A vegetable stew of bitter melon, eggplant, okra, squash, and string beans flavored with fermented fish paste (bagoong). Unlike lowland versions, the Ilocano original uses bagoong isda (fermented fish) rather than shrimp paste and emphasizes bitterness as a prized flavor. 1)
Deep-fried pork belly boiled first, then fried until blistered and crackling. Often served with vinegar dip or alongside pinakbet, it represents Ilocos’ fondness for both preservation and indulgence. 2)
Grilled pork face and ears chopped finely and dressed with calamansi, onions, and sometimes mashed pig’s brain for creaminess. Originally a pulutan (drinking dish), it showcases Ilocano nose-to-tail cooking. 3)
Charred eggplant mashed with tomatoes, onions, and scrambled eggs. The name imitates the chopping sound of knives on wood. Smoky, simple, and frugal, it is a farmer’s everyday dish. 4)
A sauté of pork liver and other offal with soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, and bell peppers. Its Spanish-derived name hints at colonial-era influence, but the flavor profile is distinctly Ilocano. 5)
A lighter vegetable broth dish closely related to pinakbet but soupier and often including grilled fish flakes. It is typically served hot to contrast with freshly steamed rice. 6)
A bitter soup made from goat or beef innards, flavored with bile (papait means “bitter”). The bitterness is intentional and culturally appreciated rather than masked. 7)
Garlicky, sour pork sausages traditionally made in Vigan. They are smaller, redder, and more acidic than many other Filipino longganisa varieties. 8)
A bright orange rice-flour turnover filled with green papaya, mung beans, egg, and longganisa, then deep-fried. Found particularly in street stalls of Vigan and Batac. 9)
Sticky rice mixed with coconut and sugar, wrapped in banana leaves and grilled over charcoal. Its smoky sweetness makes it a popular roadside snack. 10)
Rice packed into woven coconut leaf pouches and boiled. It is commonly eaten with grilled meats and is especially associated with festivals. 11)
Fermented sugarcane wine, historically significant enough to have sparked the Basi Revolt of 1807. Its sweet-sour complexity reflects Ilocos’ sugarcane fields. 12)
Traditional cane vinegar aged in clay jars (burnay). It is darker and milder than industrial vinegar and central to many Ilocano dishes. 13)
Glutinous rice cake baked in banana leaves, firm and slightly smoky, often sold in coastal towns of La Union and Pangasinan. 14)
A beef innards soup soured with kamias or vinegar and often enriched with bile. It shares the Ilocano affection for assertive, cleansing flavors. 15)