Nourishment for body & soul

MANILA, Philippines - Aliya Ignacio was in St. Helena, Napa Valley, California when she was asked if she could be part of the team to cook for Pope Francis and the volunteers during the papal visit to Leyte, as part of the company Fresh Selections, which was assigned to feed the volunteers leading up to the event.

“My partner Edward Chua asked me if I would come back to cook for the pope. Of course, I said yes,” she shares. “My school, The Culinary Institute of America, was supportive and fixed my schedule so I won’t have a hard time when I get back.”

Fresh Selections also sponsored the flowers to adorn the Archbishop’s Residence in Palo, Leyte, as well as chairs and tables used for the papal lunch. Eventually, they came on board to help with the lunch itself.

“We were allowed to stay in the Archbishop’s residence for two weeks to prepare for the event and to have easy access to the kitchen,” Aliya shares. “We lived with people who were very passionate for love and service. In that house we gained a lot of meaningful experiences, many thanks to Archbishop John Du and the priests and nuns who made us feel like family, and to the volunteers who helped us feed the people.”

She recalls, each day they were joined by thousands of volunteers, all working together for the success of the papal visit.

In preparation for Pope Francis’ lunch in Leyte, Fresh Selections did a food tasting for religious officials in Leyte who then suggested local ingredients and Filipino dishes.

“I was involved in finding local ingredients in Leyte, completing equipment and materials for the pop-up kitchen, and finalizing the menu,” says Aliya.

During the lunch itself, she also took part in cooking the various elements of the meal.

“I did the chicken stock for the malunggay soup, the marchand de vin (red wine sauce) for the steak, side dishes and plating the dishes to be sent up to the dining area,” she says, adding that it was truly a group effort to complete the papal meal.

“We served familiar food with local ingredients,” Aliya says. “There was malunggay soup, chicken barbecue and salad with adobo dressing, seafood shrimp pasta and steamed lapu-lapu with garlic sauce, pan fried steak with red wine sauce and a vegetable side dish, tropical fruits, calamansi juice, dalandan juice, tanglad (lemongrass) tea.”

She adds that it was important for those planning the meal to keep it simple, in line with Pope Francis’ wishes. But they also took into consideration that the visit was a much-needed celebration for the survivors of Super typhoon Yolanda. “We also wanted it to be a feast for them, so we added steak and lechon.”

The lechon, however, did not make it to the festivities. As in all events during the papal visit, the security was very strict and everyone involved had to submit their names in advance and go through a background check. Aliya shares with a chuckle, “During the event, the lechon we ordered for the pope did not arrive because it did not get through security. We were joking it didn’t pass the background check.”

With Leyte still getting back on its feet after a little more than a year post-Yolanda, and with another storm coinciding with the papal visit, the team had to work through frequent power outages. The process was tiring, says Aliya. “Our team of cooks and butchers worked very long hours, also the volunteers.”

Pope Francis himself only had around 15 minutes for his lunch, Aliya recalls. She was not able to meet him personally and ask him about the food herself, as she was attending to 30 Yolanda survivors who were also being served lunch.

“I stayed for them,” says Aliya. “I tried to catch the pope when everything was in order, even ran in the rain, but he already left.”

Despite this, Aliya says the experience was still fulfilling. “I went up to the dining area to check on service and the victims were very grateful for the food. That, for me, was very rewarding,” she shares.

Though they were no longer able to share their stories of survival with the pope because his visit was cut short, the Yolanda survivors said they were at least able to enjoy their food.

“Someone even said ‘It was the best!’ That really warmed my heart, hearing that from someone who lost so much,” Aliya says.

For the team of cooks and volunteers, this may have been one of the most challenging, but certainly the most memorable, lunch services of their lives.

Aliya says, “I’m very grateful to have served someone who inspires, accepts everyone, someone who is a great example, someone who awakened a lot of people, and I’m very grateful to have served and worked with the people who made sure his visit was a success.”