A bowl of La Paz batchoy from Deco's was the perfect breakfast after an all night party last week. Or I thought so, but it wasn't as appetizing as I expected batchoy should have been. Aside from not being photogenic no matter what angle I make, it also tasted bland despite the tons of condiments I placed. I just chose Deco's just to update my blog about this seemingly hyped batchoy and I may seem to have regretted it-lol. Anyway, for starters, just looking at the broth of Deco's can actually make you taste of what is to come. It's clear and healthy looking (minus the fats and oils) broth actually lacks the "body" of the true essence of batchoy. It tastes more on the guinamos and not from the slowly boiled pork and spices. It seems it's just "flavoured" water and not from the laborious process of preparing batchoy. The eatables ( pancit meke, pork, liver, etc) were also not that appetizing to look at but at least tasted better. I guess this is just one of the results of it's rapid commercialization not to be left behind in the competition. No, it wasn't "hangover" but I guess I just prefer the "other" batchoy.
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 (