Apocalypse Chow

A flooded township in the Philippines - August 2012


 The recent terrible floods in the Philippines - where some 500,000 people have had to move from their homes -  reminded me of my trips to that country some 20 odd years ago.   Despite been prone to typhoons and flooding on a regular basis, the countryside is spectacularly beautiful.

 In my student days I travelled a couple of times to the Philippines – the first as part of the then de rigueur student backpackers tour of South East Asia and the second time to stay with family friends who had moved there for a World Bank posting.



The country is made up of 7000 islands

The first thing that strikes you about the country is the breathtaking beauty of the islands that make up the Philippines – some 7000 of them with a population of over 92 million people.   The people of the Philippines are generally a ‘happy go lucky’ nation – and very friendly to tourists - but I couldn’t help getting the impression that successive waves of colonialisation – by the Spanish, then the Japanese during World War 2, then the Americans in the aftermath of the war – had taken their toll on Filipino culture.   Many locals speak with a strange Spanish-American accent and all things American appear to be deified!   And much like in India, for a lot of families their ultimate dream is to migrate to the United States.

We arrived in the capital of Manila – I still remember a sign on the door of a bar: “Please leave your handguns at reception”! – but quickly left to tour the countryside; up to Baguio City, a hillstation in the mountains, and then by ferry across to the island of Cebu, a place with beautiful beaches and extraordinarily well preserved buildings from the period of the Spanish colonial occupation.   We also visited the site where the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan was killed by the native population in 1521.

The 100 Islands National Park

Just prior to touring an extraordinary area of the country known as the One Hundred Islands National Park  – full of ancient coral reefs and teeming with sea life  –  we went to see Steven Spielberg’s - at the time - new film “Jaws”.   Needless to say I didn’t venture into the water for the rest of the trip!

Apocalypse Now was shot on the island of Luzon in the Philippines

Another cinematic link with the country was Francis Ford Coppola’s epic film “Apocalypse Now”, about the Vietnam War. The film was shot in the Philippines on the main island of Luzon - from memory because the Vietnamese government wouldn’t allow Coppola’s crew to film in their own country; the war and US involvment being still fresh in everyone’s mind.   Vietnam also at this stage had not embraced Western-style development that is now proceeding at an apparently rapid pace across the country.

Marlon Brando & Martin Sheen

I took a canoe trip down the Pagsanjan River, 100 kms south of Manila, where most of the filming of “Apocalypse Now” took place.  Our boat passed the huts that were used in the opening scenes of the film where Martin Sheen’s character is lying on his bed staring at the ceiling fan.   These huts are now a tourist office.   And further down river we entered the deep ravines that were depicted in the film as the entrance to “the heart of darkness”, the area in Cambodia where Marlon Brando’s character, Colonel Kurtz was in hiding. (Who can forget Brando's lines - lifted from Joseph Conrad's book: “The horror! The horror!”)   It was a memorable experience.

But another major highlight of my two trips to the Philippines was the food!   An incredible variety of fresh seafood in the markets and 'challenging' national dishes ... like Balut!

Balut - a fertilised egg

Here is a fairly graphic description ... “A balut is a fertilized duck embryo that is boiled and eaten in the shell.  Popularly believed to be an aphrodisiac and considered a high-protein, hearty snack, balut are mostly sold by street vendors.''

"In the Philippines, balut eaters usually accompany this delicacy with salt, chili, garlic and vinegar to season their eggs. The eggs are savoured for their balance of textures and flavours; the broth surrounding the embryo is sipped from the egg before the shell is peeled, and the yolk and young chick inside can be eaten.”   Definitely an acquired taste but I ate them a number of times!

                                            

And then there were the cockfight losers!   (PETA supporters read no further.)  At some point on one of my trips we were taken to see a cockfight – a national past time that is pretty much the equivalent of horse racing in Australia in terms of popularity.   And you can also gamble on the fights.   I have to admit that – despite my sympathy for animal rights and my affection for members of the animal kingdom – I was sucked in by the atmosphere of the cockfight stadium!   Maybe it was also the San Miguel beers we were drinking throughout the night!   Anyway, without going into the gory details, at the end of the event the losers were barbecued out the back of the stadium and this chicken (or rooster?!) was some of the best bbq chicken I have ever tasted.

But for those not keen on holding a gladiatorial contest in their backyard everytime they want to have chicken for dinner, here is a somewhat more sedate but equally impressive national dish from the Philippines ... Chicken Adobo, or as I call it, Apocalypse Chow! 

This recipe is interestingly somewhat similar to India’s Goan chicken dish ... Xacuti de Galinha ... with the same emphasis on spices, garlic and the tangy taste of coconut vinegar.   (Maybe not so surprising given the Spanish/Portuguese influence in both cultures.)


Chicken Adobo

The Phillipines national dish - Chicken Adobo

'
Ingredients:

1½ C rice vinegar (or Goan coconut vinegar)     1 C coconut milk     ¼ C soy sauce     10 garlic cloves, peeled & thinly sliced     3 whole bird’s-eye chillies (or hot green Indian chillies)     3 bay leaves       1½ tsps freshly ground black pepper     2 kgs chicken pieces (preferably thighs over legs!)

Method:

Combine all of the marinade ingredients in a plastic freezer bag or large bowl  . Add the chicken and turn to coat. Refrigerate overnight or for at least 2 hours.   



The chicken pieces are marinated in coconut milk, rice vinegar,
chillies and garlic for several hours

Place chicken and marinade in a large pot and bring to a boil over high heat. Immediately reduce heat to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the chicken is cooked through and tender, around 30 minutes.

Chicken is cooked in its marinade for 30 mins

Heat grill or bbq. Transfer chicken pieces to a large bowl, raise heat under the pot to medium-high, and reduce the sauce until it achieves almost the consistency of cream, about 10 minutes. Remove bay leaves and chilies.



   
 

Chicken pieces ready to be basted then grilled

Place chicken pieces on a roasting pan and place under grill or on bbq for 5 to 7 minutes, until they begin to caramelize. Remove, turn chicken, baste with sauce and repeat, 3 to 5 minutes more. Return chicken to sauce and cook for a few minutes more, then place on a platter and drizzle heavily with sauce. Serve with white rice.

Tony saab/Hyderabad August 2012