Pulutan! Filipino bar bites, appetizers and street eats

Filipino pulutan, of a kind with American hot wings, Shanghai dumplings, and Spanish tapas, are finger foods meant for enjoying with alcoholic beverages. In this intriguing collection, certified cicerone (like a master sommelier, but for beer) Gapultos (The Adobo Road Cookbook , 2013) puts his own spin on traditional dishes by fusing favorites from other cuisines. Avocado toast gets its bite from dried shrimp. Raw oysters are sprinkled with green mango and calamansi (a citrus hybrid similar to limes). And brittle becomes "heavenly" with the addition of beer. Gapultos preps home chefs well with extensive explanations of implements, pantry requirements, and beer pairing basics, while color photographs help acclimate newbies to items like prawn crackers and ube flour. Every one of the 60-plus recipes features a cook's note and information about appropriate beer pairings. Unusual techniques, such as how to squeeze calamansi juice and prep lemongrass, are illustrated with step-by-step color photographs.--Barbara Jacobs Copyright 2018 Booklist

Food blogger Gapultos (The Adobo Road Cookbook) exuberantly showcases Filipino pulutan-finger food-with more than 60 recipes accompanied with beer pairings and cocktails. Gapultos suggests plenty of tempting recipes for entertaining, such as pork meatballs with spicy coconut sauce (served with an American pale ale); fried green mangoes (with a Belgian Tripel); beer-and-Spam mac and cheese; and beer-steamed blue crabs (perfect with a pilsner). Other local recipes include an ingenious shrimp cocktail of gin and pomelo (a kind of grapefruit), grilled bacon skewers with pineapple glaze, and appetizers of crispy fried smelt, which Gapultos suggests pairing with an English pale ale. The book contains recipes for such sauces as a green mango hot sauce, garlic bagoong aioli (made with fish paste), and a sweet and sharp shallot sauce. Cocktails include rum and coconut water, and a frozen cantaloupe cooler, a slushylike drink that includes calamansi, a local citrus fruit. Gapultos includes a generous description of specialty ingredients, though those without a local Asian market may be at a loss (he does offers substitutions for some items, such as vodka instead of Filipino coconut liquor for panantukan punch). This is a terrific, approachable collection of unexpected appetizers. (Sept.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.