Bicol Cuisine ala Survivor Philippines

Cooking the Bicolano food is not complete without the ubiquitous coconut and chili. During the Camarines tour, Tutubi and his friends were again introduced to authentic cuisine of the Bicol region using fresh catch from the sea bought from local fishermen.

Simple Bicol dishes are made from traditional recipes with the two earlier mentioned key ingredients: coconut milk and chili

Tutubi, took too long doing something that he wasn't able to take a photo of the coconut being pried open and grated the old-fashined way using a kudkuran (coconut grater). He was only able to capture the on "film" grated coconut being milked

traditional way of milking coconut done on a remote island. notice also kalabasa (squash) being cut into pieces

coconut milk put into a skillet then brought to a boil

the victim...err..main ingredient of lunch: a still alive crab with pincers tied together

coconut milk mixed with crabs, sliced squash, large green chili and other ingredients Tutubi wasn't able to keep tabs on due to his already growling stomach

not unique to Bicol but this adobong pusit (squid) is also tempting

Bicol's most famous dish, Bicol express, whose main flavoring ingredient is bagoong alamang (fermented shrimp), wasn't served that day but laing (taro leaves in coconut milk) was sampled as well as sinantol (grated wild mangosteen in coconut milk with smoked fish, different from Tutubi's favorite sinantol recipe from his hometown using bagoong alamang).

Thanks to Tutubi's friend from Daet who toured the group, and cooked food for them stranded souls on a remote island in a scene similar to the upcoming Survivor Philippines!

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Other noteworthy Bicolano dishes include tinumok (taro leaves in coconut cream with chopped river shrimps and strips of young coconut), pinangat (taro leaves in coconut milk with chopped pork or smoked fish), and sinanglay (using roasted grated coconut, with dressing made from coco milk mixed in with vinegar for the blanched sliced puso ng saging (banana heart))