VIAJENG CUSINANG MATUA
Monday, 11 June 2007 | By Mike | Category: Culture & Tradition, General, Kapampangan, Regional[ A Kapampangan Culinary Tour ] Part 1: Breakfast
I first learned about this project from The Pilgrim months ago before it even started. I got an invite for the first run and missed it including the second. So when I read about a third run, I did not waste any time. I emailed Karlo, the Sleepy Traveler, and started harassing Tracey Santiago of Alquimista, Inc., a cultural tourism specialist responsible for organizing this tour.
At 5:45am last Saturday, 9th June 2007, I was at the appointed pick-up point at
I am not much of a morning person so I dozed off along the way and woke up just as we were passing through the
CUCINA NG ATCHING LILLIAN BORROMEO
We arrived on schedule at the Borromeo residence in
Mrs. Lillian Mercado Lising-Borromeo is a Culinary Consultant and Historian, and host of a local cable TV show called “Kusinang Kapampangan nang Atching Lillian.” My source tells me that she is the grand daughter of Don Monico Mercado, Jose Rizal’s cousin. Don Monico is a noted Kapampangan figure, a government official and translated Rizal’s “Mi Ultimo Adios” to the Kapampangan dialect. It is said that the Kapampangan translation was out on the day and immediately after Rizal’s 1896 execution by firing squad.
Now, on with the food . . . Breakfast at Atching Lillian’s was served al fresco at the backyard of her home and next to her private culinary museum. The delectable Kapampangan spread was presented on a buffet table designed and constructed to evoke the look of the traditional “banggerahan” found in the old homes of Pampanga.
Banggerahan is a local term for a rack in the kitchen used to wash and air-dry dinnerware and cutlery, enclosed in vertical bamboo slats and usually protruding outside of the window. In Kapampangan homes however, there are two sets of banggerahan: one for the china and the other one found usually in the dining room and used to keep food before being served.
The spread on Atching Lillian’s “banggerahan” (above, from left to right) included putong puti and kutsinta, the tidtad (dinuguan), kilayin, picadillo, and embutido.
The Kapampangan version of dinuguan (pork stewed in its own blood) is called “tidtad” which literally means ‘chopped.’ The blood isn’t mashed but sliced into tiny pieces. I am quite adventurous when it comes to food but since I stopped eating this dish more than two decades ago, I did not try this one.
What I fell in love with is the kilayin. Kilayin is basic stew of pig offal (like liver and lung), and pork cooked in vinegar, garlic, pepper, and chili. It is like adobo, but not quite. It reminds me of a favorite Ilocano dish, the “igado,” whose dominant tastes are that of the liver and vinegar. Kilayin also tastes better when it is older and has cured.
Before breakfast, Atching Lillian introduced us to a couple of familiar tastes – that of the duhat (Lomboy in Ilokano and Bisaya) and sariwang gatas ng kalabaw (fresh carabao’s milk), consumed NOT SEPARATELY but TOGETHER! I didn’t quite get the explanation as to why they do that as I was busy taking photos but I tried and it was really yummy! First, you place some duhat in a bowl and pour warm carabao’s milk into it, spoon a piece of duhat into your mouth with some milk, bite into the duhat and carefully remove the seed with your teeth.
The duhat’s sometimes unpalatable, sub-acidic flavor and astringency (which normally improves by soaking them in salt water) is a contrast to the carabao milk’s sweetish flavor.
I knew that there was still more food ahead of us that day so I paced my intake by limiting myself to just a single helping. I finished it off with a cup of rich chocolate drink made of freshly ground cocoa and peanuts.
After breakfast, we toured Atching Lillian’s culinary museum called Kapampangan Culinary Heritage which showcases old cooking implements - from wooden bowls, baskets, jars, ladles, to clay stoves, and were given a live demonstration on how “sanikulas” cookies are made.
Clockwise from above left: Atching Lillian Borromeo discussing wooden moulds used in the making of sanikulas; CCA chef instructor Roel Vargas and tour participant MR showing off their baking talents; Willie “Kongwi” Carpio of Arti Sta. Rita; and inquisitive foodies listening to Atching Lillian.
Atching Lillian in action as tour participants watch; ingredients, wooden moulds and a finished, baked “sanikulas.”
The “sanikulas” is a native biscuit made of uraro (arrowroot) flour and coconut milk. It was originally given away by a priest to everyone attending the mass during the feast of San Nicolas Tolentino on September 10. The biscuit is thought to be miraculous and can cure any ailment. To date, the biscuits are simply savored for their distinct flavor with all the religious overtones gone.
Read PART TWO here . . .
Sounds and looks like a wonderful breakfast! Can’t wait for lunch…
Aba… almusal pa lang e parang tanghalian na sa akin ito a :-)
that ancestral house is just like the gueco’s [M’s ma] in Magalang! first thing i thought was you went there! hahaha! i’ll try to dig into my photos when we went there last year in time for the anciano’s annual good friday reunion…pakita ko syo…
so where is ms. k?
iska, indeed it was! i had to pace myself kasi baka di ko matikman lahat! hehehe
ces, you’ll see miss K in the dinner she co-hosted at the gosioco house . . . :-)
Hi Mike! Can’t wait for the rest of your entry. It was nice meeting you! :)
Hi Aileen!
‘Twas nice meeting you, too! I hope to post the second part tonight, fingers crossed . . . I should also be able to post all the individual photos used here as well as others I’ve taken of the group in my flickr album . . . Thanks for dropping by and hope you do so again . . . :-)
hi mike, very nice pictures! and u told me you’re an amateur - doesn’t seem like it!
ai - do u think mike really remembers you, or just knows you’re one of those people who were there? :)
Please let me know your flickr album. Mine is http://www.flickr.com/photos/ail33n/sets
I’ve uploaded as well the pictures I’ve taken - trigger happy ako when it comes to pictures kaya forgive the ‘amateurness’ hehe.
Shiela - I do hope that Mike remembers me. Di ba Mike? :D
Oh I read it and look at the pictures again… the culinary museum has left me in awe. Ang galing! Especially the wooden moulds for sanikulas.
What a wonderful tour! Not only to preserve the culture, but to lafang as well! :) I wish I could join one of these tours one day. Can’t wait to see the pilgrim’s part of the tour.
Oh wow! Yap Kapampangan is so famous in Filipino Delicacies! Last week of January I was able to attend the Sto. Nino Festival hosted by a Kapampanagn clan sad that i can’t recall their Family name that was held in Toronto and after the celebration wow yummy foods being served I felt that am in the Philippines all are great! How much more if those culinary expert w/ antique kitchen utensils are being used wow the more that you are thinking of the word “lafang” kabalen!!!
Sheila,
I am just an amateur . . . honestly! And of course I do remember you Aileen! :-) Guys am running late with the second part . . . Had to finish another article yesterday . . . but drop by again soon . . .
Btw, Aileen, I think I’m gonna need to borrow some of your photos for one of the installments of the entries about the tour . . . :-)
JMom,
Indeed it was! I can’t wait for the next. When you come home, The Pilgrim can actually help you customize a group tour around their place . . .
Mike, feel free to use the photos. my pleasure. :)
Shiela - Mike remembers me :p (parang bata. ahehehe)
hi Eva,
Thanks for dropping by . . . Talk about how good Kapampangan cuisine is, I remember being asked whether I was Kapampangan, and I replied: “My pockets are Ilocano but my tummy is Kapampangan!” Tee hee!
[…] moving on to the second part of the Viajeng Cusinang Matua, I just want to break the series with this one that isn’t exactly all about […]
[…] demonstration we bid farewell to Atching Lillian Borromeo, our gracious host for the tour’s breakfast segment. With full and happy tummies, we proceeded to our next stop in […]
Beautiful write-up! The duhat and carabao’s milk combi is interesting . . . I wanna try that some of those soon. I hope I could join one of these tours, too!
hi PaulN! thanks!
[…] about VCM | Part 1: BREAKFAST here . . . Read about VCM | Part 2: MERIENDA & LUNCH here . . […]
[…] about VCM | Part 1: BREAKFAST here . . . Read about VCM | Part 2: MERIENDA & LUNCH here . . . Read about VCM | Part 3: […]
ms. eva eisma,
may i know kung taga saan ka sa pinas? i bet you know na medyo rare ang eisma..
thanks!
joey
ohh.. if i may add..im in vancouver..been here for a little over four months..
Hi! It’s my first time here. When are you gonna have a culinary tour again? I find it really interesting. I want to join. Pls let me know.
Hi Cali!
Thanks for dropping by . . . It is really interesting to discover the old kitchens of Pampanga and try familiar dishes the way they’d cook them during the olden times . . . I have not heard of any tour planned by organizers yet . . . I will let you know as soon as something comes up soon . . . :-)
hi joey,
am sorry its been a long that I was not able to visit this lafang site heehheh!
my hubby is from Sto. tomas launion but am from sison pangasinan
oh thats true esima sounds foreighn name in the phils. am here in
ontario for almost 2 years now.
please get in touch!
eva
hi ms eva!
well, i forgot to say father is from sto la union. barangay namboongan. i was born in baguio though..
i am 99% sure your hubby is my relative..
could you get your hubby to drop a few lines in my email add?
joey_eisma at yahoo.com
thanks!
joey
[…] rule once in a while. The subject (somehow food-related) of a recent email sent by my good friend Nonoy O caught my attention and decided to open the message and read further . . […]
Hi, i came across this website to know more about regional cuisine and cooking, i intend to organize a cuisine tour for my students (nutrition majors) for them to appreciate the roots and historical significance of authentic local and regional cuisine such as Kapampangan cuisine. Where could i possibly inquire for a possible visit to this place?
Thanks….
let’s continue to appreciate Food Culture and Passion For Food!
Hi, Jeng!
Atching Lillian Borromeo can be reached at: Kapampangan Culinary Heritage
Parian, Mexico, Pampanga
Tel. (045)966-0211 or (045)875-0378
Good luck to your planned culinary tour!