For a typical Filipina lady, family comes first and this is something you have to instill in your system to better understand her and her culture. This factor could contribute to the success or failure of your relationship or marriage.

The family is considered as the basic unit of society in the Philippines and for a Filipina, faithfulness to her family take first priority. You may not believe that there are cases when a choice has to be made, the Filipina lady will choose her parents or family over you. (they have a saying you can get another husband but there’s only one set of parents for her).

When the children are still small, the parents do all they can to meet hardships and sacrifice to give them a better future. Thus, when the children are all grown up and are working, they are committed to their parents and they have one desire, and that is to work and make the life of their parents easier. The children are hesitant to leave home even when they are married and have kids of their own.

Frequently they would build an extension wing to the original house and the grandmother is once again taking care of kids – this time her grand children. They eat meals together, or in cases where families cook separately, they still knock on each other’s door and share their meals. Mealtimes, especially dinner is very rarely a formal setting. In fact, it s a pleasant get-together for the whole family as they swap stories about the day’s events.

In a typical Filipino family, the women are brought up with the tradition that when they marry, their husbands will take care of them and they will stay as housewives and take care of the family and the children. Times are changing though as more women found independence and satisfaction in working and earning their own money.

Filipino families have high regard for integrity, dignity, honor. They show high respect for the their parents and the elderly. Children do not call their parents by their first names like western countries because for them, this shows lack of respect. Fathers are commonly called Daddy, Papa, Tatang, and Tatay while mothers are called Mommy, Mama, Nanang and Nanay.

Probably nine out of 10 Filipinos would not think of sending their aged parents or even grandparents to any institution to be cared for by strangers. You must know that you have more fingers in your hands than there are homes for the aged in the Philippines.

The moment you say the heavily loaded words “I do” in front of the judge or the priest, you must understand that you are not marrying only the “perfect Filipina bride” for you but you are taking a whole package for life. Do not be surprised that right after your wedding you have earned yourself 2,000 new relatives whom you do not know. Strange children will kiss your hand and call you uncle, while adults may shake your hand or pat your arm and welcome you into the family.

One final piece of advice: Do not ever promise marriage to a lady if you are not serious. Filipina ladies do not play around and if you abandon her after taking liberties with her, the family loyalty takes over. Consider yourself lucky if you can go home and your mother can still recognize you, not after brothers, parents, uncles, cousins, neighbors (and those 2,000 new relatives you were about to acquire) runs to your girlfriend’s “rescue”. Blood is thicker than water, after all.

If you are a Filipino, it is safe to assume that you are a coffee lover. You may have grown up in a household where your parents or older siblings often drink coffee, which is probably the reason why you learned how to drink coffee early in your life, too. Actually, as strange as it may seem, there are some kids as young as seven who already have a liking for coffee. Anyway, with the emergence of coffee shops everywhere, and easy to make coffee, it’s not hard to understand why more and more Filipinos like to think of themselves as coffee lovers.

Some fun (and maybe a little bit odd) facts about Pinoys and Coffee

Of course, as Filipinos, there are certain things about coffee – and your relationship with coffee – that are truly unique. Here are some of those things:

• Filipinos often take coffee in the morning to help them get energized and prepare for the long day ahead.
• Some even pour coffee over rice as “sabaw”. Yep, Filipinos do love soupy rice because it makes eating more fun.
• Filipinos love to dip bread or biscuits in coffee. Just like Oreo Cookies and Milk, Coffee and biscuits seem to be the perfect fit. Yum, yum.
• Aside from biscuits, Pandesal is also an awesome partner of coffee. Pandesal is every Filipino’s staple breakfast food and all-time favorite bread. Pair it with coffee, or dip it in coffee and you’re good.
• Coffee is also often taken during snacks. For a lot of Filipinos, no merienda is complete without coffee.

Proudly Filipino

One type of coffee that can be called as proudly Filipino is Kapeng Barako. Kapeng Barako is native to Batangas. Barako literally means “Alpha Male”, which could also explain why this coffee tastes so bitter-but you have to admit, it tastes really good, too. Think you know everything you need to know about Kapeng Barako? Think again.

• Barako is actually a tree. It got its name from the old Tagalog term for “Wild Boar”. Wild Boars love to eat a Barako tree’s leave sand fruits.
• The first Barako tree was planted in the 1800’s by the Macaset Family in Batangas. They got a cutting of the tree from a trip to Brazil.
• Basically, all coffee beans that hail from Batangas are called “Barako”.
• Kapeng Barako is known for being intensely flavorful and strong smelling.
• And, get this, some spas actually use Kapeng Barako as a body scrub!

It’s amazing how great the coffee industry in the Philippines is and how much Filipinos love coffee. It’s one of those things that make living in the Philippines amazing-and wherever you may be in the world, remembering Pinoys’ love for coffee will make you feel like you’re back at home.

When the Spanish came to the kingdoms of pre-colonial Philippines, they brought their horses, their religion and way of life. The Spanish entered the country in the cluster of islands between the two larger islands of the North and South — the Visayan Islands. It was here that the European influence inflicted the first culture shock before they radiated outwards to the rest of the country in the 1500’s. Perhaps this is why certain monster myths persist more in this region to this day. It is here that stories of horse-headed monsters and flying vampire creatures abound. The nature of these monsters reveal the repressed fears of a people robbed of their past. Carl Jung once said that “… the whole of mythology could be taken as a sort of projection of the collective unconscious. ” A people project the collective undercurrents of their history through the myths that they perpetuate. Two mythical creatures shed light on the impact of colonization to the Filipino psyche.

The Tikbalang, the Horse-headed Giant

The tikbalangs are creatures normally seen at the entrance of woods. They were said to be around 10 feet tall, with the head of horse and a very hairy man’s body. Old legends warn that tikbalangs raped women who then give birth to tikbalangs. Apart from that, they are said to lead travelers astray, giving them illusory visions of tall golden buildings. When a victim finds himself in the spell of a tikbalang, his only defense is to wear his shirt inside out. Some believe that the tikbalang was a creation of the Spanish in order to discourage night wanderings. The names are not Spanish in origin, unlike the encandados which are reminiscent of European fairy tales. To this day, locals in that region report seeing these creatures at night. The nature of the tikbalang seems to have a symbolic significance. Horses were foreign to Filipinos before the Spanish arrived. In a Filipino’s mind a horse represents a Spaniard. Hairy and tall is also what sets the European man apart from the Filipino man. It seems that the Filipino collective unconscious churned out a creature that symbolically laments the raping of its nation. Since the arrival of the Spaniards, their land became a place to spawn this foreign seed unto its people. The tikbalangs confuse travelers on their way home with illusory promises of wealth and progress, only getting the victim nowhere near home. The only way to find their way back is to wear the self “inside out”. The myth of tikbalangs emerged it seems to call the Filipino psyche into awareness of the dangers of being raped by the influence of tall horse-men.

The Manananggal Vampires

Perhaps more persistent than the tikbalang is the manananggal. This creature was a normal person prior to the passing of a mysterious white rock by the mother, which the next in line is supposed to swallow. Still looking like a normal person by day; at night, the manananggal roams the woods in search of a secluded place to leave the lower part of her body. The upper part detaches from the waste up. The upper torso grows gigantic bat wings. It would then roam the skies in search of houses of pregnant women. The manananggal feeds on fetuses at night while the mother sleeps soundly in bed using its thread-like tongue that can go through a tiny hole in the roof. The tongue finds it way to a pregnant woman’s belly and sucks the blood out of the unborn child. It is believed that to kill a manananggal, you have to find its lower body and put salt on it, preventing the upper half to reattach. When dawn breaks before the manananggal attaches to its lower half, the morning light will burn it to death. This more malevolent creature seems to signify the unrecognized fears of the Filipinos that it has become separated from its roots. The word manananggal literally means, “one who removes.” The demonic quality is swallowed willingly from parents who pass it on by mouth, symbolizing that it is through word of mouth that the cultural vampirism is perpetuated. While the unconscious, represented by lower half of the body, remains rooted in the land; the upper half, the conscious, terrorizes the mind and feeds upon the future generation of Filipinos that will not be born. By purifying the source, the darkness can no longer connect the roots of the land. It is by isolating the part of culture that feeds on the future Filipinos, they can expose the monster for what it is — an infection of the mind that cuts them off from their heritage.

While the legacy of Spain is now an integral part of Filipino life with more than 70% of its inhabitants actively practicing Catholicism, the mutilation of Filipino heritage resounds to this day in the area of the country that felt it the most, the Visayan Islands. Most Filipinos embrace Catholicism completely and continue to make it a part of their culture centuries after the Spanish left the country. But a part of the collective Filipino unconscious is searching for its forgotten identity. There, lurking underneath the fervent praying of the rosary in the daytime and the nightmarish stories of tikbalangs and manananggals at night, is a people that unconsciously mourns the history it has lost.

Before there was Manny Pacquiao here were other Filipinos making a name in western boxing. Filipinos have been in the game of western boxing since the early 1900’s. Since then Filipinos have also helped to revolutionize what is known as western boxing. In taking a brief look at the history of western boxing and the time Filipinos have been exposed to it you will see what transpired.

Go back to the early 1900’s. Picture the US military in Hawaii. The US brought to Hawaii with them the sport of boxing. The Filipino migrant workers brought with them various forms of Filipino Martial Arts like kali, escrima and arnis just to name a few. Combine those two and you get the beginning of the evolution of western boxing.

Did you know that there were Filipino World Champions in boxing dating back to the 1920’s? Would you recognize the names Francisco Guilledo “Pancho Villa”, Ceferina Garcia, Dado Marinom, Flash Elorde or Bernard Docusen? Odds are like mot those names are unknown. In short, Bernard Docusen “Filipino Cajun” in 1948 lost a decision to Sugar Ray Robinson in a welterweight title match. If you know anything about boxing odds are you have heard of Sugar Ray Robinson. Francisco Guillerdo was so good in the sport of boxing that he was inducted in the Hall of Fame in 1961. There were many more great pinoy boxers but sadly are not very well known.

What is even lesser known was the influence Pinoy boxers had on western boxing as a whole. The Pinoy fighters brought in aspects of kali, arnis and escrima into the sport. The Pinoy fighters had to adjust their styles to conform to the rules of the sport. Basically anything considered illegal or “dirty” boxing was what the Pinoy fighters had to learn to stop doing! The elbowing, head butting and stepping on the foot are all common in Filipino Martial Arts. Particular zones and angles as well as the use of both feet forward are all characteristics of Pinoy fighters which the western boxers had to get used to. Those “unorthodox” zones and angles come from weapons training, particularly the blades.

With more and more practitioners of Filipino Martial Arts showcasing the arts more and more people begin to see the empty hands of Filipino Martial Arts. Hopefully one day references to the Pinoy boxers of the early 1900’s will be common knowledge. Until then demonstrators can only reference Pacquiao. Grandmaster Robert Castro of Eskabo Daan always like to tell the audience, ” Filipinos have hands! Just look at Pacquiao!” That is always a crowd pleaser.

Filipinos love to eat. An average Filipino eats around six times a day. We eat breakfast usually around 6-7 am, we have some snacks usually around 10am, lunch, more snacks at 3pm and finally dinner.

A typical Filipino breakfast is usually eggs, sunny side up; fried rice and any or all of the favorite Filipino breakfast staples: tocino or sweetened pork strips; tapa, a kind of beef jerky or tuyo, dried salted fish.

These dishes are fairly easy to cook. They require only minimal cooking skills. Fried rice is usually recycled rice from the night before. It is just rice that has cooled, then fried in a little oil with lots of garlic. Tocino and tapa, require a little boiling, when they are soft, the water is usually drained and a little cooking oil is added to fry the meat. Once it has started to caramelize, it is removed from the heat and served hot. Tuyo is usually washed to remove the excess salt and then fried in hot oil.

Filipinos are talkative in nature and even early in the morning the mood in the breakfast table is usually festive. Breakfast is usually a time for mom to remind her family to be good in school, to come home on time and for dad to take it easy at work. Although most Filipino mothers work, they still find time to cook these simple fares for breakfast with the family.

Breakfast is a good time for the children to touch base with their parents too. Since both parents usually work and come home late when the children are about to go to bed, kids usually remind their parents of upcoming projects for school or ball games and parent teacher conferences during breakfast.

Other favorite Filipino breakfast dishes are: hotdogs, pork and beans, sardines usually in tomato sauce and corned beef. Since children’s classes start early in the Philippines, usually around 7-7:30 in the morning, breakfast food is usually easy to prepare. And rice is usually eaten with whatever viand there is.

Though it is not uncommon to find Filipinos eating cereals, oatmeal, toast or pancakes for breakfast, the tuyo, tapa and tocino will always be all time Filipino breakfast favorites. In some tables, a combination of a cooked and cold breakfast is even common. Mom may prefer oatmeal and fruit to her kids milk and cereal, and dad might opt for the cooked breakfast. It is also a frequent practice in most Filipino homes to eat pan de sal or bread while waiting for a cooked breakfast.

Filipinos definitely believe to eat like kings during breakfast because this gives us more time to chat with each other and enjoy each other’s company. It is a time to relax before starting a long day.

The Filipinos (Pinoys) are a mixture of many races although are chiefly Malays. They are a racial mix mainly of Indonesians and Malays. Some received additional blood infiltrations from the Negritos, Hindus, Chinese, Japanese and Arabs.

The form the Spanish conquest to the present, they further received blood enrichments through marriage with people of the West, such as the Spaniards, the Americans, the British, the French, the Germans, the Italians, and many others. Thus, one can say that the Filipino people of today are a beautiful blend of East and West, with the Malay strain predominating. Despite certain regional, linguistic, and religious variations, the Filipinos are a homogeneous people. The represent unity in diversity.

The mixture of racial strains has led to traits that have made the Filipinos what they are today.

The Filipinos are a peace-loving but brave people. They prefer a serene life to one of disorder and violence. They ordinarily settle court litigation instead of bloody combat. But when they are provoked to defend their freedom, they can fight fiercely to death. They eloquently proved their courage during World War II, in their earlier revolution against Spain, and when they fought the far better-equipped Americans from 1899 to 1913.

The Filipinos are a hospitable people. They welcome their visitors with open arms and a warm heart. They give the best of what they have to their guests. They give them their best food, the best place in their homes to sleep in, and the best things and facilities just to make them enjoy their stay. They do these things to the extent f borrowing money. “Our home is your home,” they tell their guests and mean it too.

The Filipinos are famous for their courtesy and respect for their elders. To them, respect for one’s elders is a law. As a result, Filipino parents and grandparents have strong moral influence on the children. The children willingly obey their elders and faithfully help them do their work. Filipinos do nothing important without the advice and consent of their parents and other elders. The elders believe-and demand-that they should be obeyed. The Filipino use of “po” and “opo” in his speech signifies his respect.

The Filipinos have close family ties. The Filipino family is a firm basic unit of Philippine society, and everything revolves around it. Ordinarily, the family is composed of the parents, children, grandparents, and other close relatives. Although the father is in name the head of the Filipino family, the Filipino mother manages or governs the Filipino home. There are proportionately far more Filipino women running government offices and business enterprises than there are in Europe and America. There were many women leaders during the Philippine revolution. The Spaniards made the Filipino women stay home, but the women swiftly won back their rights when the Americans came. Aside from those of the parents, the opinions of the grandparents, uncles, and aunts are sought on important matters in Philippine society.

The Filipinos have a fatalistic outlook on life. They firmly believe that what happens to them is the work of fate. For this reason, they display sense of resignation and indifference to what will happen. This fatalism is well expressed in the phrase Bahala na (Let fate decide).

Like other Asians, the Filipinos are hard-working but extravagant. They are fond of fiestas and merrymaking, expensive clothes and jewelry, nice homes, and good time. The will spend a whole year’s savings or even borrow money just to celebrate. A happy occasion gives them happiness and prestige. But though extravagant in their tastes and habits, the Filipinos make up for it by hard work. They do not mind if they work very hard all year provided they can have a good time.

Loyalty is another national trait of Filipinos. Do them even just a little favor and they will be grateful to you for it till they die. To them, loyalty out of friendship is sacred and implies mutual help and protection under all circumstances. To the Filipinos, a friend is a member of one’s family and is expected to share its misfortunes as well as its joys.

The Filipinos are a hardy and durable people. Over the centuries, they have been hit by all kinds of catastrophe-wars, invasions, pestilence, earthquakes, typhoons, floods and fires-and have survived them all. They may face mighty problems but they do not easily break down.

Proud and sensitive, the Filipinos feel no inferiority to any race. They resent racial prejudice and insult. They will fight to the death for their honor and freedom. The almost 400 years of Spanish occupation of the Philippines were marked by a great many revolts against the Spaniards. The other nationals fought by the Japanese in World War II quickly surrendered. The Filipinos continued fighting them till the end of the was in 1945.

Speaking of values, the Filipinos as a people have several admirable values. The most important of these are the following:

1. Pakikisama, or sense of comradeship or togetherness

2. Utang na Loob, or a sense of gratitude

3. Kahihiyan, or a sense of shame.

Pakikisama is doing somebody-whether a close friend or a stranger-a good deed. As a Filipino value, the main elements attached to pakikisama are unselfishness and good faith. Utang na loob is the custom of faithfully repaying favors given to one. Kahihiyan, or hiya is an Asian social vaue which prevents a person from doing anything foolish or bad so as not to place his family or relatives in an unpleasant situation.

The Filipinos respect law and order. They have a clear notion of right and wrong, of what is fair and unfair. They have a high moral code based on ethical values. They are dutiful to their elders, chivalrous to women, and law-abiding.

But the Filipinos have certain defects in their national character, too. They love gambling and politics, are addicted to luxurious living, lack patience and perseverance in business ventures, are prone to blind imitation, lack initiative, tend to be indolent, and lack foresight in planning for their future. But sociologists and the anthropologists say that these defects are merely an evidence of lack of development and can be overcome.

This article is related to the articles I posted about numbers in Filipino. We will notice the suffix ng and the word na in this. Please take note that these are use in modifiers.

Coins in the Philippines

The coins used in the Philippines are the following: 1.) Isang sentimo – One centavo (commonly used by stores with cash registry); 2.) Limang sentimo – Five centavos (commonly called singko which is derived from Spanish word for five); 3.) Sampung sentimo – Ten centavos (commonly called dyis which is derived from Spanish word for ten); 4.) Dalawampu’t limang sentimo – Twenty five centavos (commonly called bentsingko which is a corruption of bentesingko that is derived from Spanish word for twenty five); 5.) Piso – One peso (piso is the Filipino for peso and in case of one peso, one is omitted); 6.) Limang piso – Five pesos (never called singko to avoid being confused with singko as in five centavo); and Sampung piso – Ten pesos (never called dyis to avoid being confused with dyis as in ten centavo).

Banknotes in the Philippines

The banknotes or bills in the Philippines are the following: 1.) Dalawampung piso – Twenty pesos; 2.) Limampung piso – Fifty pesos; 3.) Sangdaang piso – One hundred pesos; 4.) Dalawangdaang piso – Two hundred pesos; 5.) Limangdaang piso – Five hundred pesos; and Sanglibong piso – One thousand pesos. If you will notice that one hundred and one thousand pesos in Filipino lack the first letter i in it (Isa is the Filipino word for one). That first letter in the word isa is often omitted in speaking and in the Philippine currency, one is printed without this first letter.

The use of the above phrases

We will now move to the application of the numbers in Filipino that we learned before and the currency in the Philippines presented above. I have here examples so to guide the reader in expressing the cost of a thing. Ito ay nagkakahalaga ng sampunglibo animnaraang piso bawat isa – This cost ten thousand six hundred pesos each (the speaker should pause after sampunglibo). Limanglibong pisong buo – Five thousand peso bills. Notice that there is a suffix in the word for peso. You can change buo to any other nouns in Filipino to express the cost as a modifier of the thing mentioned (e.g. Limang pisong biskuwit – a biscuit which worth five pesos).

As a man married to a Filipina I have been asked many times if it is true that Filipino women make the best wives in the world. Don’t get me wrong now, I will not start bragging about my own wife nor I will dissuade you from dating a Filipina girl. I am just going to tackle some of the statements you hear or read about Filipino women so you can better distinguish the myths from the facts.

“Filipino women are very well educated” – FACT

College education has always been of a great importance for the Filipinas. Pride in accomplishment at school is instilled in Filipinas since their early childhood and the statistics shows that female college enrollment even exceeds that of the male.

“Filipino women are religious.” – FACT

Being the only Christian nation in the Far East (the Philippines is 83% Roman Catholic), it is common amongst Philippine families to raise their children in the church. Your perspective Filipina bride would most likely dream of a church wedding and it is likely that her family even forbid her to get married without one.

“All Filipinas are submissive and obedient.” – MYTH

Generally Filipino women would never engage in a loud quarrel but their patient, non-confrontational and understanding nature should not be mistaken for submissive. All their life Filipinas have been taught to act like a real Lady – to be refined in both tastes and manners and always speak politely, with a gentle tone of voice. Arguing, along with public criticism, is just not acceptable and even if you are off your rocker your Filipina will not confront you just to save you from embarrassment.

“Filipina’s only purpose in life is to fulfill their husband’s wildest dreams and never lose his attention.” – MYTH

As already mentioned, in reality most Filipinas have advanced degrees of education and professional lives. It could hardly be presumed that they live only to fulfill some man’s wild desires. And yet, nobody can deny the warmth, loyalty and faithfulness of Filipina wives. Since there is no divorce laws in the Philippines, Filipinas have always paid high regard for the sanctity of marriage and make every endeavour to preserve the love in their family.

“Money is always secondary to the stability of a loving marriage.” – FACT

Living in a society that finds divorce unacceptable, Filipino women will always put the stability of their marriage first, before money and they will always be more willing to sacrifice career than a family.

“Filipina women don’t believe in divorce.” – MYTH

Raised with high values of honesty and fidelity, Filipino women are very patient and willing to stand by their husbands during hard times. This is not unconditional, however, so don’t equalize the illegality of divorce in the Philippines with unwillingness of Filipinas to divorce if they could. A Filipino woman in an honest and loving relationship will never consider divorce as an option but if her husband abuses her verbally or physically she will resort to it if given the opportunity.

“Filipinas are excellent home keepers.” – FACT

Filipino women are very focused on family needs and are exceptional mothers. Their home is a great source of pride for them and they do their best to create a warm and loving environment for their family. For the Filipina even yelling at home would mean de-facing her home so you will probably never find a Filipina woman screaming or breaking dishes.

“Filipina women prefer men who are many years their senior.” – FACT

Filipinas are, at a minimum, tolerant of much older husbands. This fact is confirmed by the statistics – with 80% men older than their Filipina wives by at least a year, more than 40% are at least 10 years older and about 15% are more than 20 years older. What makes them desirable despite the significant age gap is that Filipinas perceive older men as more mature, less promiscuous, and financially stable.

“Filipinas seek Western men for marriage because there are twice as many females as males in the Philippines.” – MYTH

The population difference is about 700,000 (age 15-65) in a country with a population of about 73,000,000 – that is a difference of less than 1% which proves that such a statement is just inconsistent. Filipino women seek Western men for a husband for many of the same reasons Western men want them for a wife – for a stable, loving and lasting relationship.

Filipinos are passionate music lovers, by heart and in nature. Their inspiring works of art are apparent expressions of their utmost desires and loving interest to enrich the local music industry. Thus, the Original Pilipino Music (OPM) embodies this ardent passion of Pinoy artists for music.

OPM songs tell us the simple and complicated realities of life. The sundry of songs personify every aspect of a typical Filipino living – from romantic sentiments, inspirations, and struggles, to life experiences and present situation of the society. All these and more are the certain reasons that keep the Filipino tune in harmony. With their undying aspirations, we positively benefit from new styles and tunes of today’s music.

Homegrown talents in the music scene are continuously devoting themselves to create valuable pieces of songs, carved from their very own experiences and keen understanding on various life scenarios, creating powerful means to express their personal stance. There are a lot of good quality OPM songs, which are truly inspiring and moving. This sets a more meaningful music standard that taps the emotional disposition of Filipinos.

Indeed, Philippine music is a unique blend of various music genres which reflects our culture. It showcases the best in every type of music – pop, rock, classic, ballad, R&B, jazz and novelty songs. The local music library has a rich heritage of pure arts and talents that truly achieve international acclaims and brings home great honor and recognition for the country. Furthermore, the full respect of Filipino music artists, especially the young generation, is really evident as they constantly revive the significant sounds of the past through their various renditions of aged songs blended with their modern musical twists. Through these valuable efforts, the thing in the past remains active in contemporary music.

OPM songs will remain steadfast in bringing the best music for the Filipinos. As long as there are brilliant music artists and compassionate listeners, the local music industry will continue to grow and prosper. Listening to OPM songs is a worthwhile experience, because it’s the true embodiment of the Filipino spirit where you can emotionally involve yourself with.

Let us support Philippine Music, keep OPM songs on top of your playlist.

Camaron rebosado is a delicious way to cook shrimp. What gives a different twist to the recipe is the soft luscious shrimp coated with egg and flour mixture making it crispy when chewed. It is comparable to the tempura of the Japanese and the way Chinese cook shrimps coated with batter. It can be made even more delicious when taken with sweet chili sauce. Yummy!

My little boy is very picky with food. But when you serve camaron rebosado on the table, there’s no need to nudge him to eat his food because he will consume everything on his plate in no time. He loves this dish so much that we could never go for a whole week without it. Being so, I have mastered the recipe and I want to share it with other Moms so their little kids will get a chance to enjoy this lip-smacking treat, too. Give it a try and you will surely hear your kids asking for this delectable shrimp recipe every now and then.

Ingredients:

• 15 fresh shrimps
• 4 eggs
• 3 tbsp flour
• 4 calamansi
• Cooking oil for frying
• Salt, to taste

Cooking Procedure:

• Choose fresh shrimps about 4 inches long in size. Remove the shell of the body but leave the head and tail. Trim the pointed part of the head.
• Remove the black intestine by cutting a part of the back.
• Salt to taste and roll in flour after soaking in calamansi juice. Drop each in beaten eggs and fry in deep hot fat until light brown.
• Drain excess oil and serve with sweet chili sauce.