Three Best Filipino Dishes to Try in the Philippines by Savingmart.Ph

Filipino cuisine is highly influenced by Spanish cuisine, though it is also a mixed variety of Malay, Indian, American, and Chinese cuisines adapted to locally-sourced ingredients and the local palate. If you ever plan to visit this beautiful country, do not miss trying out some famous and delicious dishes of the Philippines. Here are the three most popular food according to a survey by Savingmart.ph. 

Adobo- a very popular dish you would come across the menus of almost every Filipino restaurant in the Philippines. The word ‘adobo’ means marinade – hence the specialty of this dish is the taste the meat acquires when infused with a marinade of vinegar – the main ingredient of the dish, along with soy sauce, oil, garlic, pepper and bay leaves. 

photo by dbgg1979 on Wikipedia

The dish is cooked in a simmering heat making the meat tender while enhancing its taste. The meat after cooking in a low heat can sometimes be followed by a pan frying process to give it a crispy surface. You will get this style of cooking with any type of meat – chicken, pork, lamb, and even fish, catfish, squid, shrimp and other seafood. You may also find a variation of spices and vegetables, such as potatoes, red bell pepper, capsicum, onions, jalapeno pepper, olive oil, brown sugar, pineapple, etc. added to the adobo dish. It is often served alongside hot steaming rice. For vegetarians, you can always have your vegetables cooked in adobo style, such as okra, eggplant, water spinach, etc.

Kare-Kare-  a must-try stew of the Philippines. It is a stew whose main ingredient is oxtail and ox tripe, which are boiled until tender to make the soup gelatinous. The main reason behind the flavor of this stew is ground roasted peanuts or peanut butter. Sometimes, ground roasted glutinous rice is also added to make the soup even thicker. 

In restaurants, you can find a whole range of meats used in different versions of Kare-Kare, such as pork leg, mutton, chicken, calves feet, pork hocks, and offal– but the base is always the ox tail. Different vegetables are also used in preparing the Filipino dish such as Chinese cabbage, banana blossoms, eggplants, asparagus beans, green beans, etc. Annatto, a red-orange condiment, is often added to give color to the stew. As the dish is very simple, it is traditionally served with shrimp paste, and is occasionally spiced with chili and sprinkled with calamansi lime juice. The dish is traditionally cooked and served in a clay pot that enhances the aroma of the dish.

Tapsilog- a typical Filipino breakfast which includes rice. The main ingredient of the dish is Tapa – which is cured beef. It is usually combined with garlic-fried rice (sinangag) and fried egg (itlog) as the meal altogether is called tapsilog.

photo by Halil_marx07 at English Wikipedia

The meat is usually cured or dried and cut into thin slices or small portions before it is cooked while salt and spices are added to preserve the meat. You can either have it fried or grilled, and you can also replace beef with pork or chicken cooked in the same tapa-style. The rice can be of different varieties, such as plain rice, java rice or garlic rice or any other type of rice you prefer. As a side dish, apart from the fried egg, there can be also sliced vegetables and pickled papaya strips, accompanied by condiments like ketchup or vinegar. Tapsilog is mainly served during breakfast, but you can get to enjoy this satisfying meal any time of the day.

Do Not Dare to Miss

These three must-eat dishes are mandatory in your list of food to try in the Philippines. So when you come to this country, do not get confused by so many eateries and street foods serving various kinds of food that are unknown to you. Just order any of these three dishes and relish the delicacy of these food – when you are in Philippines.