ABOUT FILIPINO FOOD

In the Philippines, polvoron refers to a soft crumbly treat whose ingredients are mainly powdered milk, butter and toasted flour. They are molded into oval or round shapes.

Photo by MeNi C.

Chichacorn is a semi-popped style of cornick that uses glutinous corn, which is treated with lime before frying. The name is a combination of the words chicharon (crispy pork rinds) and corn.

Bibingka is a flat but thick yellow rice cake that was once a mainstay only during the “cold” months of the Christmas season in the Philippines. It is traditionally cooked (“baked”) in a mold lined with banana leaves and then served with a topping of grated coconut.

Featured photo courtesy of Mayette Garcia.

A popular kakanin (rice delicacy) during the Christmas holidays, puto bumbong is purple-colored rice steamed in bamboo tubes and served with grated coconut and brown sugar.

Photo of Binatog by Mildred Cruz.

Binatog is simply boiled corn kernels! It’s a popular Filipino snack that you can also buy at many roadside stalls in the Philippines.

Ube Halaya by Aizel_77.

Also called halayang ube, this is a jam made from the Philippines’ favorite root crop, the purple yam locally called ube.

“Pan de Baboy” literally means “Bread of Pig.” Pan is the Spanish word for “bread” while Baboy is Tagalog for “pig.” In the featured photo above, the bread is in the shape of a lechon or roasted pig.

Goldilocks is a Philippine bakeshop chain that manufactures and packages different flavors of pulburon. The Filipino word comes from the Spanish polvoron. Goldilocks calls it “shortbread cookies.” Goldilocks Canada has referred to polvoron as “Manila shortbread,” describing it as a “sweet mixture of toasted flour, milk, butter and sugar, that is then molded.”

Turón is banana wrapped like a spring roll and deep fried with brown sugar. The banana often used is the fat saba variety. Jackfruit is sometimes included in the filling for a sweeter flavor.

Cookies from the Philippines!