Celebrity chef, owner and manager of Bistro 75 and actor Jose Sarosola is acutely aware of the Filipino Food Month, celebrated every April.

Also known as “Buwan ng Kalutong Pilipino,” it is a joint effort by the National Commission for Culture and the Arts, Department of Agriculture, Department of Tourism and the Philippine Culinary Heritage Movement. The guiding theme for this eighth-year celebration is “Connected by taste, Filipino food in the flavors of ASEAN.”

And before we even proclaim what is the national dish and why a Filipino fast food chain’s fried chicken is gaining prominence in some American states and elsewhere, we must acknowledge that Filipino food is truly flavorful, satisfying, satiating and always cooked with a lot of love and best shared with loved ones.

Chef Jose Sarasola’s thoughts and tastes

“You know, it is a good thing that we celebrate it,” chef Sarasola said. “The emphasis it places on our culinary heritage is spot-on,” adding that our farmers and fishermen also get the support they need. “You know, our thanks to our farmers and fishermen because their ambag (contribution) to society is massive.”

What needs to be highlighted during the Food Month, said chef Sarasola, is the “freshness of our ingredients…along with our diverse and flavor-balanced cuisines that blends Spanish, Chinese and American influences.”

Speaking of diverse, Sarasola enumerated his favorite comfort food: “There are so many, but the ones I really like are tinolang manok, sinigang, nilagang baka, pancit, kare-kare, tortang talong and lumpia.”

“I know that unofficially, many opine that adobo is the national dish and coming close to it is sinigang,” answered the celebrity chef when asked what must be proclaimed as the Philippine national dish. “Honestly, I will not change anything because we are known for the two dishes and they are already recognized around the world. However, we have so many dishes and proclaiming one is not that easy. We have lechon, sisig, chicken inasal, and there are also so many dishes in the Visayas and Mindanao that are truly deserving of national recognition.”

Of he were to prepare a luncheon for our ASEAN brothers, what will he prepare? Chef Sarasola replied: “I would prepare dishes using one of our main products, which is seafood. I would highlight our fish, especially by preparing kilawin sa gata. For a starter, I might use clams, mussels or baked oysters. I could also serve a soup like our classic sinigang using local fish. For the main dish, I would prepare lapu-lapu, either steamed with sauce, baked or grilled, but without overpowering ingredients so that the freshness of the fish can still be tasted.”