Original local flavors win big in Villar SIPAG culinary showdown

The best cooks in the 20 barangays of Las Piñas City got together recently to showcase their best dishes and desserts for the annual cooking competition that kicked off the festivities for the city’s 2018 Food Festival.

Sen. Cynthia A. Villar welcomed the participants as she lauded them for going the extra mile in using modern techniques to make original and sumptuous culinary creations that display the Filipinos’ imaginative minds and innovative skills.

‘Filipinos are popular for their ingenuity. We are known for our ability to replicate foreign dishes and changing their tastes by introducing local ingredients to give them the unique flavors of the Philippine islands. Through this cooking competition, residents of Las Piñas City become gastronomic witnesses to the creativity of our local cooking experts,‘ said Villar, director of the Villar Social Institute for Poverty Alleviation and Governance (Villar SIPAG).

The senator said the cooking competition is a friendly contest that seeks to display not only the culinary skills of Las Piñas’ top 20 cooks, but likewise showcase innovative uses of local food resources. ‘Families can learn new ways on how to transform their regular dishes to something special and unique,’ she added.

The inter-barangay cooking showdown was held on Friday at the Villar SIPAG square in C5 Extension Road, Pulang Lupa Uno in Las Piñas City. The experts were asked to prepare a dish/viand cooked Pinoy-style using native ingredients, and a dessert that would impress and delight the sweet tooth and sugary buds of Filipinos. Barangay Talon 2 made the biggest impact and brought home P20,000 and a trophy for bagging the grand prize. Its entry Inadobong Lapu-Lapu sa Mantikilya and Cala-Squash Soup exploded the winning flavors in the judges’ mouths.

Barangay Pilar won the 1st Runner-Up trophy and P15,000 cash prize for its Lapu-Lapu Caramelized Onion and Mixed Vegetable Sour Soup. On the other hand, Barangay Talon 3 won P10,000 and a trophy as the 2nd Runner-Up for its Salmon with Hollandaise Sauce and Potato Soup in Sampaloc Broth.

The cooking competition entries were judged according to the following criteria: Overall impact and plating (30 percent); Taste (30 percent); Creativity and visual appeal (15 percent); Technique used (15 percent); and Hygiene and sanitation (10 percent).

Aside from the cooking competition, the 5th Las Piñas Food Festival also showcased a food exhibit with 40 exhibitors from Las Pinas City, other cities and municipalities in the National Capital Region, and other nearby regions and provinces. On display in the exhibits were native delicacies and local products for sampling and selling, fresh or ready to eat food products, processed foods, snacks and beverages, as well as fresh garden or farm produce.

Also during the annual event, winners of the Villar SIPAG Urban Gardening Competition were also announced. The winners were the BF International/CAA for the Inter-Barangay category, the Las Pinas East National High School for the Inter-School category, and the Phase 3 West Talon 2 for the Inter-Homeowners Associations category. Each category winner received a trophy and a cash prize of P50, 000 each.

For this year’s event festivities, the Villar SIPAG partnered with Silver Swan, Apicius, ELBA, Mushroomburger, Jollibee and Golden Oats to ensure the success of the gathering.