Nora’s Eatery: A superstar carinderia

I'm no stranger to carinderias and carinderia food but if there’s one that got my utmost attention, it’s got to be Nora’s Eatery beside the Iloilo Post Office at the former customs building (Aduana). There are many rows of carinderias over the place but as the namesake of a superstar, it stood above the rest.

An impromptu lunch we all agreed to meet at the place where most people from this part of the city converge during lunchtime.

If one can only see the crowd in the area, not only inside Nora’s, you’d wonder why people from all walks of life – from the residents to the office workers in the area to the politicians (we saw a member of the Tupas clan that time having lunch).

And it seems very casual for the people running the carinderia to see this convergence at this time as they almost all the people they serve even to what their favorites are. If I was one of them, I’m sure I’ll be served with Dinugu-an which is the timpla I like and prefer – black and sour. I don’t usually care, what’s the meat part whether the usual pork meat and fat or the entrails as long as it is black and sour then I’ll have it anytime – extra rice please!

Their tortang talong as simple as it may seem was also good though almost all tortang talong taste like that, a little drizzle of the sawsawan I concocted, it was like heaven. Just like the grilled pork belly, tastes like the usual but for the hungry it would taste very delicious.

We also had grilled pantat and a vegetable medley of calubay, togue and patola completing our menu. Along with 5 servings of rice, 2 liters of soda (and a broken glass) our bill totaled around PhP550. – which is not the typical carinderia price as I found out then.

But the whole experience is priceless for me as a food blogger since breaks my usual food reviews of fancy restaurants and their offering offerings as well other food items. As Ilonggos have a rich heritage and culture to be proud of, our gastronomy and the businesses that built within them also have stories to tell which makes (food) blogging a lot more meaningful for me which I can share and be proud of as my little contribution to the tourism industry of Iloilo City and beyond …

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.

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 usu

An Ilonggo favorite - Suman Latik

Suman Latik is one of my favorite native delicacies - plain suman/ibos topped with sweetened coconut strips or bukayo . Most of the time those sold in the markets have this two (suman and bukayo) already in one wrap and all you have to to is devour it. But most of the time, the bukayo portion is bitin that I wish there's more. So why not make our own suman latik so you can have all the suman we want with all the bukayo toppings we desire! Here's a simple recipe for Suman Latik

FLAVOURS OF ILOILO

Search This Blog