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    Home » Recipes » Filipino

    Published: Jan 5, 2022 · Updated: Nov 16, 2023 by Joanne

    The Easiest Monggo Recipe Ever (Filipino Mung Bean Stew)

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    Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase an item, Sees Food, Will Travel will earn a commission at no extra cost to you. See terms and conditions for details.

    Monggo (stewed mung beans) is famous for being a Filipino comfort food recipe. It's a simple and hearty dish that I grew up with. As a child who didn't like vegetables, this was the only one I tolerated. This monggo recipe is a variation of the authentic Filipino version by replacing malunggay (moringa leaves) with spinach.

    A white plate with rice and Filipino mongo on top of the rice

    Update Disclosure: This post has been updated for one or more of the following reasons: easier reading, updated photos, clearer instructions, and just plain ol' improvements to the recipe (as noted).

    Jump to:
    • What is in Monggo?
    • Adapt This Dish to Your Desire
    • Follow These Recipe Steps and Tips to Make Perfect Filipino Monggo
    • How to Check if Your Mung Beans are Cooked
    • Filipino Monggo (Mung Bean Stew) Recipe
    • Have You Tried This Recipe?

    I feel that monggo deserves a place in the more popular section of Filipino food alongside adobo and lumpia. Every Filipino family makes it often and has their own version.

    In the Philippines, monggo is considered ulam, a dish consisting of protein partnered with rice.

    What is in Monggo?

    A bowl with raw mung beans for Filipino mongo
    Mung bean is the main star of this recipe.

    It's a good thing monggo is a flexible dish! Since I live abroad, my resources are limited, and I work around what is available. My Filipino version of monggo recipe consists of a few ingredients, including mung beans, pork, tomatoes, onions, garlic, spinach, and bouillon.

    If you want to take the more traditional route, look for a leafy vegetable called malunggay and replace the spinach with it. Malunggay is considered a "superfood" packed with even more vitamins and minerals.

    A cutting board that has several ingredients on top of it

    Overall, I consider monggo a relatively healthy dish that provides you with a solid amount of fiber, vitamins, and minerals.

    Adapt This Dish to Your Desire

    You can choose to substitute the leafy vegetable in this Filipino monggo recipe with whatever is available to you. Besides malunggay or spinach, you can also use watercress, kale, or swiss chard. If you want a stronger vegetal taste, try adding bitter melon.

    You could also replace pork belly with chicken or beef. My family makes monggo with shrimp and pork, which is typical in other Filipino households. So feel free to mix and match proteins as long as you don't add too much of it.

    Take some deep-fried pork rinds or chicharron and put it on top of cooked monggo to make it more traditional. It adds a crunchy and indulging element to the bowl!

    I've even seen someone use hard tofu instead of meat for a vegetarian version. That person also switched the meat-based bouillon with vegetable bouillon.

    Follow These Recipe Steps and Tips to Make Perfect Filipino Monggo

    Cooking mung bean for this Filipino monggo recipe is easily done by boiling it for a while. Before starting, all you need to do is set your mung beans aside in a bowl of water while you chop your vegetables. 

    Throw in your chopped garlic and onions to let those aromatics cook together. Add the tomatoes and cook with the onions and garlic for two minutes. Then add your pork slices to the pot to let it brown. You don't need to see grill marks on your pork since you will be boiling them anyway, so make sure you have thoroughly cooked your pork.

    The next step is to add the chicken bouillon. I think it gives monggo that chicken soup essence that I find very comforting! Finally, add in the mung beans (without their water) and fill the pot with six cups of water. Then cover it to let it continue simmering.

    How to Check if Your Mung Beans are Cooked

    Check every ten minutes to make sure the beans haven't soaked up all your water. I have had to re-add water once or twice to keep the ingredients from burning. After about thirty to forty minutes, your mung beans should have split. If you bite into one, the texture should be soft and just barely have a bite to it. You can consider your mung beans cooked at this point!

    Before you turn off the heat, add in your fresh spinach and stir a couple of times to mix the spinach leaves into the pot. This part is optional, but you can choose to put fish sauce into your monggo dish. Two tablespoons of fish sauce will add more umami flavor to monggo. 

    Filipino mongo in a white bowl next to an onion, tomato and some garlic cloves
    Every Filipino family has their style of monggo recipe.

    And there you have it! Monggo is an easy Filipino recipe that you can make with a few very simple ingredients. Because of the amount of mung beans used, this ulam may not look appetizing to some people. But once you taste this, I can assure you that you will feel like it's a hug in a bowl. 

    Filipino mongo in a white bowl next to an onion, tomato and some garlic cloves

    Filipino Monggo (Mung Bean Stew) Recipe

    Monggo of mung bean stew is a simple recipe that calls for very few ingredients and little effort. Enjoy on top of steamed white rice!
    5 from 5 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 10 minutes mins
    Cook Time 30 minutes mins
    Total Time 40 minutes mins
    Course Main Course
    Cuisine Filipino
    Servings 4 servings
    Calories 475 kcal
    Disclosure

    The equipment and ingredients sections contain affiliate links to products I love to use as well as items that I personally believe make this recipe the best version of itself.

    Equipment

    pot
    spatula

    Ingredients
     
     

    • 1 onion, diced
    • 1 large tomato, diced
    • 4-5 cloves garlic, crushed
    • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
    • 6 oz meat of your choice, cubed pieces pork belly, beef, chicken, shrimp
    • 1 cup dried mung beans
    • 1 cube chicken bouillon (10-12 gram pieces)
    • 6 cups water
    • 1 bunch spinach leaves
    • 1 - 2 tablespoon fish sauce optional

    Instructions
     

    • Add oil to pot and set to medium heat. Add garlic and onions, then saute until onions are clear.
    • Add tomatoes and saute for two minutes.
    • Add your meat (except shrimp) and cook until brown.
    • Add water, mung beans, and chicken bouillon then bring to a boil.
    • Keep boiling until beans are soft yet still have a bite to them (about 45 minutes). Add more water to the pot to keep the liquid from disappearing. Otherwise you will burn the monggo.
    • When beans are cooked, add shrimp at this stage if you are using shrimp as your meat. Stir in the spinach and continue boiling for three minutes or until shrimp is slightly firm then turn off the heat
    • Optional: Stir in fish sauce before turning off the heat
    • Serve over white sticky rice and enjoy!
      A white plate with rice and Filipino mongo on top of the rice

    Nutrition

    Calories: 475kcalCarbohydrates: 40gProtein: 20gFat: 28gSaturated Fat: 9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 5gMonounsaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 0.02gCholesterol: 32mgSodium: 464mgPotassium: 1351mgFiber: 11gSugar: 6gVitamin A: 8412IUVitamin C: 36mgCalcium: 181mgIron: 6mg
    Disclaimer: Nutritional values were calculated with the Spoonacular Food API and should be used for informational purposes only.
    Keyword easy filipino food, easy filipino recipe, easy recipe, filipino dessert, filipino food, filipino mung bean, filipino ulam, main dish, monggo, monggo filipino, mongo, mongo filipino, mung bean, pinoy food, stew, ulam

    Have You Tried This Recipe?

    Simply rate the recipe by clicking on the ⭐️s on the recipe card. Have something to say? Please leave me a comment down below telling me what you think of this recipe.

    Bonus: Let me and other readers know what you did to make this recipe your own - 💫 let's inspire each other!

    Also, follow me on Instagram [@seesfoodwilltravel] and send me a DM with a picture of what you made. I would love to share and celebrate YOUR creation with our budding community 💞

    Check out Sees Food, Will Travel on Pinterest and Facebook for more delicious updates.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Lea says

      September 11, 2022 at 3:36 pm

      5 stars
      This dish came out great! I left out the pork and used vegetable bouillon instead. I also added a serrano for a nice spice. It took 45 minutes of covered boiling. Will make again, thanks for sharing!

      Reply
      • Joanne says

        January 24, 2023 at 5:42 am

        Thank you so much! I'm glad the recipe turned out well for you. Thanks for note on covered boiling, I'll update the post regards this!

        Reply
    2. Lisa says

      March 21, 2023 at 5:19 am

      I used shrimp instead of pork and it was delicious! Next time I think I’ll put in my shrimp a little later so it doesn’t overcook. Thank you for sharing this recipe! Reminds me of home.

      Reply
      • Joanne says

        March 30, 2023 at 12:58 am

        I'm so happy to hear it! I consider this one of my top Filipino comfort foods too. Good note on the shrimp, it doesn't take much to overcook. I'll add it as an option to the recipe as well!

        Reply
    3. Rosann says

      May 02, 2023 at 3:24 pm

      I like your blog

      Reply
      • Joanne says

        May 03, 2023 at 5:46 am

        Thank you, Rosann! Hope you found something informative and helpful!

        Reply
    4. Sharon Labao says

      November 08, 2024 at 6:13 am

      Are the nutritional values for a serving or for the whole dish?

      Thank you!

      Reply
      • Joanne says

        November 08, 2024 at 1:15 pm

        Hi Sharon, Good question! The nutritional facts are a calculated estimate based on the ingredients used and they are per serving. This recipe is for 4 servings and that nutritional information reflects 1 serving of the 4. Hope that clarifies it!

        Reply
    5. Fil SJ says

      April 19, 2025 at 7:23 pm

      Making gay is called moringa in the US. I see them in the Vietnamese market here in Southern California and geographically lucky enough to have a friend that was able to grow a tree on Palm Springs😁 these go for almost $5 frozen

      Reply
      • Joanne says

        May 01, 2025 at 5:31 pm

        Thanks for the tip!

        Reply
    5 from 5 votes (4 ratings without comment)

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