Sinigang sa Palaisdaan

What could be more fitting than a hot sinigang soup while basking in the cool mountain breezes of Mount Banahaw? At Palaisdaan in Tayabas, where country dining is at its best, this bowl of sinigang na lapu-lapu (grouper, also locally known as inid) energized us after a long drive.

Most Filipinos think our archipelago is an "adobo country" but some food historians argue that sinigang should be considered as the national dish as it seems to be more indigenous to the Philippine islands than adobo. The word "adobo" has a Spanish origin that it is vaguely has some colonial connection to Spain.

For non-Filipinos, sinigang is a sour soup similar to sayur asam of Indonesia, Thailand's tom yam, and canh chua from Vietnam. Its flavor comes from tamarind which gives it a sour but refreshing taste. Sinigang is meat (fish, pork, shrimp or beef) stewed with tamarind, green pepper, tomato and onion. Vegetables cooked in sinigang include okra, taro corm, radish, string beans, eggplant and water spinach.

Posted for Food Friday and Food Trip Friday