(New) Macho Mustard and Homemade Miso

We have new stuff in the chiller!

Our "macho" mustard is coarse, pungent, sour, and very textured, made from scratch with two types of whole grain mustard. It also has some wine and dagwey preserves in it to balance out the spiciness. Definitely a "grown-up" mustard, it goes on easy with salmon or soft cheeses. It's also perfect for a quick marinating of meats. One of our customers said it reminds him of Bengali cuisine. Definitely more popular among horseradish fans.

Our homemade miso is made by a lovely Japanese lady from scratch, from ground rice and soybeans, as well as a koji starter from Japan. It is worlds apart from the miso you buy in groceries, which has a lot of wheat flour and coloring. This one doesn't spoil, only evolves into different tastes (all good) in different stages of its maturity. Fermented foods usually give that savory taste that are important for quick but nutritious food-- use it in dressings, mixed with spreads, and as a soup base instead of those crazy cubes. Make any of these recipes with grocery-bought miso and with our high-quality homemade miso-- you will definitely notice the difference!

(New) Fancy Baon

Our new enamel tiffins from Indonesia are a fancy, slightly kitschy plastic-free way to bring your baon. Enamel is porcelain hugging aluminum or stainless steel. Bring your potluck toka around in this Asian beauty and bring some Dengue Fever to play.

(New) Excellent New Tablea

We are pleased to have some of the best tablea we have ever tasted, grown, fermented, roasted, and ground in Calinan, Davao. The beans are a far cry from the commercial varieties preferred for their size in mainstream international trade-- they are from old-tree pods, smaller, green and white in coloration, and with a lot of flavor. Smooth, fruity. One of our favorites so far! They are grown and processed by a cooperative, who are doing marvellous in organizing themselves for fair, high-quality beans. We look forward to increasing their revenue by developing more products from their excellent beans.

(Travel) Banana Leaf Sachets

Sachets are a cool concept, except for the biodegradability component. They're democratic, but not as democratic as something you can make yourself. While we have been known to carry around jars of the sweeteners that suit our moods, on short trips, sachets are in order.

Find a banana tree in your village or neighborhood. They are a good thing to keep on hand for emergencies, and also to use when ironing your clothes. This leaf is from our garden. Remember, you need to "prime" the leaves by wiping clean and then heating over fire, creating a flexible sheet that won't tear.































































Fold into a triangle. Make sure that you fold it in such a way that there is no small hole in the bottom. Fill with your condiment of choice. Fold the top over and staple. I'm sure there are more elegant ways, but none as fast as stapling. Click here to see the finished products before we took them to Davao.

Remember that banana leaves seal moisture in, so the sugar will get moist, but will dissolve just as well if your coffee is hot. For drier products like fine salt or peppers, paper will do.

(Travel) Travel Essentials

We are on the road quite often, and we have travel essentials: Light canvas bags for interesting finds (these are from friends Clara and Chiara), tooth powder (Indian spicy stuff,  no airport fluid constraints), safety pins (you never know), a face towel, enzymes for  naturally disinfecting any dodgy surface, massage oil for relaxing on a balcony.


























A pocket-sized organizer, a notebook for thoughts, a nice book (of beautiful photos that you can look at over and over).












2 tiffins for food storage (takeout), homemade mascobado banana leaf "sachets" for our coffee, and utensils.