Stopping by Sen Lek Thai Noodle house in Pavia

Hidden in plain sight along the highway in Pavia is a little snack shop specializing in Thai fare. Aptly named as Sen Lek Thai Noodle house, it serves a limited number of items on the menu mostly noodles, soups and rice meals. It’s located among one of the new commercial strips that have mushroomed these past few years, standing out with its purple motif inside out.

Quite a literal stopover, as I noticed a lot of vehicles stopping by the area during that afternoon when we also dropped by. It’s a bit cramped inside due to the limited space so we opted for the al fresco ambiance.

On the menu, one can choose from wanton, meatball, beef or mix Thai noodle soups to Pad Thai, Pad See-ew Rad Na and Tom Yum Goong. Or rice meals those not familiar with the Thai names – like Kao Pad, Khaw Krugkapi, Khang Kew-wan Khai and Pad Kra – Prao; would just point on the menu board.

At least we chose a familiar one – Beef Thai noodles that had beef on top of the staples of any Thai noodle dish. I particularly love the “glass” noodles (just like in any Thai resto) for I find it refreshing – not too heavy for me. The soup was the signature hot and sour with sprouts, herbs and spices for good health as they advertise.

But it was the unassuming Thai Iced tea I really raved about (and crave ever since). Nothing extra ordinary – just a mix of tea and milk, but the taste see-saws between the familiar and the “exotic”. Its milky orange hue makes it more appetizing plus the aroma too that I wish they had a bottomless option for that. But for only PhP35 a glass, one can make it “bottomless”.

It is another hole in the wall in the making, at least for me, for the place is situated outside the city limits though very accessible. It’s just one should make an effort dropping by even for me, as I always pass by the area and it took friends who live in the city and seldom pass by the area to point that there’s a something new in the area worth checking out.

Sen Lek Thai Noodle house is located along the highway between Iloilo City and the town of Pavia. Accessible from both Jaro Plaza and Diversion Road via Pavia Lapaz and Sta. Barbara Highway PUJs, respectively.

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 (

An Ilonggo favorite - Valenciana

Found in almost all occasions like fiesta, birthdays, reunions and others, Ilonggos really love valenciana because most if not all have grown accustomed of having it in special gatherings at home. A complete " go, grow and glow " dish because it has the carbohydrates, protein and vitamins and minerals in just one spoonful, Valenciana is really an " occasional dish ". Here's the recipe for Valenciana

Takway

The gabi (taro) is just one of those plants which is edible from "roots to tops". The most popular of which is the tuber part which is used in a variety of dishes and mostly in combination with coconut milk. Its leaves, of course, is the main ingredient of a Bicol specialty, laing . It is dried then chopped and sauteed with other ingredients including, again, coconut milk. Then there is takway . The local term for its tendrils/runner, that part which is torn between being a stem or a root for it neither grows upwards nor downwards - it grows sideways . Scraped off of its outer skin, takway is often a key ingredient in vegetable dishes like laswa and the gabi tuber with coconut milk and local snails know as bago-ngon . It is also popular when cooked adobo style with guinamos , the local bago-ong . It is very popular in the region that even big supermarkets sell takway in style - cleaned and plastic wrapped in styro with some additions to make it easier to prepare.

Batwan

Ilonggos know batwan or batuan by heart as the fruit is almost endemic to the Western Visayas. Its scientific name is Garcinia binucao, derived from the Tagalog name for the fruit, binukaw. It is a large green fruit with large seeds and its a favorite souring ingredient in most Ilonggo dishes especially KBL or kadyos, baboy, langka and the Ilonggo-style paksiw known as "pinamalhan". It is characterized by a tamed sourness compared to tamarind and kamias . The fruit is sold by pieces or kilo in wet markets and even big grocery stores. Batwan is the preferred souring ingredients for the Ilonggo favorite- KBL. The photo shows boiled batwan with skin and without skin (right) A favorite riddle when we were young - "Among the many fruits in the forest, but one (batuan) is the best. What is it?"

A native (foods) welcome in Guimaras

Even after having breakfast less than an hour that time, we couldn't say no to this lot of native delciacies that welcomed us in Guimaras. First and foremost, Guimaras best known produce is their sweet mango famous almost worldwide. And it comes with it's best partner, ibos. This brown baye-baye variety is made from toasted rice thus giving it a more disctinct flavour compared to it's more "caucasian" cousin. I like the one wrapped in banana leaves compared with the one in plastic for it gives it a more native feel. So when you're in Guimaras, be sure to check out the markets for these native delicacies that can make your trip more gastronomically satisfying.

FLAVOURS OF ILOILO

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