubes
• 1 big roma tomato, thinly sliced
• 1 small-sized onion, thinly sliced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 12 pcs. shrimps, peeled and deveined (set aside shrimp heads)
• ½ cup shrimp juice
• 2 Tbsp fish sauce
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• salt and pepper

Procedure:

1. In a bowl, mash shrimp heads in ½ cup water. Using a strainer, separate juice from shrimp heads and set aside.

2. In a saucepan over medium heat, saute garlic in olive oil until light brown.

3. Add onions and tomatoes. Saute until softened, around 5 to 7 minutes.

4. Add upo. Saute for a minute. Pour in reserved shrimp juice and fish sauce. Cover and simmer until upo is cooked but not too soft, about 10-12 minutes.

5. Add shrimps. Sprinkle with pepper and salt to suit your taste. Simmer until shrimps turn pink.

6. Remove from heat. Serve with hot rice and fried fish.

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