Surprisingly dry

We had to go to Biñan, Laguna recently and we were greeted with a most pleasant surprise. We’ve endeavored, in the past, to request the municipal authorities to get into a clean-up program, especially with regard to the public market. Our pleas were never heard, until today, when perhaps the mayor realized that if Biñan had to be at par with its neighbors, something must be done.

Street vendors, whose wares were laid out on the streets, have been minimized, the structure was given a face-lift and most of all, we did not have to literally wade through murky water and thick mud, as we went to the market interior. Most of the selling areas in the Biñan public market are now dry, clean and more orderly.

We were looking for ayungin but were told they are now scarce. Biya, another rare species, good for crisp-frying or sarsiado, has become expensive at P200 a kilo. This is good breakfast food when made into daing, but costs as much as P300 a kilo. Today’s biya are very small as well. Kandule, done adobo-style or as native curry – dinilawan – was much cheaper at P80 a kilo. A vegetable vendor had packs of peeled ripe tamarind at P25 to P40 a pack. Against the P120 price a kilo of mangoes in the big city, in Biñan they are sold at P60. We got four pieces for P45, compared to the P130 for three pieces in Alabang.

A few days after, we went to Tanauan, Batangas where our late father’s kin served us their traditional adobong baboy and langlang na patane (lima beans) at paayap (string beans shorter than the sitao). If you want a new adobo taste, do as the Batangueños do – include slices of pork liver and when the dish is nearly done, take the liver out, pound it and mix well with the pork. Let simmer for a few more minutes to reduce the sauce. You can also fry the pork prior to serving, pouring the thickened liquid over the meat to make it delicious and rich. Langlang is very easy to make. This is a healthy mix of vegetables unique to the town, boiled with tomatoes and served with a dip of patis and calamansi juice. Needless to say, the best pasalubongs are Tita’s bibingka and matamis na mani. Provincial cooks still use a lot of panocha (palm sugar) in their sweets.

If the price of fuel will stabilize, it might be more economical to motor to these neighboring towns at least twice a month to buy food supplies.

It is evident that the trick most merchants have adopted is to maintain current prices but make the items smaller, such as the breaded pork chops we get at P10 a piece. The price has not changed but the pack we got recently consisted of much more thinly sliced meat with lots of breading. So, instead of two pieces per serving, you need to give four each. That makes your budget go a hundred percent higher. Can we win over the business folk?

 Finally we succeeded in our search for tender beef sirloin at Shopwise Alabang where they have a supply of Australian beef at reasonable cost, a little more than P400 a kilo. For a small family like ours, we took half a kilo. Rustans Makati has acquired a new look. We will explore it for a subsequent issue.

New products – we have just discovered that Nestle has produced new flavored creams, such as strawberry. We tried it with our chicken casserole and the dish came out with a pleasant new taste. Caution: use in limited portions. Anlene, the health drink for women, now comes in chocolate. Marks & Spencer is not only a garments and beauty product store, but is also a source of bottled sauces. We got their pesto sauce and added it to the mixture of Dijon mustard, herbs and olive oil to marinate cream dory fillet for grilling. Again, do not use too much as you would overwhelm the fish. Serve immediately after grilling.

Because El Rey chorizo bilbao now goes for P99 a piece, we have started using Purefoods’ canned version, selling at P108.50, containing at least five pieces. Native garlic still commands a much higher price than the imported variety, Dole pineapple is P49 a piece while Nestle’s Coffeemate, 200 gms is P37.60. Of the non-food items – Shopwise kitchen towels are priced at P126.50 for a pack of 4; 3-ply Kleenex facial tissue at P52 a box.

Compare prices and buy wisely.

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