Food That Was Always Ours

Adobo, lumpia, and pancit are the dishes Filipino cooks present to non-Filipinos, but adobo, sinigang, and kinilaw are the three most common dishes I saw prepared in homes throughout the Philippines. Adobo, essentially a vinegar-laced stew, is always ripe for comparison: at the restaurant, Filipinos often ask, “Is your adobo better than my mother’s?” And we never take the bait. Of course, your mother’s adobo is infinitely better—everyone’s is! Sinigang, a soupy mix of seafood or meat and vegetables soured with tropical fruits, is humble Filipino comfort food, considered too plebeian to serve special guests, and, in my opinion, too reliant upon fresh, carefully balanced ingredients to order in most restaurants. Kinilaw, an age-old Filipino use of seafood similar to ceviche, preserves memories of the days when sweet, utterly fresh fruits of the sea were the most basic, readily available of foods.