A journey of subtle flavors

MANILA, Philippines – There are nuances of food and flavors that only Filipino words can accurately describe.

Manibalang is a term for a mango that’s unripe but pleasurable to eat. It is firm to the touch, yellow-green in color and sweet-sour in taste. The feeling on the tongue when eating kamote (sweet potato), ube or chestnut is called malabó.

“Philippine culinary heritage has a history of sensing subtleties reflecting flavor,” says Felice Sta. Maria, culinary historian and author of The Governor-General’s Kitchen (Anvil, 2006). Records of Francisco Gainza in 1754 showed “multi-sensorial awareness” on the ripeness of fruits: “Hanachanac for a fruit that is very soft or swollen that when touched by the hand it gets dented or softens.”

The country’s abundance in flora and fauna makes our cuisine naturally rich in diverse flavors. Our dishes reflect the Filipinos’ understanding of our surroundings and imaginative explorations into nature, according to the late Doreen Fernandez and Edilberto Alegre in their book, Sarap 6.

“In field and forest too, we have found all the shades, degrees and varieties of tartness to add piquancy to our sinigang,” added Fernandez and Alegre, referring to the different souring fruits we use for our favorite soup: sampaloc (tamarind), bayabas (guava), batwan (garciniamorella), young tamarind leaves, kamias, alibangbang leaves or combinations of these.

With an array of dishes served at their booth, a sampling of the new all-natural selection and exhibit of rare and seasonal fruits for taste and texture appreciation, Mama Sita’s gave their Filipino and foreign guests an adventure for the palate and senses, highlighting various flavor subtleties Filipinos know by heart.

Mama Sita’s was honored to be one of the groups that invited by the Department of Agriculture to serve food at Madrid Fusion Manila’s Regional Lunches for congress delegates and the press.

The Regional Lunches were themed: Day 1 was all about “Luzon” food and the different  “Panlasa” such as maalat, maasim, matamis, malinamnam, mapait. Mama Sita’s assignment was malinamnam and it was a great opportunity to present their heirloom recipe of palabok, which is very tasty because of the varied tastes and textures from the noodles, sauce and garnishings.

Mama Sita’s Pansit Palabok Noodle Bar featured thin rice noodles with a thick savory sauce enriched with pork broth. The selection of toppings was exciting as guests can choose and garnish on their own: small pieces of tinapa (smoked fish), squid adobo, hard-boiled egg, pechay, shrimps, chicharon (pork cracklings), kamias and calamansi. Malinamnam, indeed!

Day 2 highlighted Visayas food and almusal (breakfast). Mama Sita’s featured our favorite adobo in two ways: pork adobo and vegetarian adobong pusong saging (heart of banana), using their new all-natural Adobo Simmer Sauce that comes in a jar.

Day 3 was all about Mindanao and street food. Perhaps not everybody knows that Mama Sita’s Barbecue Marinade is an original heirloom recipe. But everybody loved the different barbecue and street food preparations at Mama Sita’s Barbecue Bar. They prepared pork and pork ear barbecue, and chicken inasal. These grilled delights were paired with a selection of fresh fruits as mangga at papaya na manibalang and singkamas on a stick dipped in spiced vinegars.

The three days were indeed a delectable journey through the different subtle flavors and delicious tastes of Philippine cuisine. Ang sarap!