repotting young calamansi

Just repotted my precious little calamansi plant, grown from seed and given by another Filipino friend here in Orange City.

I say precious because calamansi juice is an important part of the Pinoy diet and way of life.

We use it as an ingredient in our soy sauce dips, as a neutralizer to the strong fishy flavor of our--well--fish soups (and anything that stinks, including armpits, heh), as a bleaching agent (again, including darkened 'pits kekeke), and as an all-around cooking companion.

For me though, the juice of the young calamansi--or calamondin, as they call it here in America--is a vital include in my favorite Bistek dish.

To the unknowing, Bistek is a Pinoy corruption of the phrase "beef steak" but it's a dish that's totally Filipinized, if I may say so. It's beef steak marinated in minced garlic, soy sauce and calamansi juice for a day; then fried in oil; and finally simmered to tenderness in the marinade. Oh, and you serve it with lots of fried onions. Lots.

Of course, you can use lemon as a substitute for calamansi, but the latter is way more acidic than the former. It's fruit is tiny compared to its yellow counterpart, but it packs quite a strong tangy bite.

future calamansi fruits will look like this...hopefully and wfc

Anyways, my little calamansi tree looks like this now...all dewy, fresh and young.

I'm hoping that in three years' time, it'll be a steady source of fruit for my family for years to come.