A rustic lunch with a view at Camiña Balay nga Kawayan in Guimaras

Our very gracious hosts a few Sundays ago were the Camiñas - Sir Gerard and Ms. Luth who welcomed us to their home in Guimaras - the Balay nga Kawayan. The power couple also owns the among the top tourist destinations in Iloilo now, the Camiña Balay nga Bato famous for its delectable tsokolate.

The Camiña Balay nga Kawayan is around 17 kilometers from the Jordan Wharf and set amidst the sprawling Springbloom Farm. From the abode, guests see a vast pineapple plantation nicknamed Pineapple Ridge (thanks Sir Eugene) on one side and a native papaya orchard down below. The pineapples will be ready for harvest by November and the papayas were all bearing fruit – so many that it weighs down the tree.

The house overlooks Lawi Bay and offers a breathtaking view anytime of the day. It is also almost al fresco and the air smells sweet because of the produce around.

But guests can go further and find a viewdeck which gives a closer look at the bay, wider view of the farm and a good look at the Balay nga Kawayan from afar.

But i had to go back to the house which has a wide kitchen for I smell something was being broiled. And it was the specialty of the house - Bino-ug nga Baboy. It is basically pork that has been seasoned only with salt and subjected to high heat that the outside cooks faster thus a crisp skin while the inside remains moist. Bino-ug is a Kiniray-a term for "sinugba" or "ihaw".

Our side dish was a simple Kamote Salad - just a mix of steamed kamote tops, onions and vinegar which created a delightful blend of flavours and texture.

We also had this Dilis Mix made of a smaller variety of balingon (I forgot the specific term) which was perfectly fried. Even in ints simplest form it was bursting with delicious flavour and taste.

Soup was native chicken tinola with labog - a local green vegetable which has hints of sourness into it.

And finally, as Guimaras is known as the Island that Fits your Taste, we had Guimaras mangoes for dessert and a whole of the farm's produce to cap off one delightful Sunday lunch that ended on something that sounded like "We'll be back for more"!

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

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 por...

Easy Century Tuna Recipes

If you're looking for simple, easy and delicious Century Tuna recipes online, congratulations, you've found it right here! How about spicy tuna sisig or tuna sinigang ? Maybe stir fried tuna with pickles or just yang chow fried rice . I love Century Tuna from its flakes in oil variety, the spicier the better, but when I discovered the versatility of its solid variant, it became an obsession. At first I was just into the usual tested recipes; pasta and sandwich filling, but then it got simpler – I just eat it straight from the can! Usually with a piece of bread or an apple. I just add a few drops of vinegar to spice it up a bit. Then came the experiments. Yup I got tired of that habit that one day, I decided to test my skills in the kitchen. Serendipity, you might call it yet most of them turned into good recipes that I have shared now and then. Satisfying my Palabok cravings had me experiment on this recipe on the spot. With Century Tuna in lieu of the us...

Bitso-bitso

What is bitso-bitso ? Also spelled/called bichu-bichu or bitsu-bitsu , this native delicacy is made with fried rice flour dough then coated with coconut cream and muscovado sugar syrup. Its like a combination of making palitaw and banacue . The rice flour based "dough" is usually twisted and deep fried. Then it is placed/cooked in a mix of muscovado sugar then dried out. The sugar then "re-crystallize" making a crisp coating for the fried rice flour. The result is a local delicacy that crisp and sweet in the outside yet chewy inside. Cooking bitso-bitso is done many different ways and with different mixes of ingredients. These particular ones in Santa Barbara, Iloilo are still crisp even after being exposed - they are peddled every afternoon around town for 5 pesos a piece. I particularly like the fact that the sugar coating crumbles in every bite, though messy at times, but its alway a treat to have these bitso-bitso . ...

Budyawi

Bujawi (budjawi, budyawi) is what Ilonggos refer to the fruit of the buri or century palm tree . Abundant in many parts of the province of Iloilo, the buri has many many uses from the leaves to its trunk. It produces a fermented drink (tuba), alcohol, vinegar, syrup, and sugar. The trunk yields large quantities of starch. The bud (ubod) is used for salad or as a vegetable. The kernels of the young fruits are edible and are made into a sweetmeats. The mature seeds are used for beads? (rosaries) and buttons. The petiole yields so-called buntal fiber of which, the famous Baliuag and Lucban hats are made, or which, when crudely extracted, is sometimes twisted into rope. Mature leaf is used for covering tobacco bales, rarely as a thatch for houses, while the ribs are used for making brooms. From the unopened leaf is obtained a very fine fiber, corresponding to raffia fiber, which is utilized in making cloth, fancy articles, and as string. Fibers ...

FLAVOURS OF ILOILO

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