Monitoring prices

How seriously is this being done? How efficient and how trustworthy are the agencies tasked to do this? Time and again prices are listed publicly, but every time a homemaker goes to the market, she finds her budget not enough because prices have gone up. A case in point–the very basic red onion was commanding the horrific price of P80 a kilo while tomatoes were at P50. And that was at a so-called bargain market, the ANNI. Bulalo over there was at P275 a kilo. Large eggs are at more than P4.50 per and pork is at P150 a kilo. (Price Smart sells pork from P134.95, but do the masa go there?) Rice is just as expensive these days. Bangus was going at P140 a kilo. Incidentally, if you go to the ANNI Weekend Market don’t be over eager to buy your suman sa ibus from the man right at the entrance. He sells it for P35 a bunch. Go farther in and you get the same at the normal price of P15. Some people do pull a fast one.

Breakfast fare we put in our basket included a pack of dried boneless dilis (not too salty) at P120, a pack of dried biya (the brood’s favorite) also at P120 and three pieces of tilapia tinapa at P60. We got the tinapang bangus at a price much lower than what our suki in BF market offers us (P120 for three pieces). Here Magnolia chicken is priced at P100 a kilo.

This is rather high-end but if you cook a lot with chorizo bilbao you better be prepared to spend quite a sum for it. The El Rey brand is rather hard to find. We found it only at Rustan’s in Makati (and we had to reserve the last one) at P2,700 per tin of more or less 34 sausages. The Purefoods version is actually a good substitute.

Did you know that the soya bean is the most perfect food? Believe it because it came from an authoritative health and nutrition advocate. We sat through lunch at Glenda’s Via Mare (re-done impressively) with Dr. Jaime Galvez Tan at the recent re-launch of Lady’s Choice Mayonnaise. He said soya is the healthiest of all beans and if there would be a competition, it would come out as the "Queen of All Vegetables and Healthy Foods" because it is a rich source of high quality protein containing essential amino acids that a human body needs for growth and development. Its phytochemicals (phytoestrogens and isoflavones) can lower cancer risk and bad cholesterol. Women would also find relief from that "special period of the month" in their middle age.

Lady’s Choice Mayonnaise is made of the highest grade soya oil, so don’t worry–you can have it in your sandwiches, etc. We all grew up with mayonnaise and can you believe Lady’s Choice has been with us for 50 years? Its origin is contested among three countries– England where a Duke was supposed to have had his chef create it after a victory, France where it was a condiment to chicken and hard-boiled eggs and America where mayo became the enhancer for hamburgers and salads.

So, what did the creative Glenda do with mayonnaise? To start with she served a very refreshing drink, not of mayonnaise but of camias! Her version of the pritchon was served with honey-mustard dip, lime and cilantro Lady’s Choice mayonnaise. It was a good combination, so good we noted some visitors lining up six times to where the lechon was. For her traditional Paella, she laced it with aioli, a concoction of mayonnaise and a lot of crushed garlic giving it a new flavor and a different texture. The dessert plate was again innovative–Tofu Crème Brulee, Tofu Jelly and Tofu Cheesecake. The latter definitely got the group’s vote.

Choose your fruit vendor carefully at Market!Market! The one by the entrance (not Dizon, not Pelican) nearly got away when his scales ‘failed’ one day. The shopper had his fruits weighed elsewhere and they didn’t come up to measure! The Year 2005 is upon us, let’s be honest and fair.

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