Some Filipino Exotic Foods You Might Want to Try

When it comes to food, taste and diet are relative. It varies especially from one country to another. Here in the Philippines, we have a number of exotic foods that may not be to everyone’s tastes and may seem like an extreme dining to some, but we consider as delicious delicacies and quite normal to eat. Here are some Filipino exotic foods that you might want to give it a try:

Balut

This one is already considered a tasty afternoon threat in the Philippines. Balut is a boiled fertilized duck egg which is either 16 or 18 days old. It is eaten with salt or vinegar. You can see the almost-fully-formed duckling inside the egg, which gives a slimy texture. The half-formed head, guts, beak, and bones of the poor duckling can be off-putting to some especially the foreigners.

Soup No. 5

Its main ingredient is bull’s sex organs, considered by many as the “fifth leg” of the animal and that’s where it got its name. Many believe that this exotic food is an aphrodisiac as it gives the physical attributes of a bull to anyone willing to take a sip. In Cebuanos, they call it “lanciao.”

Adobo or Deep-Fried Crickets

Mole crickets or Kamaro is an exotic delicacy in Pampanga. They are usually cooked as adobo or deep fried. The legs, wings, and heads are removed and what’s left is its body which is crispy on the outside but soft on the inside. Also, the juice is coming out of its abdomen when eaten.

Dagang Bukid or Farm Rats

These are not just any ordinary rats. These are dagang bukid or rats that are found in rice fields and are assured to be clean because they only feed on rice. It can be cooked as adobo, deep fried, or roasted like chicken.

Tuslob-Buwa

Tuslob-buwa in Cebuano dialect literally means 'to dip in bubbles.' It is made from pork brain and liver cooked with chili, salt, and other spices. As the ingredients are cooked thoroughly, you know that it’s ready to serve when bubbles appear in the surface which then explains its name. Tuslob-buwa is mostly served for free by the street vendors as long as you buy rice ball (which locals call “puso”) from them.

Salagubang or june bug

Salagubang or june bug is known to be protein-rich and is abundant in Nueva Ecija. When fried, it is a common appetizer or pulutan around town. It is also cooked as adobo and eaten with rice.

Adobong Uok

Normally served with rice and tomatoes, this flavorful exotic dish will fill in your hungry stomach once you taste it. Uok is a coconut rhinoceros beetle larvae which can be found in dead coconut logs. It is a popular exotic dish in Angono, Rizal.  

Etag

Etag is considered as Cordillera’s official ham and as foreigners called it, the “Igorot smoked meat.” It is a salted meat from native pigs which is cured and aged underground using earthen jars for weeks. The final product can be foul-smelling, dark, and rotting with maggots. For some natives, they prefer smoking usually for 30 minutes to about 3 hours per day for at least two weeks. This food is not usually served on its own. It is rather a complimentary ingredient that gives a distinct taste to delicacies such as pinikpikan, pinakbet, monggo and other dishes with legumes as the main element.

Kinilaw na tamilok

“Tamilok” is a type of woodworm and is a common delicacy in Palawan. But these are not that the usual worms that you may think of. These woodworms are actually molluscs, which has a taste comparable to that of oyster and a texture like "tulya." The tamilok is served as raw which you can just dip in vinegar with spicy peppers, onions, and calamansi juice before enjoying its taste.

Wondering what the name “tamilok” means? The name came from the words uttered by a foreign visitor in Palawan when he and his companion saw the locals eating raw woodworms with vinegar. He said "Tommy, look!" and since then, the woodworms from mangrove trees have been known as “tamilok.”

Betute tugak or stuffed frogs

Frog dishes are considered a delicacy in the Philippines. But these are the kind of frogs from rice paddies which are much more available that they are being sold in the urban wet markets. The taste of frog meat is comparable to that of chicken. Some common ways of preparing frog is to fry it (prito) or to turn it into adobo (where the frog meat is cooked in garlic, oil, vinegar, and laurel leaves). However, the Province of Pampanga serves another frog dish called “Betute Tugak,” which is a frog stuffed with minced pork and then deep-fried in oil. Betute is just a play of words on a local dialect butete, which means "tadpole" in English.

Abuos

Abuos is a delicacy in Ilocos made of ant eggs. This is usually served as adobo, sauteed with garlic, or just eaten raw.

Street foods

Some common Filipino street foods are innards and other parts of a chicken which are cooked by grilling them over a coal. These include the following:

          Isaw – barbecued chicken intestines.

          Adidas – barbecued chicken feet.

          Betamax – barbecued chicken coagulated blood cubes.

          Helmet – barbecued chicken heads.

Note:     The photos posted above are not mine.