Kitchen Rescue

Around the Philippines throughthelechon liempo

By: Reggie Aspiras
Philippine Daily Inquirer
2:43 am | Thursday, September 15th, 2011
2share42 32

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Former Malacaang chef Babes Austria, now of Taal Vista,

her mastery of the different regional takes on the high
and mighty lechon.
Finally, I was able to take that long-awaited trip to
Taal Vista Hotel upon chef Babes Austrias
invitation.

With the Adobo Queen herself, Nancy Reyes

Lumen, and chefs J. Gamboa, James Antolin and
Sau del Rosario, I judged the Junior Chefs Cup
Challenge 2011 at Taal Vista, a culinary competition for children 8-12 years of age, from 16
different schools in Metro Manila and the Calabarzon (Cavite-Laguna-Batangas-Rizal-Quezon)
area.
A total of 335 students participated in the culinary aptitude exam and only 31 students with an 80
percent score qualified for the competition.
What sets this competition apart is that the proceeds of the event will go to Brave Kids, a
foundation ministering to kids fighting cancer.
After a very busy day, cooking for the cocktails and attending to every single detail, chef Babes
headed back to the kitchen to marinate her lechon.
Being the moving spirit behind the affair, Austria felt that such a special event deserved a
sprinkling of culinary masterpieces. So, she went all out and did her lechon four ways!
Few people have dissected the Filipino favorite as much as this chef has. Shes been all over the
Philippines, perfecting the recipe from every province that has a unique interpretation of it; trying
to come as close to the original as possible, adjusting it as she deems fit and, oftentimes,
whipping up a more polished rendition.
Rightfully so, she was after all, Malacaang chef during the administration of Gloria MacapagalArroyo. It is only but right that she prepares our lechon to perfection. And perhaps it was her
Malacaang stint that deepened her desire to really master native dishes.
Austrias version, is made from the most flavorful part of the pig, its belly. A whole boneless slab
of liempo, marinated overnight, rolled, tied and roasted.
For her Lechon Cebu, she laid a whole 8-kg pork belly slab, meat side up. She then rubbed it
generously with soy sauce, combined with 350 g onion leeks, chopped, and c black
peppercorns. She then sprinkled c rock salt and put a whole leek in the center. The slab was
rolled, marinated overnight and roasted in the oven until golden.

Lechon Tagalog was done exactly the same as Cebu, but instead of soy, she rubbed it with patis
combined with 250 g banana leaves, chopped, c sampaloc leaves and florets then sprinkled
with c rock salt.
Lechon Cotabato was again rubbed and
massaged with fish sauce, this time combined
with
250 g garlic, chopped, 250 g sampaloc leaves
fresh,
250
g
ginger,
chopped,
1
sprig lemongrass, sprinkled with c rock salt
and
c black peppercorns.
Lechon Butuan was also rubbed with marinade
that
consisted of patis combined with 250 g garlic,
chopped, 200 g sweet red bell pepper, 250 g ginger, chopped, 1 sprig lemongrass then FCC with
a sprinkling of c rock salt and c black peppercorns.
Come lunchtime the following day, the liempos were all in a row, beautifully paraded, in their full,
crisp, golden brown glory. Each pork variant had its own distinct character and flavor, all equally
good.
Without a doubt, lechon still remains the star of any buffet, with the longest line of loyal followers.
Kid chefs at Taal Vista
Certainly, a lot changed and is still changing at Taal Vista Hotel under the reigns of chef Babes,
whose love for our native cuisine, her desire to bring it to new heights and whose dedication to
the craft has been not just a blessing for all of us who know her but, of late, has been
instrumental in the fulfillment of young culinary dreams.
The children are a sight to see, a joy to watch. Many adults cannot even cook half as well or
come up with dishes as tasty as these little hands do.
At such a tender age they cook with much heart and unwavering confidence!
There was one spirited child who caught our attention,
Nicole Mae David. Throughout the competition, while
she was cooking, she kept dancing, nonstop. Her
energy was infectious.
I asked her, why do you dance while cooking, Nicole?
Because when you dance, your food smiles at you!
Indeed, her food smiled at us, and so did all the dishes
of the 31 children, who so bravely took the challenge.
They came, they cooked and they conquered, not just our
palates but our hearts
If you wish to watch kids cooking for kids, the competition is on all Sundays of September at 1
p.m. Finals will be on the 25th.
But before watching the competition, do not forget to savor the flavors of the Philippines rolled in
a succulent slab of lechong liempo.
For inquiries, call Taal Vista Hotel at (02) 8864325 or (46) 4131000.

For information on my new cooking class schedules, call 0917-5543700, 0908-2372346,

4008496, 9289296.
E-mail the author at raspiras@inquirer.com.ph