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What is Filipino Food?

While it defies any singular characterization, Filipino food is sometimes identified by the way it fuses Asian
and European ingredients. Filipino food combines Eastern and Western ideas and is strongly influenced by
Chinese, Spanish, and American traditions (Sim, 2018). The following shows how foreign culture influenced
Filipino cuisine.
Chinese trade in 11th century
o Pansit – noodles; Hokkien word for “something quickly cooked”
o Lumpia – meat and vegetable mixture rolled in an edible flour wrapper
o Siopao – steamed buns filled with meat
o Siomai – a type of dumpling; meat in small wrappers and then steamed.

1521 Spanish expedition

o Led by Ferdinand Magellan, with Italian chronicler Antonio Pigafetta
o First account of Filipino food: “pork in its sauce served in porcelain platters… roasted fish
with freshly gathered ginger and rice, turtle eggs, chicken, and peacock.”

1565–1989 Spanish colonization

o Introduction of Western cooking methods
o Import of Spanish ingredients like tomatoes, annatto seeds, corn, and avocados
o Introduction of Mexican delicacies like tamales, pipian, and balbacoa through the Vice
Royalty of Mexico
o Filipino cooks were taught to prepare Spanish dishes
o Renaming of local dishes into Spanish: adobo, Arroz Caldo, and morisqueta tostada.
o Use of sofrito as a flavoring base – garlic, onion, and tomato

1989 – Start of American colonization

o Introduction of processed foods
o Use of American products as more superior than Filipino ingredients
o Hygienic and sanitary procedures in food preparation were taught in Home Economics
Classes and were practiced in Public Markets.

The Philippines’ scattered islands created a sense of regional identity. These regions have distinct cultures and
cuisines. As an archipelago, certain ingredients are endemic to its own region. Naturally, people would use
what is available to them. This led them to creating dishes of their own or creating a variation of an already
existing dish. Therefore, food preparation and presentation vary greatly between regions, towns, and even
households in the Philippines.
An example of this is the adobo. The most well-known variant is the chicken-pork adobo where chicken and
pork are braised in vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, peppercorn, and bay leaf. In Batangas, they would braise chicken,
pork, and beef together. In Iloilo, they would use kangkong (water spinach) for apan-apan adobado. While in
the Bicol region, they would use gata (coconut milk) and green finger chilies (Barretto, et al., 2016).
To define Filipino food, one must understand the geography and history of the Philippines. Filipino food is not
only the ingredients found in its islands but also the history and society that introduced them and the people
who harmonize them to satisfy the Filipino palette, evolving into the cuisine that we love today (Fernandez,
2005).

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Cooking Tools, Cookware, Methods, and Ingredients

Kitchen Tools and Cookware used in Filipino Cuisine

Filipino Term Description

Bulbous wood fire stoves made from clay; the cooking fire is kept going by blowing
Kalan
through an ihip (bamboo straw)
Red earthenware pots; used for boiling, braising, stewing, steaming and cooking en
Palayok papillote (on pa-pi-yot); can also be used for baking by putting hot colas over and
under it like a Dutch oven
Curved-bottom woks made from cast iron; used for sautéing, stir-frying, deep frying,
Kawali searing, and braising; can also be used for steaming by fitting a large bamboo
steamer over it
Kawa A very large wok used for communal cooking
Kaldero A deep stock pot used for steaming, braising, stewing, simmering, and boiling
Banga/Tapayan Earthenware jugs used for storing water
Almirez Mortar and pestle made from stone or marble; used for pounding garlic and spices
Sandok Solid spoon or ladle used for mixing, stirring, or serving food
Sianse Spatula used for food turning and searing meats
Sangkalan Chopping board; traditionally made from wood
Cleaver Wide, heavy knife used in chopping, mincing, and slicing
Kudkuran/Kabayo A small, low bench with protruding sharp iron teeth used for grating coconut
Lanera Oval pan/mold used for leche flan
Chocolatera/Batidor Brass pot used for making a chocolate drink
Table 1. Tools and cookware used in Philippine cuisine

Cooking Methods in Filipino Cuisine

Dry-heat method Sample dishes and their origin

Grilling (Ihaw) Inasal na manok – Panay and Negros
Frying (Prito) Bagnet – Ilocos
Sautéing (Gisa) Pansit habhab – Quezon
Roasting (Lechon) Lechon baboy – Cebu
Baking (Hurno) Buko pie – Laguna
Toasting (Tusta) Used in preliminary cooking
Searing (Sankutsa) Used in preliminary cooking
Moist-heat method Sample dishes and their origin
Steaming (Pasingaw/Halabos) Puto – Bulacan
En Papillote (Pinais) Sinaing na tulingan – Batangas
Braising Humba – Samar and Leyte
Stewing Laing – Bicol
Simmer (Inin, Pananukan) Pancit molo – Iloilo
Blanching (Banlian) Used in preliminary cooking
Table 2. Cooking methods in Filipino cuisine

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Ingredients in Filipino Cuisine

RICE
Aside from being an accompaniment to viands during mealtime, rice can be used in a variety of ways. It may
be flavored with salt for duldul or with chocolate for champorado. It is made into wine called tapuy in
Cordillera. Rice is fermented with fish called balo-balo, or it can also be made into different types of rice cakes
or kakanin. (Barretto, et al., 2016)

FRUITS AND VEGETABLES

Coconut Called the tree of life; almost every part of the tree is used.
Grated mature coconut (niyog) can be added to desserts or squeezed to get
coconut cream (kakang gata) and coconut milk (gata). Young coconuts (buko)
produce coconut water that can be drunk as it is or added to dishes. The tender
meat of the buko can be eaten raw, roasted, baked, or fried.
We can also get coconut sport (macapuno), palm heart (ubod), and fermented
coconut jelly (nata de coco). By simmering coconut cream, we can extract the
coconut oil and curdled coconut cream called latik.
Eggplants Long, elongated varieties with violet skin are the most common; there are also
small, short ones as well as short, rounded ones.
Bamboo shoots
This came from the core of young bamboo.
(Labong)
Banana Comes in different varieties like lakatan, latundan, cavendish, señorita,
bungulan, murado, and saba; the banana blossom (puso) is also used in
different dishes
Bean sprouts (Togue) Sprouts from the mung bean (monggo)
Chayote An oval pale green squash with a thin white seed in the middle; becomes very
soft when cooked
Miso Fermented soybean paste
Palm nuts (Kaong) Usually used in fruit salads or halo-halo
Garlic (Bawang) Used in almost all Filipino food; these are suateed alongside onion before
cooking
Onion (Sibuyas) Comes in different varieties; used before cooking a dish
Chili leaves Usually used in soups
Bitter melon
A long, elongated vegetable known for its very bitter taste.
(Ampalaya)
Chili (Sili) Comes in varieties like bird’s eye (labuyo), siling pari/bilog, siling pasiti, and
finger chilies (siling haba); the leaves are also used in soups like tinola.
Mushrooms Found in many varieties like black fungi (tengang daga), button mushrooms,
and dried Chinese mushrooms
Limes The Philippines has three (3) endemic limes: the dayap, calamansi, and suwa.
These are usually used as a souring agent.
Tofu Firm tofu (tokwa) is eaten fried while silken tofu (taho) is usually eaten with
caramel syrup and tapioca balls as a snack or dessert
Sweet potatoes
Both sweet potatoes and yams are called kamote; these are tubers that are
(Kamote) and cassava
boiled before eating. It is also widely used in Filipino snacks and desserts.
(Kamoteng kahoy)

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Purple yams (Ube) Known for their purple color; usually boiled and mashed into a very sticky paste
called ube halaya
Taro (Gabi) Because of its high starch content, it is used as a thickening agent in sinigang.
Tamarind (Sampaloc) When ripe, the brown shell is cracked to reveal a tangy, fleshy pulp. While still
unripe, the tamarind has a very sour flavor, which is used as a souring agent.
Sugar cane Prehistoric Filipinos would cut, peel, and chew on a sugar cane to extract its
sweet juice. Now, sugar canes are pressed to produce pulot (sticky,
concentrated sugar cane juice) panutsa/sankaka (pulot dried into a hard cake)
muscovado (a powdered form of panutsa/sankaka) brown sugar and white
sugar.
Table 3. Fruits and vegetables

DIPPING SAUCES, CONDIMENTS, OR SAWSAWAN

Soy Sauce (Toyo) Used in a variety of dishes

Comes from different sources like coconut, sugar cane, and nipa palm; also
Vinegar (Suka)
spiced differently in various regions
Fish sauce (Patis) Made from fermented fish.
Comes in paste or liquid form and is derived from many sources like fish,
Bagoong
oysters, and shrimp
Pickled papaya (Atsara) Usually complements fried or oily dishes
These are other fruits or vegetables that are pickled. Varieties include mango,
Buro
onion, rice, and fish.
Table 4. Condiments

HERBS AND SPICES

Turmeric (Luyang dilaw) Primarily used as a coloring agent

Lemongrass (Tanglad) Lemon scented grass with a bulbous stem and root.
Ginger (Luya) Can be used in cooking or steeped in hot water to make ginger tea or salabat.
Primarily used as a coloring agent. The small red seeds are either boiled or fried
Annatto seeds (Atsuete)
to release its pigment.
Safflower Kasubha Primarily used as a pigment in rice dishes
A type of grass with a delicate flavor and fragrance. It is used in steaming rice
Pandan
or used in desserts.
Table 5. Herbs and spices

MEAT, POULTRY, FISH, SEAFOOD, AND OTHER INGREDIENTS

Meat
Pig Cow Carabao Goat
Poultry
Chicken Duck Wild birds
Game
Wild Boar Deer Frog Alligator
Snakes Monitor Lizards Bats

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Fish
Milk fish Anchovy Catfish Herring
Mud fish Scad Yellow fin tuna Tilapia
Tuna bonito
Shellfish and Crustaceans
Bay mussel Angel wings Clams Oysters
Heart-shaped cockle Scallops Shrimp and prawns Crabs
Cephalopods
Snails Octopus Squids Sea urchins
Insects
Mole crickets Grasshoppers Beetles
Table 6. Meat, poultry, fish, seafood, and other ingredients

Food Safety and Food Handling Guidelines

Not only for Philippine cuisine, but proper food handling minimizes the risk of cross-contamination and food-
borne illnesses. Food hazards can be avoided by monitoring time and temperature. At any stage of preparing
and cooking food, keep food (raw or cooked) away from the temperature danger zone (TDZ) of 4°C/39°F to
60°C/180°F. Also, pathogens will grow rapidly at the TDZ to dangerous levels in four (4) hours (Barretto, et al.,
2016).

Proper Storage Temperature

Food Item Temperature

Meat and Poultry 0°C – 2°C / 32°F – 36°F
Fish and Seafood -1°C – 1°C / 30°F – 34°F
Eggs 3°C – 4°C / 38°F – 40°F
Dairy Products 2°C – 4°C / 36°F – 40°F
Produce 4°C – 7°C / 40°C – 45°F
Table 7. Proper storage temperature

Proper Freezer Storage (Barretto, et al., 2016)

Food items should be properly stored and segregated inside the freezer. This will prevent cross-contamination
and will keep the storage organized. Food that are ready to be eaten like cooked foods, produce, and leftovers
should be kept at the topmost shelf. While raw meats, seafood, and poultry should be placed at the lower
shelves. This will prevent any blood drippings from contaminating ready-to-eat food. The ideal storing of food
items are as follows:
• Top shelf: Ready to eat food
• Next shelf: Dairy
• Next shelf: Seafood
• Next shelf: Fresh meats
• Next shelf: Ground meats
• Bottom shelf: Poultry

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Internal Temperature During Cooking (Barretto, et al., 2016)

When cooking meat and poultry products, always monitor its internal temperature. This is to ensure that the
food is thoroughly cooked and that bacteria are killed in the cooking process. Table 8 shows the safe internal
temperature of certain food items.

Food Item Internal Temperature

Whole poultry 74°C / 165°F
Ground chicken 69°C / 155°F
Ground beef, pork, veal or lamb 68°C / 155°F
Large cuts of beef or pork 63°C / 145°F
Table 8. Internal temperature during cooking

Thawing and Reheating

All cooked food should reach an internal temperature of 74°C/165°F in less than two (2) hours from thawing
or removal from storage. After removing from the freezer, frozen food can be thawed in three (3) ways: leaving
it in the refrigerator overnight, running it under cold water at 4°C/40°F in a sealed container, or using a
microwave. These methods will help food to reach a safe internal temperature and prevent bacterial growth.
(Barretto, et al., 2016)

References:
Alejandro, R., Fernandez, D. G., Alvina, C. S., & Reyes, M. (2012). Authentic recipes from the Philippines. Singapore:
Periplus Editions.
Barretto, G. R., Calalang, C., Fores, M., Segismundo, M., Sincioco, J., & Tayag, C. (2016). Kulinarya: A guidebook to
Philippine cuisine (2nd Ed.). Mandaluyong City: Anvil.
Fenix, M. (2014). Country cooking: Philippine regional cuisines. Pasig City, PH: Anvil.
McLean, A. (2015). Asian American food culture. Sta Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO, LLC.
Sim, D. (2018, 25 September). Filipino cooking and culture [Web log post]. Retrieved from
https://www.thespruceeats.com/filipino-cooking-and-culture-3030285
Sta Maria, F. P. (2006). The governor-general's kitchen: Philippine culinary vignettes and period recipes 1521-1935. Pasig
City, PH: Anvil.
Sta Maria, F. P. (2016). What kids should know about Filipino food. Diliman, QC: Adarna House.
Tayag, C. (2006). Food tour. Pasig City, PH: Anvil.

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