Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ADOBO HEAVEN
It might seem simple - stewed pork and chicken - but it's hard to resist the justly revered
national dish of the Philippines.
Adobo
originally meant “sauce” or “seasoning” in Spanish, but
its use has morphed throughout Spain's former colonies - the Filipino version is actually
indigenous to the islands, dating back to a dish cooked up here long before Magellan's arrival.
Philippine adobo consists of pork, chicken or a combination of both slowly stewed in soy
sauce, vinegar, crushed garlic, bay leaf and black peppercorns - it's the latter two ingredients
that gives true adobo its distinctive flavour and bite. No two adobos are exactly alike however
- you'll discover different versions all over the country.
Street food
Though not as common as it is in Thailand or India,
street food
still has a special place in the hearts
(and stomachs) of Filipinos as much for its plain
weirdness as for its culinary virtues. Hawkers with
portable stoves tend to appear towards the end of
the working day from 5 to 8pm and at lunchtime
in bigger cities. Much of the food is grilled over
charcoal and served on sticks kebab-style, or deep
fried in a wok with oil that is poured into an old
jam jar and re-used day after day. Highlights include
deep-fried
fishballs
and squidballs (mashed fish
or squid blended with wheat flour), grilled
pig
intes tines
and adidas -
chicken's feet
, named
after the sports-shoe manufacturer. Prices start from
a few pesos a stick.
Street vendors also supply the king of Filipino
aphrodisiacs,
balut
, a half-formed
duck embryo
eaten with beak, feathers and all; sellers advertise
their proximity with a distinctive baying cry.
roasted pig cooked whole on a spit over a charcoal
or wood fire. In the Philippines,
lechon
is usually
served with vinegar or special sauce (unique to
each
lechon
shop but normally made from fruits or
liver pâté, garlic and pepper). The meat is deliciously
fragrant and juicy, but the real highlight is the crispy
smoked skin, a fatty, sumptuous treat sold by the
kilo. Pork is also the basis of
Bicol Express
, the best
known of very few spicy local dishes, which consists
of pork cooked in coconut milk, soy and vinegar,
with chillies.
Vegetables
are not considered an integral part of
Filipino meals, but may well be mixed in with the
meat or offered as a side dish. In restaurants serving
Filipino food, some of the most common vegetable
dishes include
pinakbet
, an Ilocano dish (usually
bitter melon, squash, okra, eggplant and string
beans cooked in bagoong, a fermented fish sauce),
and a version of Bicol Express with leafy vegetables
such as
pechay
(aka pak choy) and
camote
tops
(sweet potato leaves) in place of pork.
Carinderias and seafood buffets
Carinderias
are usually humble eateries that allow
you to choose from a number of dishes placed on a
counter in big aluminium pots. Carinderia fare is
usually a blend of Filipino and Asian dishes; typical
choices might be adobo, pancit,
pinakbet
, chicken
curry, grilled pork, sweet and sour fish, fried chicken
and hotdogs. The only problem with carinderias is
that the food has usually been standing around a
while and is often served lukewarm.
In urban areas you'll also find
seafood
restaurants
displaying a range of seafood on ice; order by
pointing at what you want and telling the waiter
how you would like it cooked.
Breakfast
At many hotels and resorts you'll be offered a
Filipino breakfast, which typically consists of
longganisa
(garlic sausage),
tocino
(cured pork),
fried bangus fish, corned beef or
beef tapa
(beef
marinated in vinegar); you'll usually be offered
tapsilog
, a contraction formed from tapa (fried
beef ),
sinangag
(garlic fried rice) and
itlog
(egg) -
which is exactly what you get, a bowl of garlic
rice with tapa and a fried egg on top. Other
“combo” dishes include tosilog and longsilog (you
get the idea).
If this sounds too much for you, there's usually
fresh fruit and toast, though note that local
bread
,
either of the sliced variety or in rolls known as
pan
de sal
, is often slightly sweet (wholegrain or rye
breads are unusual in all but a few big hotels).
Another option is to ask for a couple of hot
pan de
sal
with corned-beef filling, the beef taking away
some of the bread's sweetness.
Desserts and snacks
Filipinos adore
sweets
and
desserts
. Sold all over
the Philippines,
halo-halo
(from the Tagalog word
halo
, meaning “mix”) is a mouthwatering blend of
shaved ice, evaporated milk and various toppings
such as sweetened beans, fruits and taro, served in
