ILOILO FOOD TRIP

I just love fishballs! I can finish 10 sticks of this deliciously appetizing meryenda or even more. The combination of the crispy fried balls with the savory sauce (make mine hot!) makes every bite a burst of exciting flavors that I rave and crave for. My fave fish ball stand is Joann's Special Fishballs at Molo Plaza and they are second to none! Here's a simple recipe for Fish Balls which could almost "mimic" the fishballs Joann's sell, in some ways.

One of the simplest breakfast (all around) staple is sauteed canned sardines with miswa . It is an easy to cook recipe with plain ginisang sardinas  and miswa but you can add vegetables and tweak the recipe as I always do. Extra rice, please! Here's a simple yet special recipe for Ginisang Sardinas with Miswa

Inubaran  basically means the dish is cooked with ubad . No, it's not a typo error, it is really ubad not ubod  - different from but practically the same -  ubod is the pith or the center of a coconut tree while ubad is the pith of a banana tree. To make this dish, one has to prepare an ubad for cooking - first thinly slice, around half a centimeter, the cleaned pith (must be very white and sized like a fluorescent lamp to be sure of the quality.) . Then using a barbecue stick, remove web like fibers "interconnecting" these slices (these are actually hardened banana sap). When finished you can crush is into smaller pieces and add to your cooking. Here's a recipe for Inubaran na Manok

Sambag (tamarind) candy is an acquired taste as it is a combination of "screaming" sweet and sour flavours in just one bite. Another version of this well-loved sambag candy is one shaped into balls and rolled in sugar. Sweet potato or kamote is used as extender at the same time giving it body to form into balls.  Here's the recipe for Sambag Balls Candy