A traditional soup dish of Western Visayas, chicken binakol, is a simple chicken soup made special by the addition of coconut water and coconut meat. Thus the broth has sweetness into it yet still savoury because of the chicken and other ingredients. Moreso, if one uses free range chicken or Bisaya as the locals call these organic fowls. It also adds more native flavour if cooking is done the traditional way, that is all the ingredients are placed inside a cleaned bamboo, covered and placed on fire. The natural juices of the bamboo adds some more uniqueness to the dish. So, how about some chicken binakol ...
A stones throw away from the plaza of La Villa de Arevalo is an ancestral house where one can find not only good pasalubong items but also a look into the past of the district. Known as the Sinamay House , this well preserved ancestral house is an attraction not only in the outside but also what it houses inside. A collection of what the past like is housed in the two storey edifice which also acts like a museum of sorts. Sinamay is simply known as abaca by most and, here, a variety of products made from this fiber can be found. I remember watching a feature on tv wherein the owner proudly showed a framed letter signed by the late Princess of Wales, Diana, showing her appreciation of the handkerchief she was given as a gift coming from this very shop. But the attraction I am most familiar with are the chewies and crunchies made by Mama's Kitchen. Attractively packed in boxes showing their current flavours and variety, this is among the better...