Category Archives: Food

Flower Vegetable

Leave a comment Posted by on April 6, 2016

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Bulaklak ng kalabasa (squash flower) is eaten as vegetable. Normally it goes with eggplant, ampalaya, and sitaw in the same dish such as pinakbet or vegetable soups (e.g. laswa, bulanglang, dinengdeng). Hence the complementary vegetables are placed beside each other on the table space at the market.

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Vegetable soup with squash flowers

Food, Pilipinas, Produce , , , ,

Noryangjin Fish Market

Leave a comment Posted by on February 19, 2016

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This one is an exclusively seafood market. A big one. No such sort exist in the Philippines where seafood here are sold in a specific section of the palengke, or at some corner of the talipapa. So at Noryangjin Fish Market with all its assortment of marine edibles where two-thirds of those I cannot identify, it was a wonderment to be inside, ogling unhurriedly at each edible curiosity, and hearing the din from the collective voices of the fishmongers. Obviously, they can tell that I was just an observer and not a potential customer, but I felt at ease because the ajummas and ajeossis don’t seem to mind, and they seem to understand that it was just a field trip of sort to me.

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Korea, Market, Seafood , ,

Mini Gimbap

Leave a comment Posted by on February 3, 2016

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I love rice and its derivatives that this mini gimbap is one of the several reasons I miss Korea. It’s amazing how addicting it can be when at a glance it’s just vegetables and rice wrapped in seaweed and sprinkled with sesame seeds. But it has a distinct taste, an umami comparable to junk food addiction. It must be from a trace of secret sauce, or from the magical hands of the ajumma.

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Food, Korea , , ,

Red Bean Siopao

Leave a comment Posted by on January 18, 2016

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Steaming bread with red bean filling, the traditional way in Nami Island.

Food, Korea , , , ,

Kimchi Jars

Leave a comment Posted by on January 17, 2016

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Kimchi jars as seen from the second floor stairway window inside an old building in Seoul.

Food, Korea, Receptacle , , ,

Everyday Lechon

Leave a comment Posted by on December 13, 2015
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Lechon at the night market of Iligan

Lechon for breakfast, for lunch, and for dinner. Yes that’s how it is in Iligan (also in Tacloban). It’s an every day food and not just a special dish for celebrations. One thing I’ve noticed about the delicious Iligan’s lechon is that it is stuffed with lots of red onions.

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There are plenty of lechon stalls and lechon carinderia scattered in Iligan where one can buy by the kilo or fraction thereof. It is smoking hot and available early in the morning. One can even eat lechon for breakfast at the carinderia. During Friday and Saturday evenings, there’s a food night market at the plaza where the most dominant fare is the lechon, what else. This is where the residents go for Friday and Saturday dinner out. This is where folks from all levels bond happily over a lechon meal.

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If I have to rank the sarapness of the lechon by place in the country, then Iligan is the champion, followed by Tacloban, and then Cebu City as second runner-up. I’ve lived in Cebu City for 5 years and lechon (inasal in Cebuano) was not nearly an every day food as compared to Iligan. In Bacolod, my hometown, I would buy lechon in Barangay Lechonan, at one of the several lechon stalls by the roadside.

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Iligan’s lechon is without frills, readily available every day for the ordinary folks, and yet the best tasting, period.

Understandably the “best pig ever” of Anthony Bourdain is relative to his number of lechon exposure in the country (hence the ‘ever’). Sir Anthony, I hope one day you can experience lechon paired with puso and eaten onsite in one of the several small tables at the weekend night market of Iligan City. Perhaps you might find your “best pig, period”. No reservation necessary.

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One of the several lechon places in Iligan

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Photo taken around breakfast time and lechon is already available and smoking hot

Food, Lanao del Norte , , , , , ,

Guso Stalls

Leave a comment Posted by on December 9, 2015
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Guso stall at Iligan Public Market

To my fellow guso-salad lover folks, here are snapshots of guso stalls sighted at the mercado of Iligan, Ozamiz, and Oroquieta.

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Guso stall at Ozamiz Public Market

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Guso stall at Oroquieta Sunday Market (Taboan)

Lanao del Norte, Market, Misamis Occidental, Seafood , , , , , , , ,

Balot Tables

Leave a comment Posted by on December 6, 2015
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Balot tables beside the Cotta Fort in Ozamiz City

Balot snacking (spelled as balut in Manila), is a sit-down and unhurried street food indulgence in Misamis Occidental. Several small tables with chairs are available. On top of the table are the vinegar and salt condiments; under the table is a bin for egg shells and other throwaways. Indeed it’s only in Oroquieta and Ozamiz where I’ve seen an outdoor table service for balot so far.

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Spiced vinegar and salt as condiments for eating balot

It is my observation that folks from Visayas and Mindanao love balot so much and treat it as an ordinary everyday fare. I’m from Visayas and I eat balot from my elementary days until now. I cannot imagine Manila kids doing the same level of indulgence on this delightful snack. Even though Manila population consists of migrant folks from VisMin, it seems that the passing down of balot snacking to the next generation is not easy. Availability isn’t the problem, rather it’s the lack of ‘balot-eating’ ambiance in mega cities. Too bad.

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Balot tables near the plaza in Oroquieta City

Food, Misamis Occidental , , , , , , , ,

Saturday Snapshots: Bicycle Seafood Vendor

Leave a comment Posted by on November 7, 2015
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Bicycle seafood vendor with umbrella doing his daily rounds

Mr. Fish Vendor would make rounds in the village daily. He will always have three choices of fresh seafood on his cargo bicycle. There’s always shrimp, while the two other tubs would contain fish and other kinds of seafood. His favorite color must be red as he always don red shirt and his three tubs are all in red color.

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Three choices of seafood and what's available today are shrimps as usual, squid, and Hasa Hasa fish

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His improvised cargo bike has improvised bicycle seat cover as well

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Improvisation, Metro Manila, Seafood, Snapshot of the Day, Transport , , ,

Corn in Circular Stack

Leave a comment Posted by on October 17, 2015
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Boiled corn arranged in a circular stack inside a giant clear plastic bag with visible 20 peso folded paper bill that serves as price tag for each corn

If a vendor sells one and the same merchandise only, day after day, it is highly likely that this vendor is sort of a subject matter expert on what he sells. For example, a boiled corn vendor is an expert on how to tell a good corn from a bad one even without removing its husk, and of course he knows how to boil it perfectly, and he has taught himself how to arrange the corn in an artful and optimal manner on his kariton.

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Not wanting to mess up his arranged corn, he gets corn from his stock underneath

Moreover it is wise to buy from specialized vendors than from a grocery store because they themselves would have carefully selected their stuff. A single bad corn is bad for a single merchandise retail business.

Arrangement, Food, Metro Manila , , , ,

Savory Senbei

Leave a comment Posted by on October 14, 2015
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This rice cracker shop is one of the many small shops along Omotesando street in Narita town

One should never underestimate the taste of senbei (rice crackers) because when it is freshly made and still warm, the ‘yumminess’ meter goes up to about 75% more than those packed ones.

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Display case for the freshly made senbei

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Still warm

Food, Japan , , ,

Aling Emma

Leave a comment Posted by on October 8, 2015
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Aling Emma in her daster

For years I would buy espasol, bibingka, and most frequently the Pinatuyuan sa Gata freshwater shrimps viand from Aling Emma. Her shack of a shop is in Pagsanjan, Laguna along the main highway in the poblacion. One day the shop was gone from the old location. Then, months later I was able to locate her to this new one, still in the poblacion and not that far from the original one. It’s still a shack, which I like. I’m just truly glad that there’s still Aling Emma and her tiny food shop, my favored stop in Laguna.

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Espasol, suman, tikoy, vinegar in soft drinks plastic bottle containers, fish crackers, shing-a-ling, chicharon, etc.

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Assortment of rice cakes and the pinatuyuang hipon sa gata (inside those stypor containers at the upper left side)

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Pickled vegetables

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The gateway to Aling Emma’s shop

Food, Humans, Laguna , , , , , , , ,

Pinamalhan na Salmonete

Leave a comment Posted by on October 1, 2015
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Pinamalhan na salmonete

Pinamalhan is a Hiligaynon term for stewing fish in vinegar and salt (and/or soy sauce) until all liquid evaporates, hence the dish becomes mala (dry), and that’s why it’s called pinamalhan. We normally include crushed garlic and/or sliced onions to the vinegar and fish for the stewing process. Salmonete fish is perfect for pinamalhan. Back in my growing up days in Bacolod, I recall my mother will always prepare pinamalhan na salmonete every time she can get hold of fresh salmonete from the wet market. Naturally, I get to acquire the liking for this simple breakfast viand that is totally perfect with steamed rice.

Food , , , , , , , , ,

Taiwan Sausage

Leave a comment Posted by on September 24, 2015
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The pale looking ones are actually sticky rice inside a sausage casing. The rice sausage is being grilled, then it would be sliced lengthwise partially so the pork sausage can be wedged on it.

The pork sausage in Taipei (and around) is a savory and tempting snack whether skewered or placed inside a sticky rice sausage (that serves as bun). Quite an extraordinary sustenance because it is deliciously fatty.

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Nearly each time I could smell it, I buy. For at least five times as I can remember that I ate grilled pork sausage, I could say that I had a gratifying street food snacking experience in Taiwan. So I thought of collecting few pictures about this subject.

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Why does pork sausage taste even better at night?

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Skewered pork sausage

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For a longer satisfaction

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Of various sizes

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Pork sausage inside the sticky rice sausage. A meal in itself

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Comes in bite sizes too

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Food, Taiwan , , , , , , , , ,

Gastropod Shell Pot

Leave a comment Posted by on September 18, 2015
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Snail meat is for snacking while its shell is for potting

Grilled snails are for snacking in Jiufen town. One house I happen to pass by has this idea of repurposing the gastropod shell as plant pot. Cute.

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Grilled snails at Jiufen Old Street. I see lots of potential pots

Food, Garden, Repurposing, Taiwan , , , , , ,

Railway Boxed Lunch

Leave a comment Posted by on September 17, 2015
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The store that sells bian dang (boxed lunch) at the railway station

Twice in separate days I bought TRA’s (Taiwan Railways Administration) carton boxed lunch at the train station for the purpose of convenience and experience. Going around Taipei and its neighboring towns via Metro and TRA, I’ve observed and verified by myself that it’s very handy to buy boxed lunch at the stations and then have a quiet meal on park benches or any seating one can find in public spaces.

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Another TRA boxed lunch store

The boxed lunch typically consists of pork chop, tofu, rice, stir fried vegetables, and stewed egg. At NT$60 it was satisfying and simply delicious. I ate my bian dang (local term for railway boxed lunch) on a bench in Houtong, a cat village in Ruifang District. I also had bian dang on a bench in the grounds of Chiang Kai Shek Memorial Hall before touring this monumental memorial.

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This one has English signage

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Boxed lunches are usually located near the checkout counter

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Yet another boxed lunch store. The TRA logo is an indication

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One of the many passengers who bought bian dang

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The carton lunch box dimension is similar to that of paperback pocketbook

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Stewed egg, rice, stir fried vegetables, tofu, and pork chop

Food, Packaging, Taiwan , , , , , ,

Indigenous Breakfast

Leave a comment Posted by on August 12, 2015

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Ready to eat indigenous breakfast fare in various colors are plentiful inside Siti Khadijah Market. It’s wonderful to see places like this where there is obviously good demand by locals for local fare.

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Folks having superiority complex over their local food and their culture in totality have not lost their identity in this era of globalization.

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Food, Malaysia, Market , , ,

Tea Egg

Leave a comment Posted by on July 7, 2015

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This egg tastes like adobong itlog but infused with five spices. I got this from Ymart, a Taiwan specialty store somewhere in Makati. I think this will make a decent variation to my boiled egg snacking.

Food, Makati , , , , ,

Alcala Sweets

Leave a comment Posted by on July 4, 2015
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Milk candy made from carabao's milk

A neighbor gave this milk candy made from carabao’s milk as pasalubong from Cagayan province. Except for the barcode, I like its old school packaging design especially the carabao head drawing.

Food, Packaging , , , , , , ,

Kabayan Okoy

3 Comments Posted by on June 16, 2015
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Vegetable okoy (fritter)

In a town where commercial vegetable farming is the livelihood of the folks apart from guide services in hiking Mt Pulag, it’s no wonder then that their okoy variation is vegetarian. Okoy is shrimp fritter normally, but there’s no shrimp in Kabayan, so what they have is vegetable okoy.

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Translation: Vegetable okoy for a complete life

Visually, I was able to discern grated carrots only because I was too hungry to find out the rest of the ingredients. I ate two pieces of hot okoy. I got one each from the two vendors situated strategically near the gate of Mt Pulag National Park at the ranger station. It was the best okoy I had probably because I just came from a long mountain hike and was longing for a hot meal.

Benguet, Food , , ,

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