Filipino dishes have been gaining global recognition recently. Tortang talong was named the best egg dish in the world, while adobo, sinigang, and sisig have been featured countless times in international TV shows and vlogs. Aside from the way we prepare these dishes, a factor that makes Filipino food so great is the herb and spices we use as ingredients. Some of them are not even unique to us, but how we integrate them into our dishes makes our meals appetizing.
Common Culinary Herbs Used In Filipino Dishes
Bay Leaf
Bay leaf or dahon ng laurel is a popular herb used in adobo, but you can also use it in menudo and mechado. Bay leaf has a fragrant smell that counters the pungent flavor of food ingredients.
Garlic
Fried rice made from leftover rice or bahaw becomes magical with garlic. Our local garlic is smaller than its international counterparts, but it is more flavorful and aromatic.
Ginger
Porridge or lugaw gets a kick of flavor with ginger. Its acidity balances out the richness of meat dishes. Tinola will not be great without luya.
Pandan
Pandan is a versatile ingredient as you can use it in various meals – from meat dishes to desserts. You can use it to add mild flavor and fragrance to the rice. It also makes chicken more appetizing. And let’s not forget buko pandan, a top-tier Filipino snack and dessert.
Tamarind
A sweet snack when ripe, a souring agent when not ripe, that’s tamarind or sampalok. Nothing can beat tamarind when it comes to giving sinigang, our famous stew with pork, fish, or chicken, its “asim-kilig” flavor.
Lemongrass
Tanglad, or lemongrass leaves and stalks, add fragrance and flavor to dishes, just like pandan. It’s a great addition to chicken dishes.
Chili pepper
Chili pepper or siling labuyo is a hot commodity in Pinoy kitchens. It makes ginataan and Bicol express irresistible.
How to Store Fresh Herbs to Keep Fresh Longer
Just like with any food ingredient, proper storage of herbs is important so that their flavors are kept intact. Here is a food storage guide for your herbs.
- Classify herbs based on type.
Herbs can be classified as either tender or hard. A tender herb has tender and green stems. A hard herb meanwhile has a hard wooden stem.
- Wash and dry herbs.
Whether it’s tender or hard herbs, you should wash them to remove dirt and bacteria that can affect their longevity. Then spread them out or use a dish towel to dry.
- Store them in the fridge.
If you are going to use them soon, you can clip off stems of tender herbs and place them in a container like a mason jar or glass. Add about an inch of water. Think of it like preserving a stem of a rose. Then, place them in the fridge, replacing the water every day or two. For hardier herbs, you can simply chill them in the ref after wrapping them in a paper towel and then in plastic wraps.
If you are going to use them a little later, you can blend tender herbs with oil or water, put them in ice cube trays, and freeze them. You can also chop them instead, add a bit of oil or water, place them in a bag, and put them in the freezer. This works if you don’t want to use a blender or ice cube trays. You can then store them for months. For hard herbs, you can wrap them the same way we mentioned earlier, but this time put them in a resealable freezer bag and store them in the freezer.
Best Refrigerator Recommendations for Filipino Households
Now that you are familiar with dry food storage guidelines, the question is, “Do you have the right refrigerator where you can store your herbs?” If you’re in the market for a new ref, then go with a Condura refrigerator.
Condura has Ultima Refrigerators, which can help you store your herbs at a low cost thanks to its inverter compressor. It costs only Php6 per day based on Meralco Average Daily Rate (PHP 9.9468) from October-December (CBF-254i Model). If you need lots of storage space for your herbs, then you’ll enjoy our Ultima No Frost Bottom Freezer as it has the biggest freezer size among 9 cu.ft. bottom freezers. It can house up to 84 liters of food items. while the 12 cu.ft. model can house up to 97 liters. Also, with its Ultrafreeze Technology, this no frost refrigerator helps you maintain the nutrients and flavors of your newly stored herbs.
The Condura Ultima No Frost Inverter Bottom Freezer CBF-254i model also looks stylish with a jet-black glass finish that is easy to clean and scratch-resistant.
For something more affordable but still delivers Condura’s brand of performance and durability, get one of our Prima refrigerators. Condura Prima Inverter Refrigerator is the most affordable Condura inverter refrigerator. Its inverter technology lets you efficiently cool your herbs and other food items while spending less on your electricity bill. Spend only Php3.58 per day using this ref thanks to its high energy efficiency factor based on the Average Meralco rate of Php9.9468 per kWh computation of CSD510MNi, October to December 2020.
Being a Filipino brand, Condura knows the Filipinos’ unique needs. That’s why we provide top-notch home solutions for Filipino families. If you want to know about refrigerator price in the Philippines and our products, you can check our website. Once you are ready, you can buy directly from our online stores (Condura e-store, Lazada Flagship Store, and Shopee Mall) or from our dealer partners’ online stores and physical stores.
