Iloilo, being the economic center of Region VI and with their annual festival, “Dinagyang” being dubbed as the “Queen of all Festivals” in the Philippines, has been a very attractive tourist spot in the country. Not only is it known for its scenic landscapes, fine beaches, and magnificent churches, but also for its promising local cuisines. A trip to the city won’t be complete without tasting the famous Batchoy, and indulging in seafood, and sweet snacks. Here, we take three local delicacies that are the well celebrated not only in the city, but also all-over the country.
Batchoy is probably more famous than the city itself. Talks had it that it was first concocted in 1932 as a simple noodle soup and was later on innovated and served to the public with its new name in 1945. In a special broth, a noodle called, “miki” is added, topped commonly with pork innards (mostly of liver, spleen, kidney, and heart) and beef loin then garnished with leeks, sautéed garlic, pork crackling crumbs, and often times, fresh raw egg.
Today, Batchoy is served from sophisticated restaurants to simple turo-turo’s all over the city. You can even opt to have miswa or bihon instead of the traditional miki or in some restaurants, have chicken meat as toppings instead of beef loin. Despite some modernized options in the famous noodle’s ingredients, its authentic taste still remains to please the public.
PHOTO CREDIT: wikipedia
CHICKEN INASAL
Even with a number of indulging seafood dishes that the city can offer, Chicken Inasal (barbecued chicken) still graces the public for being more affordable and easily available. Now being a famous item in restaurants nationwide, chicken inasal is still widely identified as an Ilonggo dish. With the Filipinos being a fan of all things grilled from the humble isaw (chicken intestines) to the more elegant “sate babe” (grilled pork dashed with a special sauce), the chicken inasal remains as the king of them all.
What makes it special is in its marinade. It varies from one server to another but it is best to have a juicy and tasty inasal on your plate. Dip it in a vinegar, calamansi, and soy sauce concoction, and have it with rice but make sure to wash your hands beforehand for it is best devoured without using your utensils.
PHOTO CREDIT: 1day-at-a-time
BISCOCHO & BARQUILLOS
Iloilo is rich in native pastry snacks like butterscotch, bayi-bayi, tarts, and banana marble. But the two most celebrated are the Biscocho and Barquillos.
Biscocho or Biskotso is a thick – and hard – biscuit covered in milk then baked or toasted with butter and sugar on top. It is best munched on a rainy day with cocoa milk or in the morning along with your hot coffee.
Barquillos on the other hand, is a thin biscuit rolled into a cone with the perfect level of sweetness. It is of Spanish origin but is famously made in Iloilo. It is believed that it is derived from hostia (host) but only sweetened to favor the likes of the public. Now, they come in different flavors such as ube, and pandan. There is also a derivation of the delicacy where they put polvoron inside the cone and call it, “Barqueron”.
PHOTO CREDIT: wikipedia, merci
In the past few years, a number of more modern restaurants serving foreign dishes were established and embraced in the city. But despite that, Iloilo’s local delicacies will always be patronized by locals and outsiders alike.
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