At home with Nora

In the previous post, I mentioned a recipe for ukoy by the late gourmet chef, restaurateur, cookbook writer, and TV host Nora V. Daza. It was from A Culinary Life: Personal Recipe Collection (with Michaela Fenix, 1992), which I have only now started to read in earnest despite the fact that we have had the book for at least 20 years.

Daza notes that “the origin of ukoy may be lost to us,” and that her version owes as much to Filipino maruya (banana fritters) as it does to Japanese tempura. Elsewhere in the book are recipes from the cuisines of Southeast Asia (mostly Thailand), Western Europe, and the US. As she explains in the introduction:

I recall how uneasy I felt having to explain to a Western friend the meat loaf and spaghetti recipes in my first cookbook. That was in 1965 and from then [on], I resolved to gather only recipes for a “truly Filipino” cookbook. Today, some 27 years after, I have decided that being Filipino doesn’t mean disregarding foreign influences. It means including food that may have originated somewhere else but have become an integral part of Filipino fare.

I see no reason why she has to do so, given the book’s title explicitly states it is a personal recipe collection. I must admit I’m curious if the wedding breakfast soufflé will hold up, or the pork leg variation of cabeza de jabali at all feasible. The recipes I have tried so far have been spot-on.

But back to the ukoy. I swapped cold beer for water, and added stemmed taugi (mung bean sprouts) and thin sticks of sweet potato. Aside from that, the ingredient amounts are as they appear in the book. I have omitted the MSG.

Nora Daza’s Ukoy

• 1 cup small shrimps
• ½ cup stemmed mung bean sprouts, cleaned
• ¼ cup thinly sliced sweet potato


• ¾ cup cornstarch
• ¼ cup flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda


• 1 medium egg
• 1 cup cold beer
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon fish sauce

1. To clean shrimps, trim/discard the rostrum (the sharp “beak” between the eyes) and antennae (beards). Wash and drain throroughly. Set aside.
2. In a bowl, combine cornstarch, flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Set aside.
3. In another bowl, combine egg, beer, salt, and fish sauce. Beat lightly. Add cornstarch mixture, whisking until you get a smooth but moderately thin batter. Fold in shrimps, mung bean sprouts, and sweet potato.
4. In a flat pan, heat about an inch of oil. Add a spoonful of shrimp mixture and flatten to form patties. Fry until golden brown on both sides. Dry on absorbent paper-lined plate. Serve hot.