Gastronomy in Philippines

There is a Filipino saying that if you want a 100% sure profitable business in the Philippines then it must be food-related. Filipinos love to eat. Filipinos generally eat at least 5 times a day, 3 complete meals and 2 snacks. Philippine cuisine is a mixture of various influences such as Mexican, Spanish, Chinese, Indian, Japanese and Arab.

A complete meal is normally a combination of rice (steam or fried) and at least one viand. Fried rice (using leftover rice) is usually served during breakfasts. Most common cooking methods in the Philippines are adobo (cooked in soy sauce, garlic and vinegar), sinigang (boiled with a tamarind base), nilaga (boiled with onions), ginataan (cooked using coconut milk), and pinaksiw (cooked in ginger and vinegar) all using one of these: pork, chicken, beef, fish and sometimes vegetables.

Provinces in the Philippines have their own specialties and dishes that they truly brag about. These regional delicacies are usually prepared during fiestas (local festivity to honor a saint) and some serve as main source of income for localities that are even exported to other countries. Famous regional specialties are:

Batangas
Kapeng Barako – very strong coffee

Bicol
Bicol Express – cooked with lots and lots of pepper

Bulacan
Chicharon – pork rinds

Cebu
Lechon – roasted pig, famous during weddings and other grand celebrations

Ilocos Region
Pinakbet – boiled vegetables with bagoong (fermented anchovy paste) Jumping salad – small, live shrimps marinated in vinegar

Laguna
Buko pie – coconut pie

Pampanga
Longganisa – sweet and spicy sausage Tocino – sweetened-cured pork Kare-kare