Abra Miki now available in Metro Manila

Abra Miki is a Filipino noodle soup dish made of miki noodles cooked in a rich pork broth. Its orange color comes from annatto seeds (atsuete). To make it more special and flavorful, a hard boiled egg, shredded pork and bits of chicharon are added to the soup. In contrast to the Ilocos Miki, Abra Miki's broth is not as thick as that of Ilocos Miki. Abra Miki's broth is also richer in flavor.

Local Delicacies in Sultan Kudarat

The province of Sultan Kudarat is a melting pot of cultures and ethnicity and this diversity is also reflected in the cuisine of the province. The Maguindanaos constitute the local Muslim population of Sultan Kudarat and they bring with them their rich culinary tradition.

Eurobake's Old Fashioned Ensaymada Malolos of Bulacan

Malolos, Bulacan is considered as home of one of the best ensaymadas in the Philippines. The Ensaymada Malolos is typically darker in color. It is topped with butter and cheese plus a slice of salted duck egg.

Eurobake's Original Inipit of Malolos, Bulacan

Inipit is a famous Bulaqueño delicacy which originated in Malolos, Bulacan. It was the family-owned bakery, Eurobake, which created and introduced this sweet pastry. Other bakeries have imitated this product but Eurobake's original inipit remains to the favorite among Bulaqueños.

Bistro Maloleño Restaurant in Malolos, Bulacan

The city of Malolos is definitely the number one destination for those who wish to sample authentic Bulaqueno dishes. Malolos is rich in history, but unknown to many Filipinos and even to the Bulaquenos, the city is also rich in culinary heritage. Such heritage is now being preserved and reintroduced by Bistro Maloleño Events Place & Restaurant.

Updated Price List of Good Shepherd Products (as of December 2015)

A trip to Baguio City will never be complete without bringing home Ube Jam, Strawberry Jam or Peanut Brittle from Good Shepherd. Throughout the years, these remains to be the top choice of pasalubong from the City of Pines.

Read also:

 ● 15 Must-Try Baguio Restaurants this 2015

Bicol's Best Toasted Siopao now available in Pasig City

Bicol's Best Toasted Siopao

Here's great news to many Bicolanos in Pasig City and neighboring cities in Metro Manila. 3N Bakery opened its second branch in Pasig City last July 8, 2013 right at the busy Pasig Rotonda area. Their specialty is no other than the famous Bicolano delicacy, the toasted siopao.

Empanada Festival 2013

In celebration of its sixth City Charter Day on June 23, 2012, the City of Batac is holding the Empanada Festival 2013 showcasing its number one product, the Batac Empanada. Highlight of festivities is the Grand Parade happening in the afternoon of June 23, 2012. See photos from Empanada Festival 2012.


Adobong Pato for Lunch in Cabarroguis, Quirino

Adobo is a popular Filipino dish, typically cooked with pork or chicken marinated and simmered in vinegar, soy sauce, ginger and black peppers. Adobo may also be cocked with vegetables, tofu or hard boiled eggs.

A restaurant in the town of Cabarroguis, Quirino Province is known for its specialty adobo dish. Palm Restaurant takes pride in its adobong pato, an adobo dish cooked with white duck meat. Unlike most duck dishes which duck meat is usually tough, the duck meat in Palm Restuarant's adobong pato is rather tender.

Carmelado of Milagros, Masbate

Carmelado is a milk candy traditionally made of carabao's milk and sugar. It is Masbate's version of pastillas de leche, but are more solid. Until recently, this delicacy has been recognized as one of the OTOP or One Town, One Product of the province of Masbate, with majority of its producers based in the town of Milagros.

It's a childhood favorite among Masbateños, says Aurora Santiago-Cortez (Ate Auring), a local entrepreneur and producer of carmelado accredited by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). We asked her why they use carabao milk when Masbate has thousands of cows. Ate Auring told us that carabao milk is thicker and richer in flavor. She added, we do mix carabao milk with a small portion of cow milk which we buy from Fazenda da Esperança, a self-sustaining rehabilitation center for alcohol and drug dependents located in Milagros. We were really inspired by how Ate Auring, with her small household business, found a way to sustain her family's livelihood and contribute to the society.

Ate Auring has OTOP stalls located at Masbate Airport parking area and at the Masbate Seaport. Each pack contains 24 pieces of carmelado candies and sells for PHP100.00 per pack. Ate Auring also accepts orders from outside Masbate. You can contact Ate Auring for details on shipping.

Ate Auring and her OTOP Cariton at Masbate Airport

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Auring's Special Carmelado
PD Road, Bacolod, Milagros, Masbate
Contact Nos.: 09266454157 / 09184696416

One Town, One Product (OTOP) is a program of the Philippine Government through the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to encourage entrepreneurship aimed at providing livelihood and employment to Filipinos. It showcases products made of indigenous raw materials crafted by local workers, craftsmen and artists. The OTOP is also a key instrument in promoting tourism in the country. We at Pinas Muna advocate the OTOP program and through our blog, we aim to introduce you to the many Filipino-made products and urge you to support Filipino businesses.

Sun-Dried Beef Tapa of Masbate City

Dubbed as the Rodeo Capital of the Philippines, Masbate is the major livestock breeding center of the country producing top quality cattle. Beef from Masbate is said to be the tastiest in the country because cattle in the province is fed only with grass. In addition, Masbatenos take pride in their beef products that are certified free from Foot & Mouth Disease (FMD).

It is no surprise that Mr. Mariano Natural (Kuya Nomer), a local entrepreneur, started a processed beef production business banking on the popularity of the quality of Masbate's cattle. The product was developed through the assistance of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), and his Nomer's Beef Tapa product was later on recognized as the OTOP or One Town, One Product of Masbate City.

Aside from its excellent taste, what's equally amazing about this tapa is that it only takes 2-5 seconds to cook. The process starts with marinading the meat for 24 hours. The following day, they are set to dry under the sun the whole day. They are then cut into strips and are packed in vacuum-sealed plastic packaging.

Here are the steps for cooking Nomer's Beef Tapa:

Step 1: remove the package from the freezer and let it thaw in room temperature

Step 2: heat cooking oil in frying pan

Step 3: fry the beef tapa for 2-5 seconds or until all are coated with oil

Step 4: serve and enjoy

Another way to cook this tapa is to mix the tapa cuts as an ingredient to fried rice. Start by sauteing garlic in oil, then add the steamed rice. Add seasoning. Add the tapa cuts and continue cooking for 2-3 minutes over low fire.

Kuya Nomer has a stall located at the Masbate Airport parking area. Each 125g-pack is sold at PHP100.00. Since they are vacuum-sealed, the airlines allow these to be place inside carry-on luggages. Keep the beef tapa frozen to extend its shelf life.

Kuya Nomer can also ship outside Masbate. Each 125g-pack costs PHP125.00 which already includes shipping. A 50% downpayment is required prior to the delivery, with the remaining balance payable upon receipt of the delivery. Contact Kuya Nomer for more details.

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Nomer's Beef Tapa
Masbate Meat Processing
Cagba, Masbate City
Contact Numbers: 0919-5195813 / 0919-8525443

One Town, One Product (OTOP) is a program of the Philippine Government through the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to encourage entrepreneurship aimed at providing livelihood and employment to Filipinos. It showcases products made of indigenous raw materials crafted by local workers, craftsmen and artists. The OTOP is also a key instrument in promoting tourism in the country. We at Pinas Muna advocate the OTOP program and through our blog, we aim to introduce you to the many Filipino-made products and urge you to support Filipino businesses.

Introduction to Maranao Cuisine

Maranao Cuisine features a unique blend of flavors and spices setting it apart from other Philippine cuisines. It traces its origin from the indigenous people inhabiting the lands around Lake Lanao in the island of Mindanao. Their history of trade and migration adds to the rich flavor of their cooking. Majority of Maranao people are Muslims thus their cuisine is governed by the Halal diet law.

Have a Taste of Authentic Tausug Cuisine in Metro Manila

Tausug Cuisine is the cuisine of the Tausug people of the Sulu Archipelago, encompassing the provinces of Sulu, Basilan, Tawi-Tawi and the southern tip of the Zamboanga Peninsula and Palawan. Due to its proximity to Malaysia and not being effectively occupied by the Spaniards, Tausug Cuisine has maintained its Malay origins characterized by the heavy use of spices, chili and coconut milk. Because the great majority of the Tausug people are Muslims, Tausug Cuisine strictly follows the Islamic Halal dietary law. Below are selected dishes that best represent Tausug Cuisine.

Bangsi Production in Maitum, Sarangani

On our way to the Maitum Pawikan Conservation and Protection Center, we passed through a coastal community in Barangay Old Poblacion where the main livelihood of its people is the production of sundried marinated flying fish, or locally called bangsi. Bangsi is in fact the One Town One Product (OTOP) of the whole town of Maitum.

A Bountiful Breakfast in Masaganang Maitum

We started day-2 of SoCCSkSarGen Experience Tour 4.0 (SEx Tour 4.0) with a healthy breakfast at Cresing's Food Products, our host in the town of Maitum in the province of Sarangani. We were served a salad of edible fern (pako) and tomatoes, three variants of organically grown rice (brown, red and black rice), and fried marinated flying fish or locally called bangsi.

Dipolog City: Cusina de Binoys | Montaño Spanish Style Sardines

DIPOLOG CITY, Zamboanga del Norte - After a tiring day of touring around Dipolog City, we went back to Antonio's Pension House to freshen up and get ready for dinner.

Cusina de Binoys is located on the roof deck level of Antonio's Pension House. They serve classic Filipino dishes and specializes in set meals for a couple of a group. They also have a live band performing acoustic music every Friday and Saturday night.

Browsing through the menu, one dish in the breakfast section caught our eye. Sar-si-log, Montaño Spanish Style Sardines with rice and sunny side up egg. Fortunately, Cusina de Binoys serves all-day breakfast. Dipolog's bottled Spanish style sardines is definitely the best.

Bottled sardines is a million peso industry in Dipolog City which earned the city its nickname Bottled Sardines Capital of the Philippines.

Cusina de Binoys
Antonio's Pension House
Corner General Luna and Martinez Streets
Dipolog City, Zamboanga del Norte
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Dipolog City: Ginanggang for Afternoon Merienda

DIPOLOG CITY, Zamboanga del Norte - If in Manila we have the banana cue (fried saba banana coated with caramelized sugar), in Mindanao they have the ginanggang. The saba bananas are pealed and grilled on stick over charcoal. When browned, the bananas are then brushed with margarine and sprinkled with sugar.

The picture above is taken along Dipolog Sunset Boulevard, near the Santa Cruz Marker. For only Php5.00,  you get two large-size ginanggang on a stick.

Davao City: Puto Maya & Sikwate for Breakfast

DAVAO CITY, Davao del Sur - Puto Maya is a rice cake very popular in the Visayas Region and in Visayan-speaking areas of Mindanao, including Davao Region. It is one of the favorite comfort food of Davaoeños for breakfast that is best paired with Sikwate (hot chocolate drink). Just the mention of the word puto maya will bring nostalgia to many.

For Manileños like us, the word puto maya only forms part of the childhood expression Gaya-gaya Puto-Maya (English: Copycat!). The word puto-maya does not actually add meaning to the expression, rather it is just added to the end to rhyme with Gaya-gaya.

To finally give meaning to the word, we went to Bankrehan Public Market in Davao City to try puto maya. We found a carinderia near the fruit section that serves this delicacy.

The puto maya was served by scooping a portion using a saucer and molding it into a disk using another saucer. Each serving costs Php8.00. Compared to similar rice cakes such as suman, biko and bud-bod, puto maya has a distinct gingery taste. It may be eaten plain or may be sprinkled with sugar.

steps in preparing sikwate

Sikwate is then prepared fresh as you order. Tablea is boiled in a pot and mixed using a batirol (a wooden whisk). Milk is then poured into the cup (optional) and followed by the freshly made hot chocolate mixture. You can add sugar to the drink depending on your taste. A cup of sikwate costs Php15.00, add Php3.00 to have milk with your sikwate.

Halfway through our cup of sikwate, more and more locals arrived and sat at the carinderia and ordered puto maya & sikwate. We must have brought luck to the store :-)

First Time to Eat Durian in Tagum City

For countless times already, friends and family in Manila have offered us to try the durian they brought home from a vacation in Davao region. We constantly declined such offers, not because we weren't interested, but because we were reserving the experience of eating durian for the first time when we would finally get to visit Davao.

Sweet-Chili Soft-Shell Crab at Punong Restaurant, Tagum City

You've never been to Punong Restaurant if you haven't tried their specialty, soft-shell crab. These crabs are basically regular crabs which have molted their outgrown shell, leaving the crustacean with a new softer shell. Hardening of the new shell is then retarded to keep it soft. These crabs are then cooked and eaten whole, including the shell. From the restaurant's menu, you will see the different options you can have the crabs cooked. We chose the sweet-chili version.