12 Real Filipino Street Food in the Philippines

The World Street Food Congress was held in the Philippines from April 20 to 24, 2016. It was cool, especially considering that it was the first time it was not held in Singapore and all, but the line were all so long that I didn't see the point. It's restaurant grade food being sold in either food carts or food carts, at restaurant grade prices. When I think of street food I expect little bites of things at very affordable prices. 

So one Pinoy Urban Day I got to thinking about the real Filipino Street Foods being sold in the streets of the Philippines itself? 

Fish Balls/Squid Balls/Chicken Balls

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These balls may bear Fish, Squid, and Chicken in their names but when you taste them you can swear you get none of those flavors in the balls. But these are some of the most famous (or infamous) of the Filipino street foods.

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These balls are also considered by many as the main source of diseases (walked right into that one) given the common Filipino's affinity for double dipping into the sauce. Speaking of the sauce, these balls will be nothing without the sauce. It's really the sauce that makes the ball. Moving on!

Kikiam/Orlian

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Word is these things were inspired by the Chinese dish Quekiam which is made of minced pork, seafood, and vegetables then are made into something like a sausage. The small things sold in the push carts with the balls are actually called Orlian. These Orlian's are now just made of cheap seafood paste (if you're lucky) with tons of extenders. 

These, you can eat without the sauce but would taste better with it. 

Balut/Penoy

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To be fair, some Filipinos (me included) cringe at even the thought of eating Balut. It's a boiled duck egg with an embryo in it. Speaking bluntly you'll be eating an aborted duckling. You'll also be eating the duckling's food. I have tried it before, will not again in the near future. 

Penoy in an unfertilized duck egg. It's almost similar to eating the ordinary hard-boiled chicken egg but slightly larger and a more gamey taste.

Inihaw (especially isaw)

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If you want to creep your foreign friend cheaply, just bring them to any ihawan on the streets. Chicken feet, chicken head, cubes of blood, and of course the intestines.

Isaw is the most famous of the lot, especially the chicken intestines. Personally I prefer the pig intestines version. It's like Russian Roulette, you never know if they've cleaned the intestines properly but you still want to eat it.

Chicharon Bulaklak

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"It seems that ruffled fat is not really fat nor it is an intestine, but rather a tissue. It is the connector of the internal organs to the pig’s body – which is known as a mesentery"

- http://panlasangpinoy.com/

It looks like something out of a sci-fi movie but these little fritters are some of the best things you can eat on this earth. Best eaten with spiced vinegar, bite into them and your taste buds will be assaulted by such complex flavors you won't realize you've gone through the entire dish. 

Some attest that these make the perfect partner for beer. I am one of those that attest to such a partnership.

Halo-Motherf#*k!ng-Halo (buzzfeed via youtube.com)

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Halo-halo is literally translated to English as "Mix-Mix", is made by mixing a number of bite-sized ingredients (mostly sweet with some savory), shaved ice, and milk. Part of the experience is you, the customer, churning everything together. There is no set recipe for what should be in it, but some versions you can buy off the streets during summer would almost always have multi-colored jello.

Kwek-kwek/Tokneneng

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I have always loved hard-boiled quail eggs since I was kid. The first time I had kwek-kwek was during college. I got my degree from one of the schools in Mendiola, Manila and back in our day we ate street food from what we called "pogi lane" (handsome lane). 

I had an order of 5 of these little fellas and I was completely blown-away. Let's just say I became a regular on that food stall after that. Tokneneng is the version using a hard-boiled chicken egg instead of the quail egg. Some versions of the tokneneng also make use of the Balut and Penoy.

Banana Cue

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Why do we call them Banana Cue? I'm thinking it's because they're skewered on sticks and we've associated food on sticks as barbecue instead of actually, you know, barbecuing them?

It must be made with Saba Banana and deep fried mostly with a sugar coating. The Saba Banana is healthy, but deep frying them with so much sugar negates all of that. It is a fun, sweet snack though and good to try from time-to-time. 

Taho

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I seriously thought that I had seen the last of the taho vendor once I got out of my hometown of Cainta. However, I've always seen a vendor even in the busy business districts of Metro Manila. All of the companies I have worked for (two) always had a vendor nearby.

It's very cheap but very complex. You need to have the exact consistency for the soft tofu that constitutes about 80% of the whole thing. Then the sago (those little translucent pearl like things) must be cooked perfectly, almost like pasta. Then the syrup must be added with the just correct proportion else it will just seem like a cup of sugar. 

Binatog

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You must buy binatog from the vendor that pedals around a bike with two buckets affixed at the back. When I hear that bell, I run outside. Not just because I'm excited... It's because these vendors bike fast and you must run to make sure you get their attention. 

It's boiled white corn (it must be white corn) topped with grated coconut and seasoned with salt. It is amazing! You learn how to be focused, you get exercise by running after the vendor, and you get an amazing snack. What's not to love about it?

Manggang Hilaw

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Mangoes are commonplace in the Philippines, most especially so the green version. The streetfood version is almost always halves of the mango skewered by small barbecue sticks. They're dipped in water (clean hopefully) to keep from browning. Then, when an order comes, the vendor spreads a helping of shrimp paste on the mango. Sour and salty, you must try it to understand just how satisfying this is. 

Sorbetes/Dirty Ice Cream

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Unless you lived in an extremely gated community with super strict parents, you have had sorbetes when you were a kid. Even up to this day I still get a bit giddy whenever I hear that shrill bell that's the Filipino equivalent of an ice cream truck's theme.

If you think eating it out of cones is too mainstream, try getting your sorbetes in a bun. Thank me later.