HAPPY FIESTA to the town of CABATUAN, ILOILO. And if there's one dish that represents this town, it is tino-um nga manok. Here's what Severo Caspe, Jr. and Christine Celeste Zaulda from University of the Philippines in the Visayas wrote about Leah's Tino-um from the blog, ILoveIloilo.
Tinu-om is a native dish of the Cabatuanons is made up of native chicken seasoned with onions, tomatoes and lemon grass(tanglad) wrapped in banana leaves. It is served with broth that builds up inside its wrapping following a heavy steaming.
Tinu-om in native language means “balot”, so Tinu-om na Manok means binalot na manok.Many carinderias in Cabatuan tried to make Tinu-om too, but failed in the process. One theory on why they failed would be because of the “timpla”. “Timpla” means taste proportionality of the mixed ingredients. This would mean that there are no specific measurements on how many teaspoons of vetsin there would be.
Tinu-om in native language means “balot”, so Tinu-om na Manok means binalot na manok.Many carinderias in Cabatuan tried to make Tinu-om too, but failed in the process. One theory on why they failed would be because of the “timpla”. “Timpla” means taste proportionality of the mixed ingredients. This would mean that there are no specific measurements on how many teaspoons of vetsin there would be.
A serving of Tinu-om, which has 3-4 slices, costs Php50 at Leah’s Tinu-om. From a student’s point of view, yes, it is expensive but it’s worth the cost.
The ingredients used are:
*Bumbay/Sibuyas (Onion)
*Kamatis (Tomato)
*Tanglad (Lemon Grass)
*Vetsin (MSG-monosodium glutamate)
*Asin (Salt)
*Tubig (water)
*Native Chicken – must be 7-14 months old.
*Banana Leaves
*Bamboo string or any string for tying up the tinu-om
*2 bowls for preparation
After enumerating the ingredients, she then told us how to do the Tinu-om na manok. There are 5 easy steps:
(1) In one bowl, place the chicken and season it with onion, tomato, vetsin and the salt and then add some water. The 7-14 month old chickens will have to boil for about 30 minutes for it to be ready for serving. Older chickens will take almost an hour. The picture on the side shows lola Sabel cutting up the chicken parts. One order of tinu-om would have 3-4 pieces.
lola sabel
(2) In another bowl prepare the banana leaves to be used for the wrap. Lola Sabel advices that you use Saba banana leaves rather than other kinds of banana leaf. It affects the flavor, aroma and outcome of the Tinu-om.
banana leaves
Lola Sabel proudly says that every weekend many people from nearby towns visit her carinderia to taste her Tinu-om. The great thing about it is that it gives her confidence and it encourages her to continue making Tinu-om and to help promote the culture of Cabatuan.
When we asked Lola Sabel about her recipe in making her delicious Tinu-om, with no hesitation, she immediately replied.
The ingredients used are:
*Bumbay/Sibuyas (Onion)
*Kamatis (Tomato)
*Tanglad (Lemon Grass)
*Vetsin (MSG-monosodium glutamate)
*Asin (Salt)
*Tubig (water)
*Native Chicken – must be 7-14 months old.
*Banana Leaves
*Bamboo string or any string for tying up the tinu-om
*2 bowls for preparation
After enumerating the ingredients, she then told us how to do the Tinu-om na manok. There are 5 easy steps:
(1) In one bowl, place the chicken and season it with onion, tomato, vetsin and the salt and then add some water. The 7-14 month old chickens will have to boil for about 30 minutes for it to be ready for serving. Older chickens will take almost an hour. The picture on the side shows lola Sabel cutting up the chicken parts. One order of tinu-om would have 3-4 pieces.
lola sabel
(2) In another bowl prepare the banana leaves to be used for the wrap. Lola Sabel advices that you use Saba banana leaves rather than other kinds of banana leaf. It affects the flavor, aroma and outcome of the Tinu-om.
banana leaves
(3) Eventually, pour the marinated chicken into the bowl lined with banana leaf, gather the edges and tie it with a bamboo string or any piece of string. Make sure that it won’t leak.
mixed ingredients
(4) After tying it up, place it in a casserole full of water and then place it on fire. You may steam it but Lola Sabel strongly suggests that you place it within the water casserole for a better result when it comes to taste.