What are Your Top 10 Favorite Filipino Foods?

We Filipinos are known for our positive values, hospitality, being hard-working, and our ability to face whatever challenges that life brings – with a smile in our face. On top of that, we are also known to have a great passion for food – to the point of considering eating as a hobby.

Of course, the last statement does not apply to all; although it covers the majority.

Let’s talk about food, our favorite Filipino Foods.

What are your comfort foods? What are the foods that you find irresistible?

By the way, we are also known for being shy and quiet. I think that I should start the conversation by posting my food list first as an ice breaker, then you’ll follow by sending-in your comments.

How does that sound? Alright, here it goes…

How to Butcher a Chicken

Have you ever tried to butcher a whole dressed chicken? I remember the first time to butcher a whole chicken; it was confusing. Back then, I didn’t know where to start and I have no idea as to how many parts should I divide it into. I spent more than 30 minutes to complete the [...]

5 Things to Consider in Making the Best Fried Rice

Fried Rice is the result when steamed or boiled rice are fried in oil or animal fat. For practical reasons, the Chinese first used this method to preserve and recycle leftover steamed rice for consumption. Nowadays, several varieties of fried rice are enjoyed throughout the world.

Making fried rice seems simple and easy. When asked as to how this is done, you might say “heat some oil and fry the steamed rice then add the other ingredients that you have”. While this statement is true, there are more things to consider that may help you make the best possible outcome out of what you have.

Humba

Humba is a sweet pork dish that resembles the famous pork adobo in terms of appearance. This is popular in the southern parts of the Philippines and is considered as one of the delicacies of the region. Pork belly, pork hocks, and pork ham are the 3 most common pig parts used to make this delightful masterpiece.

This dish uses all the ingredients of pork adobo; however, certain ingredients such as brown sugar, salted black beans, and banana blossoms make this dish stand out. There are also other variations wherein pineapple juice is used (I learned this from my friends that came from Cebu, Davao, and Gensan) – this gives more life to the dish as far as I’m concerned.

How to Dice an Onion

Part of our culinary adventure is learning the proper method of preparing ingredients. This article is intended to visually demonstrate the proper steps in dicing an onion. There are no incorrect procedure as long as the goal is achieved but following best practices tend to make work simple and easier.

Are you also doing same method?

Beef Lugaw

Chicago winter is one of the coldest in the country. There are weeks wherein the average temperature ranges between 5 to 15 degrees Fahrenheit; there are also days where it falls below zero (not to mention the wind chill factor which makes it colder). During this season, a single cup of hot chocolate or coffee really helps in making oneself warm. Hot soups and porridge are also ideal for dinner.

Tahô

Tahô is a Philippine street food sold by peddlers known as “magtataho”. It is a soft gelatin-like snack made from processed soybeans topped with caramel and tapioca pearls (locally called sago). The soft gelatin-like texture is achieved by undergoing a series of steps. Soybeans are soaked in water overnight then finely grinded and boiled. While boiling, extracts from the soy beans mixes with water forming soy milk. The remaining solid particles are placed in a cloth then squeezed tightly until all the soy milks are fully extracted. Coagulating agents such as gelatin or magnesium chloride are then added to thicken the texture. The caramel syrup is made by caramelizing brown sugar and mixing it with water.

Molo Soup

Molo Soup or Pancit Molo is a soup dish composed of a mixture of ground pork wrapped in wonton wrapper, shredded chicken meat, and shrimps. This dish resembles the Chinese wonton soup but the array of ingredients and flavor makes this dish stand out. After doing some research, I found out that this dish originated from a famous town in Iloilo, Philippines called “Molo” (yes, you guessed it right). But why call it Pancit (or Pansit) when there are no noodles in the dish? I too have the same question. Maybe our Ilonggo friends can help us out on this one.

I like my Molo soup topped with some minced green onions and lots of toasted garlic : I even put a teaspoon of fresh lemon or calamansi juice . This is one of the soups that I enjoy having during the cold months because it does not only make me feel warm ; it also brings out some childhood memories back home that are worth reminiscing.

This recipe is good for 20 people. We actually made this for a potluck party with our Filipino friends. Just use half or a quarter of the measurements depending on the number of people that you will share this with.

Try this Molo Soup recipe.

Baked King Crab Legs with Garlic Lemon Butter Sauce

Baked King Crab Legs with Garlic Lemon Butter Sauce is a simple recipe that uses the legs of King Crabs or Stone Crabs. These variety of crabs are found in deep cold seas and are highly priced because of their size and the rich taste of their meat. There is a legal duration to fish for King Crabs (referred to as the crab-fishing months or the crab-fishing season) and currently this lasts for 2 to 4 weeks. Another factor that contributed to the high price of this type of crab is the extreme danger that the fishermen (or crabmen) faces in the cold deep seas. A real-life documentary was produced by Original Productions for the Discovery Channel called Deadliest catch which documents the events aboard fishing boats in the Bering Sea during the Alaskan king crab and Opilio crab fishing seasons.

This recipe is very easy to follow and does not require a lot of time. All you need are thawed pre-cooked King Crab Legs (groceries usually sell frozen pre-cooked crab legs to extend their shelf life), lemon, butter, EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil as Rachel Ray always say) and some 18 to 20 minutes of your time. We served this delicious meal during Christmas Dinner (Noche Buena) and it was a huge favorite.

Try this King Crab Legs with Garlic Lemon Butter Sauce recipe

Beef with Broccoli

Beef with Broccoli is an Asian beef main dish. As the name suggests, this dish is mainly comprised of beef and broccoli combined with different sauces for that delightful Asian flavor.

This simple recipe is so easy to follow. I would suggest though that you use beef sirloin or tenderloin to
ensure that your dish will come-out tender. If in case you don’t have them around and opted for another less tender beef part, it would help if you slice the meat thinly and pound it with a meat pounder.

Try this Beef with Broccoli recipe

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