In the spirit of #ThrowbackThursday and Halloween, sharing my first Halloween piece for the Sunday Inquirer Magazine ... I had so much fun writing this! And exploring our own freaky cuisine!
Killer cuisine
From the diary of Hannibal Lecter
29 October 2006
Manila, Philippines
Dear Clarice,
I began my Halloween celebration early and discovered some delightful treats around the streets of Manila. I am amazed at the creative ways by which people here eat their chicken and pig, making use of each animal part.
They eat chicken down to its feet. Rather crunchy, the grilled chicken feet is cleverly called Adidas, I gather in reference to the shoe brand. I am also told that in Binondo, where lies Chinatown, this delicacy is served steamed.
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| Inerds aka Lamang Loob |
I also fancy their efficiency with pork. They eat everything from the brain to the blood, and these dishes are considered delicacies. Pork blood is sold in the market and then chopped into cubes which the locals call Betamax, because they resemble those old video tapes we had back in the '80s. On the street, these are neatly placed on a stick to be grilled. It tastes very good, very soft, of course. Quite high in cholesterol, I gather, but very tasty.
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| Pork blood / dugo |
They also eat pig's ears, which they plainly call taenga, the local word for ear. It reminds me of how I escaped from that Memphis cell when I helped you track down Buffalo Bill.
The ears here, though, are harder to chew than fresh human ears, because they are thicker. I personally prefer that they grill it to a crunch, but the locals prefer it chewy. I am sending you some pictures.
Now I am incredibly impressed with what they do with the insides of the pig. My favorite delicacy is something they call bituka, the intestines of the pig. But they also have balun-balunan or the innards, and bato or the kidneys. These are soft and delicate in the mouth, while the raw stench of the pig carcass remains strong, just the way I like it. In this country, though, these are cleaned first, then marinated, then grilled. Of course, you know I prefer all of these in the raw. Unfortunately, Filipinos are more civilized than that.
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| Pork blood stew a.k.a. Dinuguan (from Nana Meng's Kitchen) |
I was happily surprised to find all of these available on the street in the heart of the business district, Makati.
I like the people here, Clarice.
They eagerly shared with me how much they enjoy this kind of food. I think, with enough medication to keep me from feasting on humans, I would fit right in. I suppose I can get used to dinuguan, a pork blood stew, as a decent substitute for human blood.
For afternoon tea, I ducked into a little Pampangueño restaurant that served crickets. They call these kamaru, and they are cooked in vinegar and soy sauce and served in a bowl. The method of cooking, I understand, is called inadobo. It was quite salty but I enjoyed the feel of the crickets in my mouth.
I'm behaving rather well, Clarice. I might even make it through Halloween without killing anyone.
Take care,
H.
