One soupy afternoon at Green Mango

Not one, but four, soup creations were presented to us, as together with some members of the Iloilo Bloggers Inc., I was invited for another series of food tasting session at Green Mango Filipino Fastfood chain's Nelly Garden branch. We were given a chance to taste of the restaurants newest product days ahead of its scheduled debut on Green Mango's menu. Dubbed as SoOohpas, this collection of four well-loved Filipino soups is the latest addition to Green Mango's menu.

First served was Green Mango Goto. A flavourful rice porridge served with harboiled egg topped with fried garlic and chives. Though I found it a bit salty at first but really enjoyed it until the tasting bowl went empty. Though most Ilonggos aren't familiar with goto, Green Mango's version will surely wouldn't fail.

Next one is a very familiar soup, Green Mango Arroz Caldo and by the looks and taste of it, I predict this would be the selling among the four soups. Familiar and very much like the homemade arroz caldo goodness most Ilonggos love, I instantly like it better than the goto upon my first spoonful and finsihed the rest of the bowl in no time at all. It's more subtle yet flavourful and really just like the taste I love.

Green Mango Sotanghon came in second to last on our table and a welcome change to the first two congee type soups. Juts like any sotanghon soup, it has chicken, egg and vegetable garnish to go with the vermicelli noodles. And when it comes to sotanghon, I have my standards set with a local brand - Marca Pato. Whether as a pancit or soup, this creates the best sotanghon dish. But this wasn't the brand used, so it's just like any soup I've tried, good but not spectacular.

And lastly, the most foreign to the Ilonggos is Green Mango Beef Pares. Coming in last when I was already almost full gave me a little chance to appreciate its taste much better. The beef was good though yet beef pares served with meke noodles almost made this foreign dish almost more "alien" because of the unusual combo. Rice would be the perfect partner but at that time, even rice wouldn't make a big difference for taste buds that already had much.

These soups are now available in all Green Mango branches all throughout Iloilo City with prices as shown. Whether eaten for a snack or side dish to GMs combo meals, the soups will surely make one burp ... SoOohpas!

Ready-to-cook Pancit Molo balls

It was only today that I remembered buying a pack of ready-to-cook pancit Molo. Locals are fortunate to buy them at groceries here saving them time, money and effort in the tedious preparation of pancit Molo. Anyway every pack of the RTC pancit Molo has the balls and the lang-lang . Its the balls that entice the buyers and the lang lang that "dictates" the price and weight. For this blog entry, I opted for the AR brand (150 grams for PhP 21) since they had the more photogenic combination at that time though I'm more partial to the Cares brand. Separating the contents makes you realize that what you actually bought but for that price, it's already a bargain, can be cooked in many ways and can serve 2-3 people. It is then up to you what you can make out from a pack or more. For this preparation, I used 2 chicken broth cubes and just estimated the amount of water. Upon taste test I added a pinch of salt, a dash of pepper and few drops of soy sauce. I boiled the lang

Ultimate Ilonggo Favorite: KBL Kadyos, Baboy, Langka

K.B.L. or Kadyos, Baboy, Langka is the ultimate favorite dish of most Ilonggos. It is also one of the most missed native dishes as kadyos and the souring ingredient, batwan , are hard to find when outside of the Ilonggo region. Basically, it is boiled/stewed pork dish owing its "deliciousness" to the combination of the soft and tender pork, the tamed sourness of batwan and the malinamnam na sabaw . One of the "secrets" of the malinamnamn na sabaw , is the fact that the pork, whether just the plain meat or pata (hocks) are first grilled or broiled. This gives the broth a rather smoky taste that makes it more appetizing.. Learn how to make the Ilonggo dish KBL (Kadyos, Baboy, at Langka) with the recipe below. Ingredients 1 kilo Pata (pork hocks) or pork cubes, GRILLED and sliced into bite size pieces 1 unripe Jack fruit, cubed 2 cups pigeon pea (kadyos) 6-8 pieces batwan fruit (or tamarind powder) 1 piece pork broth cube (

A new flavour for the Dinagyang 2011 Food Festival

Aside from the dances, drums and colorful costumes, Dinagyang also means food and Iloilo City has a lot to offer during this 3-day event. The festival brings them to the streets with the much awaited Dinagyang Food Festiva l . For four days, major streets in the city are lined with food stalls and kiosks that everywhere one turns it all about food. As this article states, major streets in Iloilo City will have a food festival there will be plenty of places to indulge in during D inagyang 2011 . ILOILO City's world-famous Dinagyang Festival will turn the spotlight on Ilonggo cuisine this year. Tourists are encouraged to try chicken barbecue the Ilonggo way and other tasty local dishes during the festival. There are also the world-famous Ilonggo delicacies and other concoctions to bring home after enjoying the Dinagyang ati-atihan and Kasadyahan competitions. Not only that. The 1s t Iloilo Convention and Visitors Bureau (ICVB) International Food Festival 2011 will attempt t

Valenciana

A close relative of paella, this dish originated in Valencia, Spain and probably brought by the Spaniards when they colonized the country. Always a staple in family gatherings, this yellow rice is a complete meal in itself, with pork, chicken, liver, chorizo, shrimps, bellpeppers, peas and raisins to name its basic ingredients. RECIPE Saute your choice meats and vegetables. Cook malagkit rice with turmeric and broth cubes then mix sauted meat and vegetables when almost done. Garnish with hardboiled eggs and onion leaves.

SIDRO: Iloilo's very own gourmet doughnuts

Just listening to Isidro Panizales Jr. animatedly talking about his life before and after being a “doughnut-preneur”, is like the different flavors of Sidro Doughnuts . Each variant seems to reflect different aspects of his almost three decades of living in America. From his work in corporate America for more than 10 years to that one little spark of deciding leaving work to pursue his delicious passion – life is like a box of doughnuts! IN A DOUGHNUT HOLE Sidro is an offshoot from the name Isidro but as Sid says, it’s a tribute to his father. The first Sidro Doughnuts came out of the kitchen and delivered to one lucky doughnut-phile on Dec. 18 last year. It comes in two sizes – Junior Doughnuts which at 30 grams each are perfect for parties and occasions. But if you can’t enough, there are the Regular Doughnuts which is more than 3x at 100 grams and comes with more toppings and flavours. Choose among nine specially concocted creations - Bugnay Berry, Calamansi, Dulce

FLAVOURS OF ILOILO

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