Pantry, Sides, Condiments, and Sawsawan

In Filipino cooking, condiments aren’t afterthoughts but ingredients in and of themselves. They’re part of a distinct culinary ethos, as the cultural historian Doreen Gamboa Fernandez has noted, one that rejects the myth of the chef as “sole authority” and invites the diner to take part in the making of a meal, so that “the creation is communal.” Food arrives at the table essentially unfinished, awaiting the final touch: yours. Add a touch of sour Green Mango, briny Bagoong, or Salted Egg with its dark orange-red yolk like the last gasp of sunset, and you make almost any dish taste Filipino.