“Mais” is corn. While rice remains to be the primary source of carbohydrate in Filipino diet, “mais” is considerably popular; thanks to the street vendors roaming all day and selling super sweet steamed corn on the cob smothered with butter.
“Talaba” means oyster. "Talaba" remains to be popular seafood in the Philippines, in spite recurring threats of red tide and water pollution. But in some protected cities and islands far from Manila, “talaba” is safe to eat every day, all year round. Mostly eaten raw with “calamansi” or vinegar, but many prefer it baked or grilled.
“Pipino” is cucumber in Filipino. This vegetable is typically used in ensaladas (salads). A salad composed of “pipino” slices dressed with vinegar, salt and pepper, is the easiest and most popular dish using “pipino”.
“Isda” means fish. With all the thousands of islands comprising the Philippines, “isda” is the most popular protein in the country.
"Kamatis" means tomato. "Kamatis" is a popular ingredient in many Filipino dishes such as menudo, mechado, afritada, etc. It's also typical used in simple salads, dressed with soy sauce or "patis" (fish sauce), ...
(Chicago) - Fresh prawns are bit expensive here in the US, even in Manila actually. It’s not something that you can cook anytime you want –only reserved for special occasions. Other than the price, it’s not advisable, medically-speaking,...
(Chicago) – Does it ring a bell? All Pinoys recognize this acronym. For those who are not aware, this stands for Tap-a (dried/cured beef), Si-nangag (fried rice) and it-Log (egg). Perfect breakfast; maybe lunch or dinner. Whenever you want it...
(New York) – Dimsum used to be a Sunday ritual to me. Not anymore. With Sunday specialty brunching becoming very popular and appropriate (referring to Bloody Marys, Bellinis and Mimosas that cure hangover, just a personal belief and no scientific claim)...
(Chicago) - Almost every Filipino household brags about their specialty adobo dish. Almost every region in the Philippines claims to hold the most authentic version of adobo. I heard at one point the government commissioned a group of veritable Filipino chefs to standardize the recipes of the most popular Filipino dishes, including adobo of course, to boost its standing against the other world cuisines. Whatever success or failure it attained, I never heard about that initiative again.
(Chicago) – Now I know why so many people are addicted to Garrett popcorn. After 5 years of living in Chicago, I fully understand now why people line up and wait for more many minutes, sometimes longer than an hour […]