âBibingka" is a short film that explores how recipes tell stories of migration and cultural survival through the lens of Filipino foods. Behind everyâŚ
Reflections from the making the Community MealÂ
I'm still vibing from the community meal I made on Tuesday đđ It was a lot of work and I think I've only gotten over my tiredness now but that event felt really good. This film somehow made me deal with some thoughts and feelings that I have and I'm finally writing it down for memory's sake. I'm able to process a lot of things by making Filipino food for my family, for my friends, then to the broader community.
I come from an immigrant family where my parents really miss the idea of home. When I cook different ulams for our family meals, it used to make me furious to make separate food that they can baon to work and I would ask, "why don't you just baon that sopas I made, there's so much of it!?!" đŹđŹ They would baon sandwiches/pasta/salad/whatever the fuck white people eat to assimilate. So much internalized shame that latched on to me too. Later on they would tell a story of how one of their nonwhite coworkers brought food from their own culture, and we talked about how they could do the same. They now baon adobo, bistek, or pinakbet. But still won't baon sopas tho đ
At potlucks, I used to bring this eggplant parm that kinda looked like naked lasagna. I'm not much of a dessert maker, so most of what I know to cook is savoury. But the savoury things I knew were ulam and had to be served with rice lols đđ But as I grew more comfortable with my friends, I felt that it was okay to share food that I also made at home. I'd bring pancit or ginataang kalabasa. One time I even brought stir fried ampalaya/bitter melon and was able to share my fondness for ampalaya đ (my 2nd fave vegetable afterđ). I feel that when I share the food I grew up with with my friends, that I am sharing my true self. I love how I'm learning new ways of cooking familiar dishes from my friends' take on an ulam. And I love how I'm learning more about my friends too and their connection with food and culture with what they cook
Filipino food has been ~trending in the west for at least 5yrs now lol đŠđŠFilipino fusion food is a thing. Highlighting flavour profiles that are similar in different cultures is def one way of introducing new people to the food. Like, "you know goat roti, right? Well, similar flavours can be found in caldereta!" But idk, that outward focus on making food, that need to be approved by others. It feels not too different from bringing a ham sandwich so your coworkers won't look at you weird when you try to heat up your lunch đŹđđŞ
And then on the opposite end of the spectrum, there's this search for the authentic. Like, some people take so much pride in making things ~from scratch and how all their ingredients are ~pure. In this video, one woman who grew up in the US was talking about making sinigang in her parents' hometown, and the locals used a flavour packet for the soup base as opposed to using ~fresh tamarind. I like how she says that was a reality check to her and says, "who am I to say that this is not authentic?" đŁđŁLiving so far from the Philippines, it's sometimes really hard to get the ingredients to make ~authentic Filipino food. It's a reminder that those who /can/ get their damn ~pure ingredients are also the ones who have privilege and access due to their socioeconomic class. It gets SO RIDIC sometimes that people are made to feel bad because they don't make "authentic" food!! đŹđŹđŹ Sweet spaghetti with hotdogs. Salisbury style burger steak with mushroom gravy. Chickenjoy and other things you can find at Jollibee. Food that is associated with the low-to middle-class that some Filipinos disassociate themselves from because it's not "authentic". Like, you never ate/had to eat Jollibee? Check your privilege!!! đšđšThese are authentically Filipino too, because it is what we grew up with, it gives us comfort and makes us feel at ease in our own skin.
ANYWAY đđ I just really wanted to express how good it felt to share food that I make at home to coworkers and friends and people in the community. It felt empowering to never had been told that I had to tone down some flavours. I believe that if people have been eating their food for most their lives, that we should just trust that it's good and enjoy it.
Ok I'm done, I think I'll make a zine out of this rant lol
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