Filipino Food Month opens in culinary capital

The Pampangans are among the few Philippine ethnic groups who know good food, with a regard for it that goes beyond mere sustenance or how to cook it. Having developed a substantial and interesting cuisine, Pampanga has been widely considered as the culinary capital of the country. 

How apt, indeed, that the Central Luzon province should host the opening of Buwan ng Kalutong Filipino or Filipino Food Month, observed every month of April since the signing of Proclamation 469 in 2018.

This year, the National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) leads the endeavor that aims to recognize culinary tradition “as part of our cultural heritage which may be utilized to highlight a nation's character and foster national pride and sense of belonging” and to encourage that it “should be appreciated, preserved and promoted to ensure their transmission to future generations and to support the various industries, farmers and agri-communities…”

Aside from NCCA, the Department of Agriculture (DA) is also a lead agency in the celebration with support from the Department of Tourism and the private organization Philippine Culinary Heritage Movement (PCHM).

Kicking off the  month-long celebration, the NCCA mounted an opening program on 5 April in Mabalacat City, in partnership with the city’s local government and tourism office.  Cooking workshops were held at Mabalacat Elementary School, showing how to make the local bread called putung babi; kilayin, a stew of pork and pig organs; and the Pampangan version of the biko, a kind of rice cake.

These were followed by a mini food fair on the street in front of the school, with booths from several municipalities and cites of Pampanga showcasing their best dishes, desserts and drinks, most of which are traditional, including chicharon of Apalit; sapin-sapin and kapit from Arayat; mamon tostado, minasa, and other sweets from Bacolor; gulaman from Candaba; chicharon, atsarang ampalaya, labanos, nata de coco and masa podrida from Guagua; okoy and putung babi from Mabalacat City; special ensaymada and chicharon from Macabebe; plantanilla and pastillas from Magalang; lagat gandus king palapat from Masantol; pan de San Nicolas (Saint Nicholas biscuits), kalame gandus, and braso de mais from Mexico; ebun buru, chicharon, bibingka nasi and kalame from San Luis; “bibingcake” from San Simon; pituklip, marzipan and polvoron from Sasmuan; pititchan from Santa Ana; pastillas de Santa Rita, sansrival, and hopia from Santa Rita; birinuk and empanada from Santo Tomas; and ale ubi, uraro (arrowroot) cookies, suklating batirul and gisang labung of Porac.

Nearby, in front of Tabnuan: Mabalacat City Cultural Center, the old municipal hall transformed into a hub for culture and the arts, the program featured speeches and performances starting with the welcome remarks by Pampanga governor Dennis G. Pineda, read by Pampanga first district board member Cherry Manalo. Gracing the stage to deliver their messages were NCCA chairman Victorino Mapa Manalo; Shereen Gail Yu-Pamintuan, DOT Undersecretary for Administration and Finance; and Cheryl Marie Natividad-Caballero, DA Undersecretary for High-Value Crops, who all emphasized that food is important to Filipino culture and identity and how it tells stories, and exhorted everyone to praise Filipino food. This year’s theme, “Kalutong Filipino, Lakas ng Kabataang Makabago” (Filipino Cuisine, Strength of the Modern Youth), was also reiterated, harping on the idea of youth as hope and future and underscoring their role in promulgating and as receiver of culinary heritage.

Moreover, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr. and Senator Loren Legarda, member of the NCCA Board of Commissioners, sent their prerecorded video message, while Jose Antonio Miguel “Jam” Melchor, chef and president of PCHM, also delivered a speech, revealing how he pushed for the institutionalization of Filipino Food Month.

Speeches were accompanied by performances from Tanghalang Bagong Sibol Theater and Dance Company from Malabon City, which danced to the new theme song of the celebration, “Kalutong Filipino,” sung by Bayang Barrios, and performed contemporary dance piece, “Salamat sa Biyaya ng Dagat;” Tanglaw Filipiniana, which performed the banga salidsid or pot dance of the Kalinga people, pandanggo sa ilaw and binasuan; Male Ensemble Philippines; Sinukwan Kapampangan, which performed “Pyesta Quing Dulang;” Jobert Lachica; Pampanga Provincial Brass Band, which provided fiesta tunes for the occasion; and pop girl group Bini.

The dinner became itself a showcase and undoubtably the highlight of the event. The buffet offered the best dishes around the province including adobong paro from Mexico; arubong ema (a crab dish) from Sasmuan; puklo from Guagua; pindang damulag and pako (fern fiddleheads) salad from San Femando City; kalderetang bibi (duck stew) from Arayat; birinuk from Santo Tomas; fried itik (duck) from Candaba; kubang itik from Masantol; rellenung ema (stuffed crab) from Macabebe; bringhe (a sticky rice dish) from Mabalacat City; lelut ulang (rice and crayfish porridge) from San Luis; asadong dila from Santa Rita; asadong matwa with atchara from San Simon; kilayin from Santa Ana; ambulang caldesadung dila from Bacolor; betute from Magalang; buldit silyo from Minalin; puto kutsinta from Apalit; and sabo bule, nasi tibok-tibok and sago't gulaman from Floridablanca.

These dishes were gathered together, styled and plated, for the “Hapag,” literally meaning “table spread,” which was unveiled before the dinner, an opulent glimpse of Pampangan cuisine. 

The menu of events for the rest of the month promises to be also rich, and it includes KainCon, a hybrid academic research conference from 15 to 17 April at Far Eastern University in Manila; the Hapag ng Pamana Philippine Food Festival with legs in Luzon (Legazpi, Albay, 22 to 23 April), the Visayas (San Jose de Buenavista, Antique, 28 to 30), and Mindanao (Bongao, Tawi-Tawi, 13 to 15 April); Higara: A Night of Filipino Culture, a six-hands dinner featuring Filipino chefs Waya Araos-Wijangco, Rhea Castro Sycip, and Gel Salonga-Datu; events in Iloilo City, Iloilo, the newly declared City of Gastronomy in the UNESCO Creative Cities Network, and in Roxas City, Capiz; and Ang Sarap: Philippine Food Festival at the SM Megatrade Hall of SM Megamall in Mandaluyong City from 26 to 28 April.