My daughter came down from Northern California last month to spend her birthday week at home. As usual, our mother and daughter bonding involved delicious nashville filipino food trips to our favorite restaurants.

One of these favorite places is an establishment in Artesia called Crispy House, formerly known as Magic Wok. If you ever find yourself near Pioneer and Artesia Blvd and in great need of good Filipino food, I urge you to try this place.

The restaurant itself is far from fancy, just a hole in the wall tucked in the corner of a decrepit shopping center. But, my peeps, the food! Their crispy pata alone makes them, in my book, the best Filipino restaurant in California!

Although there is no one dish on their menu we’ve tried and didn’t like, we mostly order the same two things every time: crispy pata, which the restaurant is primarily known for, and ginataang gulay to pair with the succulent pork morsels.

Guys, I can be pretty badass with a can of coconut milk in the kitchen, but I admit that their version of ginataang gulay leaves mine in the dust! It was so delicious; I had to re-create it at home.

Vegetables to use

I used green jackfruit (langka), eggplant (talong), green beans (Bagiuo beans), and kabocha (kalabasa) in the recipe, but feel free to add or substitute vegetables you have on hand. A few favorites I like to use in ginataan are bittermelon (ampalaya), yard long beans (sitaw), and moringa leaves (malunggay).

Serving suggestions

Serve these creamy vegetables in coconut milk as a main dish or side dish for lunch or dinner. Pair with steamed rice and fried fish or grilled meat for a hearty and flavorful meal.