MATAMIS

It’s safe to say that at TIKIM we love the savory spectrum of food so when it comes to sweets, ‘matamis’ in Tagalog, we lean toward desserts that balance both sweet and savory. For the supper club on Sunday, we made sure the desserts on our menu do just that. We will be featuring Avocado Sorbetes, Cassava Cake and Ginataang Bilo Bilo.

AVOCADO SORBETES is definitely a childhood favorite. Growing up in the Philippines, avocados are generally used in sweet applications so after moving to the US, we had to adjust to avocados being on the savory side. We have memories mashing avocados, adding some sugar and milk and putting it in the freezer to enjoy cold. There was also avocado ice candy and of course, sorbetes which is Filipino ice cream (sometimes also known as dirty ice cream). Ice cream was introduced by the US right after ice and refrigeration. Our version of Avocado Sorbetes is served with Lengua de Gato, a buttery cookie.

CASSAVA CAKE falls in the category of Filipino desserts called kakanin. They are generally made from rice or other starchy ingredients like cassava or taro and usually include coconut milk. This dessert category spans many textures from puto which is more cake-like to more dense varieties like bibingka. Our Cassava Cake falls in the latter category and is topped with a sweet coconut cream and Beemster Gouda.

GINATAANG BILO BILO is a sweet coconut soup with glutinous rice dumplings or ‘bilo bilo’. There are versions of this in other Southeast Asian countries and is similar to the Chinese Tangyuan with the addition of coconut milk. Our version includes sweet yam, saba banana, jackfruit, tapioca pearls and ube bilo bilo which gives it a lavender hue.

To round out the dessert course, we will be serving Salabat, a soothing ginger tea.

If you are one of the few that snagged tickets to TIKIM’s upcoming dinner on Sunday @mestizopdx, you will get to taste these dishes. We are so excited to be able to share some of our Filipino favorites with you.

#tikimpdx #filipinofood #filipinocuisine #filipinoculture #filipinostories #portland #manila #matamis #dessert #avocadosorbetes #cassavacake #ginataangbilobilo #pdxfood #eater #eaterpdx

HAPUNAN

If you’ve been following our last few posts, you know where this is going. Our menu’s concept is A Day in Our Life and we are now heading into dinner, ‘hapunan’ in Tagalog. In a day where we’ve had a substantial merienda, this tends to be a little later than what we are used to in the States.

Determining what dish to feature was a subject of debate. Should we do an adobo course – pork, chicken or squid? Hubad? With coconut milk? – we can go deep. So much so that it seems like that is a supper club topic all by itself. Adobo has typically been most people’s introduction to Filipino food so instead, we wanted to highlight another one of our favorites. It is certainly popular but not often the star in the Filipino American repertoire and that is Kare Kare. This dish is probably not as celebrated in the US because it is eaten with Bagoong, an umami heavy and very pungent shrimp paste. In our humble opinion, you can’t eat Kare Kare without it. It’s so good together because it cuts through the richness of the dish.

KARE KARE is typically an oxtail and tripe stew, thickened with toasted rice and peanuts crushed in a mortar and pestle. It’s got a bit of an orange color due the the addition of atsuete or annatto seeds. Our version uses a collagen heavy oxtail broth, supercharged by beef shank with marrow. We also use both cashews and peanuts. We love this dish with tons of veggies too. Our favorites are long beans, eggplant 🍆 and bok choy 🥬. We are serving this with Bagoong and steamed rice 🍚.

If you are one of the few that snagged tickets to TIKIM’s upcoming dinner on Sunday @mestizo.pdx, you will get to taste this dish. Stay tuned as we highlight some of the other dishes we are making.

#tikimpdx #filipinofood #filipinocuisine #filipinoculture #filipinostories #portland #manila #hapunan #karekare #bagoong #pdxfood #eater #eaterpdx #pomomagazine #portlandmonthly

MERIENDA

Merienda, generally translates to a light snack in Spanish speaking countries, is a concept that was adopted by Filipino people from the colonization of the Philippines by Spain. It’s typically a meal enjoyed between the hours of 3-5PM since many Filipinos don’t eat dinner until 8PM or later. So, if ‘tanghalian’ is the meal that holds the day together, ‘merienda’ keeps it going. And merienda is the wild card! Merienda can feature sweet or savory fare, and they can range from small bites to something as filling as a main meal.

A popular stop for merienda is the famed Filipino fast food chain, @jollibee, where one could order an individual portion of the party favorites: Filipino Spaghetti and Pancit Palabok.

PANCIT PALABOK is a dish comprised of rice or cornstarch noodles topped with a rich shrimp stock based sauce that is reminiscent of a ragu. Classic garnishes include boiled eggs, chicharron, tinapa (dried fish) flakes, scallions, and fried garlic. We take it up a notch by subbing the fried tofu with fried calamares.

FILIPINO SPAGHETTI is a sweet style spaghetti that is a product of western colonization and the introduction to processed & canned foods in the Philippines. It’s prepared like a bolognese sauce, but with additions like banana ketchup and/or a little sugar to give the sauce a savory sweetness. Hot dogs are mixed into the sauce, and the dish is topped with shredded cheese (processed or cheddar to get the full effect).

Those who will be joining us for our first Tikim Supper Club pop up at @mestizo.pdx this Sunday will get a taste of our takes on these cult classics. We’ll continue to give you all sneak peeks of the “A Day in Our Life” menu in store for Sunday, and we hope you stay tuned!

#tikimpdx #filipinofood #filipinocuisine #filipinoculture #manila #manilafood #jollibee #kaintayo #palabok #pancit #filipinospaghetti #pomomagazine #portlandmonthly #eaterpdx #pdxfood #supperclub

TANGHALIAN

To Filipinos, no meal is necessarily more important than the other but lunch, ‘tanghalian’ in Tagalog, is the meal that holds the day together. A typical lunch could consist of a main (or two), soup, and of course, rice. In Manila, one could be looking forward to finally having their baon (packed lunch, or in some cases, lunch money) at school or work, finding the best lunch promos at restaurants found in malls and strip malls, strolling to a neighborhood carenderia, or gathering in their home’s dining room, usually right at noon on the dot.

We’re excited to share two of our shared childhood favorites, Sinigang and Inihaw na Liempo.

SINIGANG is a soup or stew that has a boldly savory and sour flavor. Most commonly, the broth is soured using tamarind, but other preparations include using green guava, unripe mango, vinegar, and/or citrus as souring agents. The version we will be preparing is with hipon (shrimp), and one could use any protein or extra veggies.

INIHAW NA LIEMPO is a form of grilled pork barbecue, typically using pork belly. The meat is prepared with a liquid marinade, but every household and vendor have their own methods. The aggressive char from coals give the dish its signature flavor. It’s dipped in a bit of Sinamak or spiced vinegar – it’s a hit of acidity to cut through the richness of the pork belly.

ENSALADANG KAMATIS is an ubiquitous accompaniment for anything grilled. It’s a simple preparation of fresh tomatoes and onions, sometimes on their own and sometimes dressed simply with vinegar and salt or fish sauce.

If you are one of a few that snagged tickets to TIKIM’s upcoming dinner, you will get to experience dishes that make up A Day In Our Life and will get to taste these dishes. Stay tuned as we highlight some of the other dishes we are making.

#tikimpdx #filipinofood #filipinocuisine #filipinoculture #manila #manilafood #tanghalian #kaintayo #eatallyoukanin #pomomagazine #portlandmonthly #eaterpdx #pdxfood #supperclub

ALMUSAL

If you love Filipino food, you know that breakfast, ‘almusal’ in Tagalog, is our jam. If you are new to Filipino food, you may also have experienced our food for the first time through a Silog. It’s Sinangag (garlic fried rice) and Itlog (egg) abbreviated together. Silogs are often eaten with our favorite breakfast protein like Longanisa, Tapa or Tocino.

Apart from Silogs, there are also other dishes we love to have for breakfast and we are here to talk about two of our favorites growing up – Arroz Caldo and Tortang Talong.

ARROZ CALDO is a savory rice porridge that is heavily flavored by chicken and ginger with fish sauce, calamansi, fried garlic, scallions and eggs as toppings. It’s often eaten for breakfast during the colder months because it warms you up.

TORTANG TALONG it’s an eggplant omelette made by grilling a whole eggplant until it’s charred to give it a smoky flavor. Our version has tomatoes, mushrooms and ground pork. It’s typically served with Banana Ketchup to balance the savory with a little sweet.

When diving into Arroz Caldo and Tortang Talong’s etymology, it’s hard not to be reminded of its colonial roots. Arroz Caldo is Spanish (ARROZ - Rice, CALDO - Broth) but the dish’s savory origin is Chinese congee (lugaw in Tagalog). As for Tortang Talong, a TORTA is an omelette in Spanish.

Although the names may be influenced by the Philippines’s colonial past, these dishes are intrinsically Filipino.

If you are one of the lucky ones that snagged tickets to TIKIM’s upcoming dinner, you will get to experience dishes that make up A Day In Our Life and will get to taste these two dishes. Stay tuned as we highlight some of the other dishes we are making.

Let us know what you think or what your favorite breakfast is in the comments below. 👇🏼

#tikimpdx #filipinofood #filipinocuisine #filipinoculture #filipinostories #portland #manila #almusal #arrozcaldo #tortangtalong #pdxfood #eater #eaterpdx #pomomagazine #portlandmonthly