I can say that I have a healthy relationship with food and the food of my culture. Born in the United Arab Emirates and raised by Filipino parents, I’ve been exposed to a lot of South and East Asian cooking.
The first time I’d ever heard of people eating plain rice with soy sauce was years after I immigrated to America. This notion was as foreign as I was, and my parents felt the same way— to eat plain kanin (rice) without an ulam (main dish) wasn’t common.
My 11th birthday party was at a Filipino buffet. When it came time to eat, I was aghast that instead of the pancit, lechon, or even the lumpia, my best friend at the time had chosen to only eat… soy sauce and rice.
While she said it was good, I cringed. That’s it? I thought.
Later in life, I attended a diverse public high school— a place where it seemed the whole world had congregated its children and stuck them all together in the suburbs of Chicago. This meant that it didn’t matter what I brought to lunch that day (an issue that many immigrant children have) and continued to not be an issue when I took up a summer job at the same school.
A few days ago during my lunch break, a friend/co-worker asked me if I was eating white rice. I said yes, and she proceeded to tell me that she loved white rice and soy sauce. Outwardly, I said something along the lines of “oh, cool” but inwardly I was confused again. Why?
Now to be fair, I’ve had the standard Chinese-American take-out fried rice before, but even then it had other stuff in it, like carrots, peas, scrambled egg, and a protein. And it was fried. I’ve also had the classic Japanese tamago kake gohan which is soy sauce, rice, and an egg yolk which has been beaten altogether, but it’s normally eaten as a breakfast food with miso soup, dumplings, or with furikake sprinkled on top.
Also to be fair, I’d rather not speak about the food of other Asian cultures as if it was my own, though. What I will speak about is the food that I know, as a child with two parents from Manila.
So without further ado, instead of eating rice and soy sauce why don’t you try:
Lumpiang Prito
An incredibly common party food and a cousin to the egg-roll, Filipinos and non-Filipinos alike can agree that these are pretty addicting. I read a funny story about how a teenager had a wait-list at his school for his grandmother’s lumpia that was months long and I don’t doubt it in the least. Filled with savory vegetables, meat, or both, they’re extremely popular and a great introductory Filipino food.
Pancit
Another common party food, pancit literally means noodles. When this is said however, most Filipinos are referring to pancit bihon or thin, glass noodles that are stir-fried with soy sauce, assorted vegetables, and a protein. They’re similar to jap chae or even chow mein, except Filipino style.
Adobo
The unofficial national dish of the Philippines also refers to a cooking style that helped to preserve food way back when. Cooked with vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, peppercorns and bay leaves, this savory meat dish is dearly loved by Filipino people all over the world.
Sinigang
Filipino people love their soup, and sinigang is no exception. A tangy, savory soup with lots of vegetables this personally never fails to warm my belly and my soul.
Lechon
Whole roasted pig. People are known to fight over the crispy skin above the juicy, succulent meat that has been roasted over a fire for several hours. Reserved only for special occasions, this incredible party food has been called “the best pig ever” by Anthony Bourdain.
Suman
Transitioning to desserts, suman is a delicate rice cake cooked in sweetened coconut milk and wrapped in banana leaves. Sometimes it has shredded coconut in it— I still have dreams about the tupig, which is like suman except grilled over an open fire, I got for my birthday from my Dad’s family earlier this year.
Leche flan
A dessert made during special occasions, leche flan is a rich custard topped with a runny caramel sauce. It’s sometimes cut up into small pieces and used as a topping for…
Halo-halo
Although it has nothing to do with the golden circles above the heads of saints, this beloved Filipino dessert is heavenly in the summertime. Its name means “mix-mix,” which is what you do with the shaved ice, sweet evaporated milk, and the countless toppings (including coconut jelly, red beans, jackfruit, etc.) after a generous scoop of fantastically purple ube ice cream.
Now of course, these are only some basic dishes that you’ll probably find at any standard Filipino party. I haven’t even gone into the variety of fish we eat, the different cured meats, breakfast foods, pastries, soups, and rice dishes we love and crave when we miss our family. If you can get past how different (and admittedly, less aesthetically pleasing) it is compared to other popularized Asian cuisines, you’ll find a unique flavor profile that’s incredible and hard to beat.
So the next time you want to reach for that rice and soy sauce at a Filipino party, stop— try something new!
