Our Lady of the Pillar College San Manuel Inc.

San Manuel, Isabela

PHILLIPINE CUISINE

DEFINITION:

- Consists of the food, preparation methods, and eating customs found in the Philippines. The
style of cooking and the food associated with it have evolved over many centuries from
their Austronesian origins to a mixed cuisine of Malay-
Indonesian, Indian, Japanese, Chinese, Spanish, and American, in line with the major waves of
influence that had enriched the cultures of the archipelago, as well as others adapted to
indigenous ingredients and the local palate.
- Philippine Cuisine is also using Fusion Cuisine which usually refers to the style of cooking
that has been influenced by two or more regional styles.

HISTORY AND INFLUENCES:

- The cooking style, methods and ingredients associated with Philippine cuisine have evolved
from its Malayo-Polynesian origins. The Philippines is at a crossroads of shipping lanes.  As a
result, many cultures have influenced its cuisine. It can be considered as a melting pot of
mixed cuisines with many Hispanic, Chinese, American, and other Asian influences
adapted to indigenous ingredients and the local palate.
- During the pre-Hispanic era in the Philippines foods were prepared mainly by boiling,
steaming, or roasting. The foods ranged from the usual livestock such as cow, water buffalo,
pig and chicken to various kinds of fish and seafood. Filipinos have been cultivating rice since
3200 BC when Austronesian ancestors from the southern China Yunnan Plateau and Taiwan
settled in what is now the Philippines. 
- Trade with Hokkien China in the Philippines prospered prior to the arrival of the European
nations, going back as early as the Song dynasty (960–1279 BC) with porcelain, ceramics, and
silk being traded for spices and trapang in Luzon. This early cultural contact with China
introduced a number of staple foods into Philippine cuisine, most notably soy sauce, tofu,
beans sprouts, pickled mustard greens, white radish, bamboo shoots, chinese celery, water
chestnuts, lemongrass and fish sauce. Common cooking methods were also introduced such
as stir frying, deep frying and making savory soup bases. Many of these food items and
dishes retained their original Hokkien names, such as pancit and lumpia. Filipinos incorporated
the new Chinese cooking methods but added their own indigenous ingredients.  As a result,
pancit is not complete without a twist of calamansi and lumpia is served with a dipping sauce
of vinegar and crushed garlic.
- Malaysian spice traders brought seasonings from the Spice Islands and introduced satay.
- Spanish colonization from 1521 to 1898 brought with it a new cuisine. Food historians
claim that 80% of Filipino dishes are of Spanish origin. Along with the Spanish influence
came Mexican flavors.  The Spanish introduced dishes from the Iberian Peninsula, as well as
North, Central and South America: olive oil, wine, European seasonings, peppers, tomatoes,
corn, potatoes, and the method of sautéing with garlic, onions and tomatoes.  Even today,
many Filipino dishes are based on garlic, onion and tomatoes, remnants of a Spanish
influence.  
- Spanish (and Mexican) dishes were eventually incorporated into Philippine cuisine with the
more complex dishes usually being prepared for special occasions. Since Spanish food
emphasized meat and dairy products, which were considered luxury items, Spanish fairs
was considered upper class, fiesta cuisine, while Chinese food was considered everyday
cuisine. Many Spanish-derived dishes show up on the table only at Christmas, New Year or
fiesta like relleno, mechado, pochero, leche flan. Some dishes such as arroz a la valenciana
remain largely the same in the Philippine context. Some have been adapted or have come to take
on a slightly or significantly different meaning. Arroz a la cubana served in the Philippines
usually includes ground beef picadillo. Philippine longganisa despite its name is more akin to
chorizo than Spanish longaniza. Morcon is likely to refer to a beef roulade dish not the bulbous
specialty Spanish sausage.
- The marriage of Chinese and Spanish cuisines became eminent during the rise of the
panciterias in the 19th century. Pansit, congee or arroz caldo, fried rice, lumpia
longganisa and chopsuey became staples of these panciterias.  Adobo is also a by-product of
both Spanish and Chinese influence.  In Spanish cuisine, adobo refers to a pickling sauce
made from olive oil, vinegar, garlic, oregano, paprika, thyme, bay leaf and salt.  The
Filipinos embraced their favorite flavors (vinegar, garlic and bay leaf), included peppercorns
and nodding to the Chinese influence, added soy sauce.  They adapted it to be a stewing sauce
for chicken and pork, but maintained its Spanish moniker.  Once again, the Filipino palate
affirmed itself.
- From 1898 to 1946, American influences added yet another dimension to the Filipino
food culture – speed and convenience.  Within a generation, not only did Filipinos speak
English, they became consumers of American products prepackaged foods, canned goods and
fast foods.  
- Today the Philippine cuisine continues to evolve as new ingredients and cooking techniques,
styles and methods find their way into the country. A fusion of different dishes from earlier
traders, Asian immigrants and former colonizers and the Filipinos’ love for cooking resulted into
a unique Philippine cuisine – a melting pot of eastern and western cuisine and a
gastronomic delight that has been savored for centuries.

CHARACTERISTICS:

- Philippine cuisine is distinguished by its bold combination of sweet, sour, and salty
flavors. While other Asian cuisines may be known for a more subtle delivery and presentation,
Filipino cuisine is often delivered all at once in a single presentation.
- Counterpoint is a feature in Philippine cuisine which normally comes in a pairing of
something sweet with something salty. Examples include: champorado (a sweet cocoa rice
porridge), being paired with tuyo (salted, sun-dried fish); dinuguan (a savory stew made of
pig's blood and innards), paired with puto (sweet, steamed rice cakes); unripe fruits such
as mangoes (which are only slightly sweet but very sour), are eaten dipped in salt or
bagoong; the use of cheese (which is salty) in sweetcakes (such as bibingka and puto), as
well as an ice cream flavoring.
- Cooking and eating in the Philippines has traditionally been an informal and communal
affair centered around the family kitchen.
- Filipinos traditionally eat three main meals a day: agahan or almusal (breakfast),
tanghalían (lunch), and hapunan (dinner) plus an afternoon snack called meriénda (also
called minandál or minindál).
- The practice known as kamayan.

LUZON:

- Ilocanos, from the rugged Ilocos region, boast of a diet heavy in boiled or steamed
vegetables and freshwater fish, but they are particularly fond of dishes flavored
with bagoong, fermented fish that is often used instead of salt. Ilocanos often season boiled
vegetables with bagoong monamon (fermented anchovy paste) to produce pinakbet. Local
specialties include the soft white larvae of ants and "jumping salad" of tiny live shrimp.
- The Igorot prefer roasted meats, particularly carabao meat, goat meat, and venison.
- Due to its mild, sub-tropical climate, Baguio, along with the outlying mountainous regions,
is renowned for its produce. Temperate-zone fruits and vegetables (strawberries being a
notable example) which would otherwise wilt in lower regions are grown there. It is also known
for a snack called sundot-kulangot which literally means "poke the booger." It's actually a
sticky kind of sweet made from milled glutinous rice flour mixed with molasses, and served
inside pitogo shells, and with a stick to "poke" its sticky substance with.
- Isabela is known for Pancit Cabagan of Cabagan, Inatata & Binallay of Ilagan City are rice
cakes prepared year-round in the city and both famous delicacies specially during the lenten
season. Cagayan for its famous Carabao Milk Candy in the town Alcala and Tuguegarao City for
Pancit Batil Patung and Buko Roll.
- The town of Calasiao in Pangasinan is known for its puto, a type of steamed rice cake.
- Kapampangan cuisine makes use of all the produce in the region available to the native
cook. Among the treats produced in Pampanga are longganisa (original sweet and spicy
sausages), calderetang kambing (savory goat stew), and tocino (sweetened cured pork).
Combining pork cheeks and offal, Kapampangans make sisig.
- The cuisine of the Tagalog people varies by province. Bulacan is popular
for chicharon (pork rinds) and steamed rice and tuber cakes like puto. It is a center
for panghimagas or desserts, like brown rice cake or kutsinta, sapin-
sapin, suman, cassava cake, halaya ube and the king of sweets, in San Miguel, Bulacan,
the famous carabao milk candy pastillas de leche, with its pabalat wrapper. Cainta,
in Rizal province east of Manila, is known for its Filipino rice cakes and puddings. These
are usually topped with latik, a mixture of coconut milk and brown sugar, reduced to a
dry crumbly texture. A more modern, and time saving alternative to latik are coconut
flakes toasted in a frying pan. Antipolo City, is a town known for its suman and cashew
products. Laguna is known for buko pie (coconut pie) and panutsa (peanut
brittle). Batangas; maliputo and tawilis are two not commonly found elsewhere. These fish
are delicious native delicacies. Batangas is also known for its special coffee, kapeng barako.
- Bicol is noted for its gastronomic appetite for the fiery or chili-hot dishes. The most
well-known Bicolano dish is the very spicy Bicol Express. The region is also the well-known
home of natong also known as laing or pinangat (a pork or fish stew in taro leaves).

VISAYAS:

- Bacolod is known for "inasal" which literally translates to “cooked over fire”. The
"chicken inasal" is a local version of chicken barbecue. It is cooked with red achuete or
annatto seeds giving it a reddish color, and brushed with oil and cooked over the fire. The city is
also famous for various delicacies such as piaya, napoleones and pinasugbo (hard candied
banana sprinkled with sesame seeds).
- Aklan is known with Inubarang Manok, chicken simmered in coconut milk, as well as
Binakoe na Manok, chicken cooked in bamboo with lemongrass. Tamilok (wood worms),
which is either eaten raw or dipped in an acidic sauce such as vinegar or calamansi. There is a
special prevalence of chicken and coconut milk (gata) in Akeanon cooking.
- Iloilo is home of the Batchoy, derived from “Ba-chui” meaning pieces of meat in
Chinese. Another type of pancit which is found in the said province is Pancit molo, an
adaptation of wonton soup and is a specialty of the town of Molo..  "Kadios Baboy Langka". As
the name implies, the three main ingredients of this dish are kadyos, baboy (pork), and langka
(unripe jackfruit is used here). "Kadios Manok Ubad". This dish is composed mainly of kadyos,
manok (preferably free range chicken called Bisaya nga Manok in Iloilo), and ubad(thinly cut
white core of the banana stalk/trunk). Both of these dishes utilize another Ilonggo ingredient as
a souring agent. This ingredient is batwan or Garcinia binucao, a fruit closely related to
mangosteen, which is very popular in Western Visayas but is generally unknown to other parts
of the Philippines.
- Roxas City  is the hailed as the Seafood Capital of the Philippines due to its bountiful rivers,
estuaries and seas. Numerous seafood dishes are served in the city's Baybay area from mussels,
oysters, scallops, prawns, seaweeds, clams, fish and many more.
- Cebu is known for its lechón variant. Lechon prepared "Cebu style" is characterized by a
crisp outer skin and a moist juicy meat with a unique taste given by a blend of spices. Cebu is
also known for sweets like dried mangoes and caramel tarts.

MINDANAO:

- In Mindanao, dishes are richly flavored with the spices common to Southeast
Asia: turmeric, coriander, lemon grass, cumin, and chillies. Being free from European
colonization, the cuisine of the indigenous Moro and Lumad peoples of Mindanao and
the Sulu archipelago has much in common with the rich and spicy Malay
cuisine of Malaysia and Brunei, as well as Indonesian and Thai cuisine.
- Well-known dishes from the region include Satti (satay) and ginataang manok (chicken
cooked in spiced coconut milk). Certain parts of Mindanao are predominantly Muslim, where
pork is rarely consumed.
- Rendang, is an often spicy beef curry whose origins derive from the Minangkabau people
of Sumatra; biryani and kiyoning (pilaf) are dishes originally from the Middle East, that were
given a Mindanaoan touch and served on special occasions.
- Pyanggang is a Tausug dish made from barbecued chicken marinaded in spices, and served
with coconut milk infused with toasted coconut meat.
- Popular crops such as cassava root, sweet potatoes, and yams are grown.
- Sambal, a spicy sauce made with belacan, tamarind, aromatic spices and chillies, is a
popular base of many dishes in the region.
- Another popular dish from this region is tiyula itum, a dark broth of beef or chicken lightly
flavored with ginger, chili, turmeric, and toasted coconut flesh (which gives it its dark color).
- Lamaw (Buko salad), is a mixture of young coconut, its juice, milk or orange juice, with
ice.

DESSERTS:
- Bibingka
- Puto
- Kutsinta
- Halo-halo
- Maja Blanca
- Leche flan
- Ube Halaya
- Champorado
- Buko Pie
- Pichi-pichi
- Buko Pandan
- Mais con Yelo