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- Title:
- 50 Years of Feeding (Part G)
- Description:
- There is no single source from the first 50 years of Filipinas that gives a full list of ingredients, beverages and cooked foods. One has to read many independent sources, cull information, and then list what one finds. Some items are not mentioned. Maybe they were not available then or just slipped under the radar. Regarding introduced botanicals, it is safest to presume they may not have been around yet or were still uncommon. Some New World plants were not cultivated till the American colonial era. Here are beans that were around during Medina’s time: BALATONG, CAGIOS, small and red HANTAC, SONGAY. GULAY was the Tagalog word for “legumbres” (vegetables). Among them was a type of MOSTAÇA leaf. It is not clear if it was planted by Chinese kitchen gardeners for their Hispanic clients and themselves or by Indios for their food, or by both. Citrus listed was DAYAP TOTOO, round and small (medicinal for eyes), as well as DAYAP that was slightly larger. Native “naranjas” (oranges) listed include non-orange kinds of citrus: LUCBAN, small and sour SOVA, wild COLONGCOLONG and CAMON, as well as CABUYAO. Not all of those botanicals are around anymore. They were not “adjusted” to compete with other citrus for flavour, size, large yield, ability to withstand plant sicknesses or shipment, and processing into convenience or preserved foods. Even botanicals compete with each other in cultural and natural environs. Every ingredient in a dish offers taste and texture. Some ingredients have been used for centuries but even they as flora and fauna have gone through changes. Mustard leaves in 1616, the 50th year of Filipinas as part of the Spanish Empire, and today’s are likely unlike each other. An era leaves its signature even on heritage cuisine.
- Subjects:
- Beans Vegetables Citrus
- Exhibition:
- Juan Medina 50
- Source:
- Mustard Leaves used today in Filipino cooking. Illustrated by Mariel Ylagan Garcia. KÁIN NA: An Illustrated Guide to Philippine Food (RPD Publications, 2019)
- Type:
- Image;Still Image
- Format:
- image/jpeg
Source
- Preferred Citation:
- "50 Years of Feeding (Part G)", Philippine Food History, Felice P. Sta. Maria
- Reference Link:
- felicepstamaria.net/items/coll115.html