Sarah-Five Must-Try Foods in Cebu
Five Must-Try Foods in Cebu
Are you tired of more than a year-long
quarantine? Just like me, I know everyone is thrilled to book a flight and try new
fun activities. For those who have been jotting the Philippines down on their
travel list, Cebu – the Queen City of the South, is a perfect place to visit.
The island offers you more than just the usual white-sand beaches, exhilarating mountain and water activities, friendly English-speaking people and jaw-dropping scenery. Cebu’s unique food is considered as another whole new adventure. Aside from the popular banana chips and dried mangoes, here are the top five of Cebu’s unique foods to try.
1. Lechon
Hailed as “The World’s Best Pig Ever” by the
famous North American chef Anthony Bourdain, Lechon is a whole
pig which is usually stuffed with loads of herbs and various ingredients and
spit-roasted over coals for more or less five hours. Its crispy skin and juicy
meat will surely play in your mouth, not to mention the surprise that the
dipping sauce offers.
2. Puto Maya
Don’t get deceived on how it looks. Puto
Maya is not just an ordinary rice but a classic Filipino glutinous one,
steamed and flavored with coconut milk or pandan (fragrant screwpine).
It is usually eaten for breakfast, popularly partnered with a hot chocolate
drink. Eating it with a cube of ripe Cebu mango gives a different delight.
Banana Cue is
known as one of the best street foods in the archipelago. Knowing that the
country ranks as the second biggest exporter of bananas, it can’t be denied
that people have come up with different cuisines and delicacies from it.
Usually consumed as a snack, banana cue is a fried skewered banana coated with
caramelized brown sugar. It’s best partnered with a non-alcoholic
beverage. Rest assured that every bite
will surely give you a blast.
4. Siomai
This Filipino-loved food is originally from
China. Siomai is bite-sized ground pork, beef and shrimp wrapped
in a thinly rolled out dough. It is usually steamed, but nowadays, a fried
variation is getting popular. Don’t forget to dip it first in a chili sauce or
soy sauce and squeeze one or two pieces of calamansi to enhance its
flavor. If you have good spice tolerance, adding more chilis will surely
increase your palate.
5. Chicharon
These pork crispy cracklings are made from pork
fat and rind. It is not directly deep-fried in a boiling pot of oil but it
still needs to undergo boiling, seasoning and sun-drying. The tedious process is worth it because it tastes
addictively good. Best have it with vinegar and of course with a
thirst-quenching cold beer.
Food tasting should be a top priority when
travelling internationally or even domestically. It will not only give you a
new food experience but will teach you more about the life of the locals. Don’t
hesitate to grab some of these featured foods, they will surely tickle your
taste buds. Enjoy!