FLAVOURS OF ILOILO

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 .

Bangus  or milkfish is one of the most abundant and versatile fishes around. It can be cooked in so many way - sinugba, pinirito, sinigang, paksiw and relyeno, among others. One of the easiest yet delectable is cooking it paksiw Ilonggo-style called pinamalhan . It rooted from the Hiligaynon word " mala" meaning dry. Here's a simple recipe for Pinamalhan nga Bangus.

There are many ways of cooking adobo - be it pork, chicken or vegetables. And the recipes varies from region to region and even household to household. One of the variation of this favorite Pinoy recipe is  using achuete (annatto) to give a distinct flavour, color and aroma making it more visually appealing and of course more delicious. Here's a recipe for Pork Adobo with Achuete and one can tweak this recipe to suit his own taste and/or with the availability of ingredients especially those with limited sources. First, marinate the pork cubes in vinegar, atchuete mix (achuete powder, water and cooking oil), garlic, soy sauce (just a little bit), laurel leaves, pepper corn and salt . Set aside for at least an hour In a pan, sauté the garlic, onions and ginger then add pork (separated from the marinade and set aside) and stir-fry until light brown. In you're making a big recipe, try to fry the pork in batches to ensure uniform frying/browni

Non-Ilonggos would only be familiar with bangrus which is how the Ilonggos call bangus or milkfish. So how about linagpang and guinamos ? Guinamos is the local bago-ong which is made from small shrimps pounded into a paste and is sold in mounds in the local market. It is used the same way bago-ong - as a flavor enhancer, as a dip, as a side dish (to kare-kare) and goes well with green mangoes too! Linagpang meanwhile is basically a soup with almost all of the ingredient are broiled. It's a "peasant dish" they say since it is very simple and easy to make. It has rustic origins as it is attributed to how the farmers would come home tired from the days work and all they'll do is to broil the ingredients, flake and slice them, add broth then season it with salt, among others. Fish and poultry are often the most popular meats for linagpang as they can be conveniently cooked. The process slightly differs when using ch

Got a 20-piece pack of chicken drumsticks from S&R Iloilo and already marinated half of it in barbecue marinade... then I changed my mind. Thus the recipe is " Adobo ala Confucius" .  Aside from the BBQ marinade which was the spicy variant, I only added some black pepper so it was nothing fancy. It was during the cooking portion, that I began to "fuse and confuse" the basic adobo recipe.  I boiled the chicken drumsticks in its marinade and vinegar adding some bay leaves and peppercorn. I added some left over chicken boullion cubes (and some water) to enhance the chicken flavor. The resulting sauce didn't have the sourness I wanted but instead of adding more vinegar, I added some tamarind powder mix and this one had the additional gabi (yam) for a thicker soup base. I then removed the sauce and fried the chicken to brown it more. I also sauteed in in garlic to give it more flavor. Finally, I added the

Googling for Pancit Efuven showed only a handful of pages and most links were actually some of my own forum posts and pictures.  PCIJ’s online article said this noodle was actually named from the maker but it had no supporting information actually also made me hunger for more, info that is. My familiarity with this noodle started on the fact that it had become one of the staple noodle dish prepared at home, whether on special occasion or just any given Sunday lunch.  I can only assume that we (family members) got curious about this noodle variety that we tried to use it instead of the usual pancit canton, bihon or sotanghon. Or we might also have heard others talked about it or ate in some restaurants serving this pancit. It has no special ingredients, just plain and simple noodle. Some say it’s the local version of linguine, others a much cleaner pancit canton.  It doesn’t really matter but for me it does taste like a cross between a pancit and pasta,

Choriso or longganisa is a staple in any market all throughout Iloilo. Though not as popular or touristy like that of Vigan or Lucban, the longganisa in Iloilo are just those standard reddish, sweet and fatty longganisas.  Artist, restaurateur, "handy chef" and author (among others) Claude Tayag , in his book, Linamnam , describes it as " overly sweet, artificially colored and comes in four sizes plus it is very similar to Cebu's and Tagbilaran in taste ". That's the choriso I (and maybe you) have grown up with. Before, we just usually boil it in water then when dried, we add oil to fry it.  But now, instead of water, I use vinegar, lots of it then when almost dried up, I then add oil.  It's because I discovered how delicious longganisa is dipped in vinegar especially those tostado ones. So to have them taste like that even without dipping, that's what I am doing now. But I always end up dipping it in vinegar ...