Filipino Spaghetti

Filipino Spaghetti. It’s a thing. It’s a sweet, sticky, saucy, even-sold-at-McDonald’s thing. Much like the pancit from last week, this meal was served at almost every birthday party at the orphanage where I worked this last year, usually mushed together on kids’ plastic plates with heaping piles of steaming rice and some mixed vegetables. On this particular party day, Auntie Elvira and Auntie Puriza invited me into the kitchen and showed me how it’s done. Here’s the story, in pictures. PS. Red hot dogs remain one of my unsolved mysteries about the Philippines. DESCRIPTION This recipe for every kid’s favorite – Filipino Spaghetti – comes from the orphanage that I worked at for a year in Cebu. So simple, so good. INGREDIENTS 1 lb. spaghetti noodles 1 lb. Italian tomato sauce (the kind they used was called “Italian” but tasted sweet and was very smooth in texture) 8 ounces tomato paste 2 tablespoons minced onion 2 tablespoons minced garlic 2 tablespoons oil 1 lb. ground pork ½ cup minced...