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Proben
Proben: tender chicken proventriculus in crisp orange batter on skewers, dipped in spiced vinegar
FilipinoProben is the cheap, crunchy favourite of Manila's late-afternoon fishball carts, fried beside kwek-kwek and squidballs on the street corners of Cubao and outside the colleges of the University Belt. It is made from the proventriculus, the small glandular part of a chicken's stomach that sits just before the gizzard, boiled until tender, coated in a thin annatto-tinted batter and fried until shatteringly crisp. Diners skewer the pieces themselves and dunk them in sukang maanghang, a vinegar spiked with garlic, onion and chilli. Ask a poultry butcher or an Asian grocery for proventriculus; well-cleaned gizzards cut into small pieces are the closest swap. Contains wheat. Chef's tip: boil the proventriculus first until fully tender; frying alone leaves it rubbery.
- Total time
- 50 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the proben
- 1 ⅛ lb chicken proventriculuscleaned and rinsed
- 1 litre water
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
- 3 ½ oz plain flour
- 1 ¾ oz cornflour
- 1 tsp annatto (atsuete) powderor paprika
- ¾ cup cold water
- 1 litre vegetable oilfor deep-frying
For the spiced vinegar
- ½ cup cane or white vinegar
- 3 garlic clovesminced
- ½ red onionfinely chopped
- 2 red bird's-eye chillisliced
- ¼ tsp salt
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What you'll need
Spices & pantry
Fresh ingredients (2)
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Trim off any fat and rinse 1 ⅛ lb chicken proventriculus well. Put in a pan with 1 litre water and 1 tsp salt, bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes, until tender when pierced. Drain and pat very dry.
25 minStep 2: Mix ½ cup cane or white vinegar, 3 garlic cloves, ½ red onion, 2 red bird's-eye chilli and ¼ tsp salt in a jar and leave to infuse while you fry.
2 minStep 3: Toss the proventriculus with ½ tsp ground black pepper and 2 tablespoons of 3 ½ oz plain flour. Whisk the rest of the flour with 1 ¾ oz cornflour, 1 tsp annatto (atsuete) powder and ¾ cup cold water to a thin, smooth batter.
4 minStep 4: Pour 1 litre vegetable oil into a deep, heavy pan so it comes no more than a third of the way up the sides, and heat it to 350°F. Check with a thermometer, or drop in a cube of bread: it should turn golden in about 60 seconds. Never leave the hot oil unattended.
5 minStep 5: Dip the pieces in batter, let the excess drip off and fry in small batches for 3–4 minutes, until crisp and orange-gold and the centre is piping hot, at least 165°F. Drain on paper. Common mistake: dropping them in all at once; they stick together and the coating goes soft.
10 minStep 6: Skewer the proben on bamboo sticks and serve hot with the spiced vinegar for dipping.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 23 g
- Carbs
- 30 g
- Fat
- 13 g
- Fibre
- 1 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does proben take?
- About 50 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 35 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- What can I use instead of ground black pepper?
- Black peppercorns, freshly ground, same amount.
- What can I use instead of plain flour?
- Self-raising flour, same amount (then leave out the baking powder).
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