FLAVOURS OF ILOILO

I passed by Deco's Pasalubong Shop to buy some piaya (I was craving for days) but I got more than what I came for. I got the chance to (finally) taste McNester Mango-Calamansi juice.I was intrigued by it when my guest from Manila were raving about this bottled juice. Though I've seen it many time at Deco's, I never had the urge to satisfy my curiosity. So I got one, no two, bottles today. More than to satisfy my curiousity, if it is good then I have another bottle, if not then I might share it - lol just kidding. It was a refreshing drink indeed! The sweetness of the mango juice was toned down by the tangy (not to mention sour) flavour of the calamansi - or vice versa, I cannot say. First you'll taste the sweet mango flavour then it becomes slightly sour as the calamansi flavour "seeps" in. It's well blended (of course you have to shake the bottle first before drinking) that neither overpowers the other. Kudos to McNester Foods for coming up with t...

It's yellow and doesn't taste like mango sauce but rather just like other ketchup. My nephew was reluctant at first but when he tasted it, he seemed to taste no difference at all. To think this was the hot and spicy variant. Made by McNester Foods from Guimaras , this ketchup is available in some grocery stores though I got this one from Deco's Pasalubong Center for PhP45.

Not vacation-leave but valenciana and laswa - two Ilonggo favorites. These two are among the staples of an Ilonggo "diet"; laswa complementing any fried or grilled ulam while valenciana appearing mostly in parties,fiestas and other special occasions. Valenciana is the local adaptation of the paella and almost a complete meal in itself. It consists of pork cutlets, pork liver, green peas, bell peppers, raisins among others then cooked and seasoned together with malagkit rice. Laswa on the other hand is an assorted vegetable stew mainly consisting of talong, kalabasa, takway, patola, okra or any vegetable available. This combo was made even special with my current addiction, a mango-calamansi juice mix!