Recipe Roundup

36 Classic and Modern Filipino Recipes

These traditional (and sometimes not-so-traditional) recipes showcase some of the sweet, sour, and deeply savory notes characteristic of Filipino cuisine.
A bowl of arroz caldo topped with shredded chicken lime wedges and sliced scallions.
Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Olivia Mack Anderson
  • photo of mais con hielo in sundae glasses
    Photo by Joseph De Leo, Food Styling by Anna Stockwell
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    Mais con Yelo

    In the Philippines, mais con yelo is a traditional dessert of crushed ice layered with corn kernels and sweetened milk. For this version, the milk and ice are combined with puréed corn to make a delicious granita.

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  • Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Beatrice Chastka, Food Styling by Laura Rege
    2/36

    Eggplant Omelet (Tortang Talong)

    Torta is “omelet” and talong is “eggplant,” but this Filipino dish is more like an egg-battered cutlet eaten for breakfast or lunch.

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  • Photo by Chelsie Craig
    3/36

    Easiest Chicken Adobo

    For adobo that’s sweet, salty, tangy, garlicky, and ready in a fraction of the time, don’t peel and slice each garlic clove: Just cut open a whole head and simmer it in the sauce.

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  • Photo and Styling by Joseph De Leo
    4/36

    Sinangag (Garlic Fried Rice) 

    A staple on Filipino tables from breakfast through dinner, this rice dish is heavily perfumed with garlic oil and tossed with crispy sautéed garlic chips.

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  • Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Food Styling by Olivia Mack Anderson
    7/36

    Arroz Caldo (Chicken Rice Porridge)

    This garlicky chicken-and-rice porridge, rich with fish sauce and bright with lime juice, is exactly what you want to cozy up to on a wintery night.

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  • 8/36

    Leche Flan with Grapefruit

    For the clearest caramel and smoothest custard, ceramic or glass baking dishes work best for cooking this Filipino-American–style dessert.

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  • Photo by Alex Lau
    9/36

    Ensaymadas

    These sugary, Parmesan-y, buttery Philippine yeast rolls are a Christmas morning mainstay.

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  • Photo by Allie Lehman
    10/36

    Ground Pork Menudo

    Using ground pork instead of stew meat is a practical and easy way of making menudo on a weeknight.

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  • Photo by Romulo Yanes
    11/36

    Filipino-Style Chicken Adobo

    While sugarcane vinegar is more often used in the Philippines in this national dish, apple cider vinegar makes an adequate substitute if you can't find it.

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  • Photo by Alex Lau
    12/36

    Embutido

    This paprika-spiced meatloaf is made from ground pork mixed with raisins, olives, pickles, and plenty of garlic; boiled eggs run through the center, adding richness and a nice surprise when you slice into the loaf.

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  • Photo by Rowena Dumlao-Giardina
    19/36

    Seafood Sinigang (Sour and Savory Seafood Soup)

    Sinigang is adobo’s close contender for the title of National Dish of the Philippines. Like many Filipino dishes, this soup is bold in taste: sour, salty, slightly sweet, spicy, and umami.

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  • Photo by Alex Lau
    20/36

    Ube (Purple Yam) Candies

    Traditionally made with ube (Filipino sweet potato), this recipe will work with any purple or orange sweet potato or yam.

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  • Photo by Marvin Gapultos
    23/36

    Spicy Sizzling Squid (Sisig na Pusit)

    If you travel to the Philippines, though, you’ll discover that you can “sisig” pretty much anything. There’s chicken sisig, tuna sisig, goat sisig, and even vegetarian sisig. This squid iteration incorporates salmon caviar and crushed prawn crackers.

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  • Photo by Rowena Dumlao-Giardina
    24/36

    Spaghetti Sauce Chicken Afritada

    Afritada, a traditional chicken and vegetable stew, is a gateway dish to Filipino cuisine. Spaghetti sauce, instead of fresh tomatoes or tomato sauce, is used in this recipe for convenience and additional flavor.

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  • Photo by Justin Walker
    25/36

    Filipino-Style Spiced Vinegar

    You can store this all-purpose sweet-and-spicy vinegar in clean mason jars, but it is easier to keep it in repurposed glass bottles. Note that this recipe can be adjusted as you like—try using different chiles or other spices like bay leaf.

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  • CIA/Keith Ferris
    26/36

    Fresh Filipino Spring Rolls (Lumpia Sariwa)

    This fresh—i.e. not fried—version of the Philippine starter combines attributes of many of the wrapped foods of other countries. It's filled like an egg roll, has an egg wrapper like a crêpe, and is served warm. All the components, which can be varied according to what you have in your kitchen, are cooked before assembly.

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  • Photo by Alex Lau
    29/36

    Shredded Sweet Potato and Carrot Fritters (Ukoy)

    Frying ukoy the Bad Saint way is a very active process­—the fritter will blow apart in the oil before you tease it back together. Use a tall pot with plenty of extra room since the oil will bubble vigorously when the mix hits it.

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  • Photo by Romulo Yanes
    30/36

    Sweet Plantain Fritters

    For this dish, be sure your plaintains are completely black, since the fruit becomes sweeter as it ripens. (Yellow or mottled brown plantains are very starchy and usually take about a week to fully ripen.)

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  • Photo by Shutterstock
    31/36

    Crispy Spring Rolls (Cha Gio)

    While this recipe comes from a Vietnamese and Thai cookbook, the seasonings and method are very similar to the famed Filipino snack, fried lumpia.

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  • Photo by Romulo Yanes
    32/36

    Coconut Custard Pie

    Buko pie is a custard pie made with the meat and milk of young coconuts, this pie approximates that Filipino classic.

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  • Photo by Romulo Yanes
    33/36

    Chicharrones Tacos

    A popular snack in any country that loves pork, chicharrones are also a staple in the Philippines.

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  • 34/36

    Filipino "Adobo"-Style Chicken

    Ask any cook in the Philippines how to make adobo and you'll get a different answer. The ratios and secondary ingredients change from region to region and from household to household. This one uses two parts vinegar to one part soy for a sweet-and-sour punch.

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  • 35/36

    Filipino-Style London Broil

    The interplay of salty, sweet, and sour in this marinade is pure Filipino, and the lemon rind adds an intense blast of citrus flavor.

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  • 36/36

    Sweet Garlic Soy Sauce

    In Philippine cuisine, dark, fairly harsh soy sauce is favored, but it's often combined with sugar to create a syrupy dressing for vegetables. The added garlic gives this sweet and salty sauce a pleasant kick.

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