Philippines vs Italian food & cuisine

Philippines

SEASONINGS

Filipino flavors are built in layers, then finished at the table. First, the cook builds the base in the pot, but the diner also cooperates and participates while choosing and adding sawsawans (dippings) entirely to his liking, and that transforms the whole taste and experience.

Filipino cooking is organized among the three dominant axes of sour, salty-umami, and sweet. The very core flavors are salty and sour, as sweetness appears, but rarely dominates. Heat is optional and very personal (except for Bicol region and Mindanao, where spice pastes and chilies are prominent). Filipino cooking also conspicuously skips fresh herbs as a finishing element, which Thai, Vietnamese, and Indonesian cuisines rely on heavily.

Salt is fundamentally important to preserve from spoilage, it comes through patis fish sauce, bagoong isda fermented fish paste, bagoong alamang fermented shrimp paste, and soy sauce. Salt as a bare mineral is the condiment of last resort.  Umami comes from those same fermented ingredients, from long-cooked meat broths, from dried and smoked fish added to stews, and from annatto-colored fat used to start dishes.

Then the saltiness is paired with sourness, which also helps preserve. The Philippines uses vinegar on a fundamentally different scale and in a structurally different way than its neighbors do. Neighboring cuisines use chili to wake up the senses, but Filipinos use vinegar, and this is the core distinction. Vinegars come from palm sap, coconuts, sugarcane, and sugarcane wine. Sourness extensively comes from fruits – tamarind (sour fruit pod), calamansi (tangy citrus), kamias (cucumber tree, acidic green fruit), guava, green mango, batuan (small green sour fruit).

Anato (achiotte) is a coloring spice. It consists of annatto seeds fried in oil, which turn dishes a bright orange-red color. Simmering ingredients in coconut milk — a technique called ginataan — appears often. Coconut milk gata absorbs and carries fat-soluble flavors, softens acidity, and adds richness.  Ginger deodorizes fish and meat, warms broths; bay leaves, a direct inheritance from Spanish cooking, feature braises — adobo, mechado, kaldereta. At the table, achara — green papaya pickled in vinegar and spices — sits apart from the sawsawan lineup to cleanse the palate.

Filipinos flavor building starts with gisa. The gisa is the base for adobo, kare-kare, mechado, afritada, monggo, pancit, many soups. From its contents, it has a lot of ties with Spanish sofrito.  Garlic goes first, browning until golden and fragrant. Onion follows, softening in the garlic-infused oil. Tomato goes last, its liquid is released to form the base liquid of the dish.

One of the most personal parts of a Filipino meal is  sawsawan, a fundamental Filipino dipping sauce, and ultimate flavor customization tool. Some common elements in the sawsawan lineup include:

Suka (vinegar) — usually cane or coconut, sometimes spiced with garlic and labuyo. Used with virtually everything fried or fatty. The vinegar cuts grease and provides the sour axis.

Toyo (soy sauce) — thinner and saltier than Japanese soy sauce, provides the salty-umami axis. Often combined with calamansi to make toyomansi, the most common everyday condiment.

Patis (fish sauce) — patis has many uses in the Filipino kitchen: as a dipping sauce, as a source of salt, and as a flavoring agent. Many Filipino cooks use it instead of salt. In sinigang, for example, there is no salt in the ingredients list; the dish is finished with patis, which adds salinity as well as its own distinctive flavor.

Calamansi — provides the bright, floral citrus note that lime and lemon cannot replicate. It is squeezed directly over anything that needs brightness.

Bagoong — Fermented fish or shrimp paste for deep, complex umami. It has specific pairings, most notably kare-kare and green mango.

Most sawsawan are assembled raw at the table. Lechon sauce is the major exception, and it is a genuinely unusual preparation as it includes water, sugar, breadcrumbs, vinegar, salt, liver, spices, and pepper. Ground roasted liver is the most important ingredient.

BANANA KETCHUP— condiment made from banana, sugar, vinegar, and spices. Its natural color is brownish-yellow, but it is often dyed red to resemble tomato ketchup. Uniquely Filipino, paired with fried chicken, hot dogs, and fast food

PALAPA —  a traditional condiment from the Maranao people of Mindanao, consisting of a spicy and aromatic blend from chopped scallion bulbs, ginger, turmeric, chilies, and often toasted coconut.

Italy

SEASONINGS

Italian flavorings are less oriented to spices and more towards fresh herbs and aromatics. Dried herbs rarely appear in Italian cooking, except for dried bay leaves in soups or a pinch of oregano in tomato sauce. Almost all herbs are used fresh when they’re still full of aromatic oils. If one cannot get the fresh herb specified in the recipe, an alternative fresh herb would be a better choice than using a dried herb. Italians prefer using one or a few herbs to emphasize their character and not overpower one another. Therefore, the Italian spice mix does not exist in mainland Italy; it is a concept made up of foreigners.

Many recipes begin by sauteing garlic and onions in olive oil to create a flavor base, yet dishes are not loaded with garlic, despite the popular belief. It is not rare for anchovies to join onion and garlic; altogether, they blend into a deep, umami flavor.

Caper and olives are used extensively; they add a deep, tangy flavor and are often paired with tomatoes.

Vinegar  (wine, balsamic) is essential in salad dressings, marinades, sauces, reductions, and even desserts. Earthy porcini and truffle flavors are very iconic and not rare.

SAUCES

SUGO DI POMODORO – This essential yet straightforward sauce is made from ripe tomatoes, garlic or onion, olive oil, and sometimes fresh basil.

PESTO ALLA GENOVESE – made by crushing fresh basil leaves, garlic, pine nuts, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and Pecorino cheese, all blended with olive oil.

AGLIO E OLIO – southern Italian sauce made from sautéed garlic in olive oil, often with the addition of red pepper flakes (peperoncino) for heat.

SUGO ALLA PUTTANESCA – bold sauce made with tomatoes, garlic, olives, capers, and anchovies.

SALSA VERDE – this green sauce is made from parsley, capers, garlic, anchovies, and vinegar, blended with olive oil. It is commonly served with meats, particularly in northern Italy.

SALSA DI FUNGHI – a northern Italian sauce made from sautéed mushrooms, garlic, onions, and sometimes cream or white wine.

BAGNA CAUDA – from Piedmont, this is a warm sauce made from garlic, anchovies, olive oil, and sometimes butter. It’s traditionally served with raw or cooked vegetables for dipping.

ARRABBIATA – a spicy tomato sauce made with garlic and red chili peppers (peperoncino), typical of Roman cuisine.

SOFFRITTO –  a fundamental base for many dishes, sautéd chopped onions, carrots, and celery in olive oil (or sometimes butter). This technique is essential in creating the flavor foundation for sauces, soups, and stews.