A Delicacy is an Acquired Taste for Some Things..

{Balut}

The delicacy of balut is something I still haven't been able to try...example A. It's obvious that it's not something easy to eat...And the correct way to eat it would be to pop open the top, drink the broth, and eat the yoke surrounding the undeveloped chick. I KNOW. It's hard but I've heard it's delicious and nutritious. But hey, I think only someone who can get over the graphic quality of this food can truly enjoy this to its core.

Piggy

{Lechon}

We call it baboy...pig in the tongues of Filipino. Here, the baboy is prepared on a skewer and is then called lechon. A fact that every person should know before hosting a Filipino party is that it's not complete without your very own lechon!! If you don't have one, chances are your party won't be any fun. Joke! But really, it's an important dish. 

However, I almost barfed just looking at the roasted pig today, but I sucked in my disgust and put a piece of pork in my mouth anyway. It was good.

I like them ripe and juicy

 

{Bananas}

Bananas that is. Oh wait. No Really, bananas. They fry them and boil them for merienda or snacks here! Bananas have a completely different taste and essence in the Philippines. They're sweet and ripe with robust flavor in eat bite..unlike the unripened, green bananas that were unnaturally grown in the U.S.

I was about to pick one to eat for breakfast the other day when I noticed how many pesky fruit flies were buzzing around my banana-to-be..I was quite repulsed by it and my dad noticed my reaction. Apparently and according to him, fruit is never picked at the market or store unless it has ants and fruitflies hovering around it... because it identifies how ripe the fruit is! I boldly grabbed one of the fruits, shooing the bugs away..and yeah. It was pretty ripe. So next time there are bugs are your fruit, you should probably take a bite out of it before anyone else does!

Buko, I love you.

{Buko::Coconut}

Buko is the word for coconut! One of my favorites is to drink buko juice when I visit here. Too bad it's 4 dollars for a carton of Coconut water at the store! Otherwise, I'd be brushing my teeth with it because it's so good. But here, it's the real deal. People sell coconut water with pulp for less than a dollar per cut out of jugs at the market downtown. Sweet, tangy, coconutty, gritty, chewy, etc. 'Glass of health' is what I would call it.

Chik-chikalicious

{Lechon Manok}

You should know, that this is one of the most traditional Filipino foods to be served at dinner AND breakfast. Meat for breakfast? You bet! With rice, too.

Anywho, this chicken is cooked on a skewer and stuffed with fragrant lemongrass to really infuse the flavor in the meat. Then it's hacked into unrecognizable pieces before served..so you never know which piece you're getting {It's not that gross}! And, MAN, IS IT GOOD. My personal Cagayan De Oro favorite is Sr. Pedro..Most of these chickens are cooked at little shops or street stands and you can buy them on the spot.

Marang

{Outside and Inside: The Marang Fruit}

I had never heard of such an absurd and aromatic fruit until I smelled it halfway across the house. The marang fruit! It's almost disgustingly scented like the awful durian fruit {absolutely intoxicating fruit with spikes on the outside}...but quite fragrant as soon as you pop one in your mouth. I also liked this because it was particularly squishy like a soft squid I could swish around in my mouth. Tastes like....perfume..but. Smells like crap.

{Squash}

One thing that never EVER gets old in the Philippines is the food. Full of flavor, oil, maybe sugar..OK usually sugar, and tropical tastes..it's always delicious. I can't get over the bold colors that I've been seeing over this past couple weeks. More food to come..