Pan-fried Lumpiang Ubod

I like lumpia in general, but the lumpiang ubod has got to be the best of the bunch.  I especially like the ones from my mom's home province.  My best memory of that was almost 30 years ago when an aunt brought me loads of it - those small rolls with fresh wrappers and fresh tender ubod... all ubod and nothing else!  Yum!

Of course I have no idea how to make that - especially the fresh lumpia wrapper that was somewhat like a crepe but loads better...  I just have to make do with the regular lumpia wrapper with ubod filling and then pan fried!

What is ubod anyway?

Well, I never really knew what it was, all I knew was that I liked it.  But according to Lola N and A-te J, it comes from the topmost center part of the coconut tree - the heart of the coconut (although they also say that there is another kind of ubod).  Usually, a tree that is still productive will not be used to get ubod (sayang daw, or it's a waste they say).  In any case, there is a part of the ubod that is very tender and there is another part that is crunchy/more chewy...

Anyway, my next favorite lumpiang ubod is the one served by Via Mare... the fried or the fresh one are both ok with me!  But like I said, my homemade version is for the fried one only...  and in my homemade version, I add ground pork and chopped shrimp, just to extend the filling a bit!

The recipe is ridiculously simple...

Rinse, dry and parboil 400 grams of fresh ubod (sliced into matchstick pieces).  Drain and cool. 

Meanwhile, saute some chopped garlic (1 to 2 cloves) until fragrant.  Add 150 grams ground meat and 100 grams chopped shrimp and season lightly with salt and pepper.  Add the ubod pieces; season with salt and pepper according to personal taste.  Stir fry until the pork is cooked and the ubod is done but still crunchy.

Wrap in lumpia wrapper then pan fry until the roll is lightly browned.

Serve with a vinegar-garlic dip on the side.