Both countries have a lot in common when it comes to food, but also have a lot of their own differences as well.
When it comes to similarities, being Southeast Asian nations that lie within the Malay Archipelago, they will inevitably share a ton of common ingredients that include, but are not limited to:
- Coconut milk and other coconut products
- Rice, or rice flour products, as rice is a staple crop
- Fish Sauce
- Lemongrass
- Shrimp Paste
- Native limes, such as calamansi and kaffir lime.
- Garlic
- Galangal
Fruits are also a common staple in the cuisine in both countries as many of the following tropical fruits are native to Southeast Asia, including, but not limited to:
- Mangoes
- Jackfruit
- Lychee
- Mangosteen
- Rambutan
- Bananas
- Durian
- Breadfruit
- Pomelo
- Starfruit
And even the use of fruits in local cuisines that originate from the Americas, such as:
- Pineapples
- Dragonfruit
- Papayas
Both countries have a similar tradition with eating with hands, and traditional meals being served on banana leaf. There are even similar feast traditions in both nations where a feast is served on banana leaf.
They both have a tradition of wrapping rice in woven banana leaf as well. The most well-known word for this is ketupat, but it goes by many local names, such as “puso” in Cebuano, or “kupat” in Javanese and Sundanese.
Whole roasted pig is another similarity that has Austronesian origins. In Bali, babi guling is the local version of a whole roasted pig while lechon baboy is the version that is found in the Philippines.
- The word “babi” and “baboy” are cognates of each other meaning “pig”, originally a proto-Malay word.
There are some foods that originate in Indonesia and the general Malay archipelago area that are also part of Filipino cuisine, which include, but are not limited to:
- Prawn crackers like kropek
- Satay, where there is a local version called satti in Zamboanga.
- Rendang has a local Maranao version.
- Nasi kuning, rice made with turmeric, also a part of Bangsamoro cuisine.
Chinese migration and trade to the Malay Archipelago brought cooking techniques and food to this part of the world, including, but not limited to:
- The use of soy sauce and other soybean products like tofu in all kinds of dishes.
- Lumpia, a staple in both Filipino and Indonesian cuisine.
- Moon cake pastry such as hopia in both the Philippines and Indonesia, with a local variant in Indonesia called bakpia pathok.
- Sesame balls, also referred to as kue onde-onde in Indonesia and butsi in the Philippines.
- The proliferation of noodle dishes, such as pancit in the Philippines, and mie goreng in Indonesia. Both countries have a wide range of local noodle dishes that were originally sold by Chinese hawkers, with many being rice or vermicelli noodle dishes.
- The use of a wok locally called kawali in the Tagalog language, or wajan in the Javanese language. With this also includes the cooking method of stir-frying dishes.
- Steamed filled buns, locally called siopao in the Philippines and bakpau in Indonesia.
- Rice porridge dishes, lugaw in the Philippines, and bubur ayam in Indonesia.
- Fried rice dishes that exist in both countries, such as nasi goreng in Indonesia and sinangag in the Philippines.
Many desserts also have much of the same ingredients: rice flour, coconut milk, either brown or palm sugar, and the use of native fruits as sweeteners.
- Rice cakes as a common dessert, with kakanin referring to the various kinds of rice cakes like puto, bibingka, and sapin-sapin in the Philippines and the various kueh in Indonesia like kuih lapis, wajik, and klepon.
- Interestingly enough, bibingka/kue bingka exists in both countries, though there may be local differences.
- Both puto and putu are cognates of each other, which come from the Tamil word “puttu”.
- Shaved ice desserts such as es campur in Indonesia and halo-halo in the Philippines.
- The use of fruits in many desserts like sweet soups, as well as fried banana snacks like pisang goreng and banana cue.
Both countries however, have a lot of differences in their cuisine. Being multi-ethnic nations with thousands of islands and diverging histories, many differences are bound to come up.
As far as spice goes, Indonesian cuisine in general tends to be a lot spicier, and uses a lot more chilis. Filipino cuisine as a whole is milder, though certain regional cuisines such as Bangsamoro cuisine and Bicolano cuisine are known for being spicy.
- This also extends to the use of certain spices. Turmeric is more commonly used in Indonesian cooking, though interestingly enough, nasi kuning in Indonesia also exists in the southern Philippines.
Colonial rule in the Malay Archipelago brought Western influence in the region, which include:
- Being a former Dutch colony, Indonesia retains some Dutch colonial influence in their food, with dishes such as spekkoek, hagelslag, klappertaart, semur, kroket, and kastengel.
- Being a former Spanish colony, the Philippines retains a good amount of Spanish but also Mexican influence in cuisine with dishes such as menudo, pandesal, empanadas, ensaymadas, polvoron, tamali, and tocino.
- The Philippines also retains some American influence such as the proliferation of fast food chains, many of them being local brands, and in dishes like buko pie.
Nata de coco and banana ketchup are ingredients unique to the Philippines as they were invented by Filipino food scientists. The former is primarily used in desserts and has since spread throughout Southeast Asia while the latter is used in dishes like Filipino spaghetti.
Martabak is a popular dessert in Indonesia though it can also be savory, and may have its origins in the Arabian Peninsula.
Vegetarianism is better represented in Indonesia, through dishes such as gado-gado, rujak, karedok, and pecel.
No comments:
Post a Comment