Filipino Food: It’s More Than a Meal
For Filipinos, food and family go hand-in-hand. Walk into any Filipino kitchen and you’ll find family members of all generations gathered around traditional foods like lumpia, adobo, and pancit.
In fact, the first thing you hear when you visit a Filipino home isn’t “Hello,” or, “How are you?” but rather, “Have you eaten yet?” That’s because for Filipinos, food isn’t just food. It’s a love language, a welcome mat, and a common ground.
5 Authentic Filipino Dishes
What dishes can you expect to find at a Filipino family gathering? These are the authentic dishes that taste like home for Filipinos.
Adobo
Perhaps the most well-known Filipino dish, adobo is marinated and stewed meat (usually chicken or pork) served over rice. At White Rabbit Filipino Fusion Kitchen, we take pride in our chicken adobo slow-braised to a rich, savory sweetness.
Sisig
This dish is made of chopped pork cooked to crispy perfection and flavorful onion and chiles pairs perfectly with a cold beer.
Tocino
Tocino is made of cured pork belly, but don’t confuse it with bacon found in American grocery stores. These tender pieces of pork belly and shoulder are bursting with sweet, garlicky flavor that leaves you wanting more.
Lumpia
A Filipino twist on the spring roll, lumpia are bite-sized wrappers filled with meat and vegetables and fried to golden-brown perfection. While lumpia are Chinese in origin, their flavor is all Pinoy.
Pancit
Pancit is a Filipino noodle dish cooked with soy sauce, meat, and chopped vegetables. There’s a ton of variation in pancit recipes, with pancit bihon and pancit canton being the most popular.
The Filipino Kitchen
The importance of food in Filipino culture can be seen in the design of Filipino kitchens. While most homes in the Philippines are small, the kitchens are designed with socializing in mind, featuring open layouts and seating areas where loved ones can gather to converse and cook.
Communal spaces are the norm in the Philippines, but it’s only recently that the U.S. has jumped on the trend of open concept living. For Filipino-Americans, this is the perfect excuse to finally undertake a kitchen remodel to turn a cramped, closed kitchen into a space where the whole family can gather. While bonding over homemade bibingka is a worthy reason to renovate in itself, the boost in value homeowners sees from a newly renovated kitchen certainly doesn’t hurt. Plus, with Filipino design trends like light, airy spaces and natural materials gaining mainstream popularity, any buyer is sure to fall in love.
Passing Down Filipino Food Traditions
Because Filipino kitchens are the heart of the home, recipes are rarely written down. Instead, they’re passed down through the simple practice of eating and cooking together. As a result, dishes vary from family to family, flavors shaped by generations of shared tradition.
Filipino families have already mastered the art of getting children involved in the kitchen. As a result, even young Filipino-Americans born and raised in the U.S. feel nostalgic at the smell of adobo spices simmering on the stove.
The tradition of kamayan, or eating by hand, has seen a resurgence too. Instead of plates, forks, and knives, food in a kamayan feast is served on banana leaves and eaten with your hands. It’s no surprise this tradition is popular with kids but don’t be surprised if you see it showing up in restaurants and pop-ups too.
Is your mouth watering yet? Whether you’re craving the taste of home or new to Filipino cuisine, you’re going to love the rich history and flavors at White Rabbit Truck. Check our food truck schedule at White Rabbit Filipino Fusion Kitchen and follow us on social media for live updates.
Written by Eric Kelly