Filipino Food: 20 Dishes to Try and Where to Eat Them

Filipino food balances sour, salty and sweet flavours, often in the same meal, and reflects centuries of Malay, Chinese, Spanish and American influence. Start with adobo, sinigang, lechon, kare-kare and halo-halo, then explore regional dishes as you travel. Rice comes with almost everything, and many meals are shared from the middle of the table.

How Filipinos eat

• Rice is the base. Most dishes are ulam, toppings for rice. Unlimited rice is common in casual restaurants.
• Spoon and fork, not knife and fork. The spoon does the cutting. In some places, especially for grilled seafood, people eat with their hands (kamayan).
• Sawsawan: small dipping sauces of vinegar, soy sauce, calamansi (a small lime) and chilli let you adjust each bite.
• Merienda: an afternoon snack is almost a meal in itself.
• Sharing: dishes are ordered for the table, so order a mix.

20 dishes to try

1. Adobo

The unofficial national dish: chicken or pork braised in vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, bay leaf and pepper. Every family has its own version; some are dry and crisp, some saucy.

2. Sinigang

A sour soup, usually soured with tamarind, with pork, shrimp or fish and vegetables like water spinach, radish and long beans. Comforting and refreshing at once.

3. Lechon

Whole roasted pig with crackling skin. Cebu's version is seasoned inside with lemongrass and garlic and eaten without sauce; in Luzon it is usually served with a liver-based sauce.

4. Kare-kare

Oxtail and vegetables in a thick peanut sauce, served with bagoong, a salty shrimp paste that brings it to life.

5. Sisig

Chopped grilled pork, onions and chilli served sizzling on a hot plate, often with an egg on top. Originally from Pampanga, the country's culinary capital.

6. Lumpia

Spring rolls, either fried (lumpiang shanghai, small and meaty) or fresh with vegetables and a sweet sauce.

7. Pancit

Noodle dishes inherited from Chinese cooking, eaten at birthdays for long life. Pancit canton and pancit bihon are the most common.

8. Kinilaw

Raw fish cured in vinegar or calamansi with ginger, onion and chilli, similar to ceviche. Best by the sea.

9. Bulalo

Beef shank and marrow soup, a speciality of Tagaytay and Batangas.

10. Chicken inasal

Grilled chicken marinated in calamansi, lemongrass and annatto, from Bacolod in the Visayas, served with garlic rice and chicken oil.

11. Tinola

A light ginger chicken soup with green papaya and chilli leaves, often what Filipinos eat when they are unwell.

12. Bicol express

Pork stewed in coconut milk with plenty of chillies, from the spicy-loving Bicol region.

13. Laing

Taro leaves slow-cooked in coconut milk with chilli; rich and earthy, and an option for those who avoid meat if made without shrimp paste.

14. Tapsilog and the -silog breakfasts

Cured beef (tapa), garlic fried rice (sinangag) and a fried egg (itlog). Swap the meat for longganisa sausage or tocino and you get longsilog or tocilog.

15. Balut

A fertilised duck egg boiled and eaten from the shell, sold at night by street vendors. A challenge for many visitors; nobody will mind if you pass.

16. Isaw and street skewers

Grilled skewers of chicken or pork intestines, plus fish balls and kwek-kwek (quail eggs in orange batter), dipped in spiced vinegar.

17. Halo-halo

The classic dessert: shaved ice with evaporated milk, sweet beans, fruit, jelly, leche flan and purple yam (ube), mixed together before eating.

18. Ube desserts

Purple yam appears in jam, cakes, ice cream and pastries; its colour and gentle, nutty sweetness are unmistakable.

19. Bibingka and puto bumbong

Rice cakes traditionally sold outside churches at Christmas: bibingka is baked in banana leaves with salted egg, puto bumbong is purple sticky rice steamed in bamboo.

20. Dried mangoes and fresh fruit

Philippine mangoes are famously sweet. Look out also for calamansi juice, lanzones, rambutan and, if you dare, durian in Mindanao.

Where to eat

• Carinderia: small eateries with dishes displayed in pots; point to what you want. Cheap and authentic.
• Food courts and malls: air-conditioned and convenient, with local chains.
• Night markets and street stalls: for grilled skewers and snacks.
• Seafood markets (dampa) where you choose fresh fish and have it cooked next door.
• Restaurants serving regional or modern Filipino cuisine in Manila, Cebu and the tourist towns.

A guided food walk is the easiest way to try a lot in one go and learn what you are eating. In Manila, the street food walk with more than 15 local tastings covers classics and stalls locals trust. In Cebu, the heritage and street food walk adds the city's history and its own specialities like puso rice and ngohiong.

Street food safety

• Choose busy stalls where food is cooked fresh in front of you.
• Drink bottled or filtered water; ice in established restaurants is generally made from purified water.
• Raw dishes like kinilaw are best eaten at reputable places by the coast.
• Carry hand sanitiser and small change.

Halal, vegetarian and dietary needs

Pork is everywhere in Filipino cooking, and shrimp paste and fish sauce appear in many vegetable dishes. Still, there are options:

• Halal food is widely available in Muslim Mindanao, and in Manila around the Golden Mosque in Quiapo and in some malls. Some restaurants carry halal certification.
• Seafood and chicken dishes such as kinilaw, inihaw na isda (grilled fish) and chicken inasal are easy alternatives to pork.
• Vegetarians should ask for dishes without meat, broth, shrimp paste or fish sauce; vegetarian restaurants exist in larger cities.
• Learn the phrase walang baboy (no pork) and walang karne (no meat).

What to drink

Fresh buko (young coconut) water is sold everywhere, often straight from the shell. Calamansi juice is the local lemonade, and mango shakes are a staple of beach towns. Sago't gulaman is a sweet drink with tapioca pearls and jelly. For coffee, try strong kapeng barako from Batangas. Local beer is widely available, and lambanog, a strong coconut spirit, is best approached with caution.

FAQ

What is the national dish of the Philippines?

There is no official one, but adobo is widely considered the national dish.

Is Filipino food spicy?

Generally not. Most dishes are sour or savoury, and chilli is added at the table. Bicol cuisine is the main exception.

Can I find halal food in the Philippines?

Yes, especially in Mindanao and in Manila's Quiapo area near the Golden Mosque. Elsewhere, choose seafood or chicken dishes and ask about ingredients.

What should I try first?

Adobo, sinigang and halo-halo give a good first picture. Add lechon in Cebu and sisig in Manila or Pampanga.

Is street food safe?

Usually yes at busy stalls with freshly cooked food. A guided food tour helps you choose the right places.