Are you one of the 4 million Filipino Americans who love to eat dishes that reminds them of home, or are you just one of many people who may have no ancestral affiliations with the Philippines but appreciate their cuisine? Do you know that you can enjoy good Filipino food in your home without having to pay exorbitant sums at restaurants where Filipino menus are sold? If the answer to one of these questions is yes, you need to stock your library with some of the best Filipino cookbooks there are.
Cookbooks are great, timeless, and evergreen. The information they contain can aid you in developing your cooking skills immeasurably. Although there are so many cookbooks online, only very few contain great and practical Filipino recipes. Below, we review 5 of the best Filipino cookbooks you can rely on to brush up your cooking skills.
Best Filipino Cookbooks
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Want to learn more?
Here are our Best Filipino Cookbooks Review.
1. The Filipino Instant Pot Cookbook by Tisha Gonda Domingo
In this classic culinary book, Tisha Gonda brings to life agelong Filipino food that many have forgotten all about. This book is full of modern and classic recipes for electric pressure cookers and stovetops. In this book, Tisha takes the reader from one step to the next and shows them how to prepare instant dishes in an hour or less. In this cookbook, you will find Pork tamarind soup, steamed Putong Puti rice cake, a boiled chicken soup recipes. Tisha teaches readers how to boil and braise ingredients. She also reveals smart cooking methods to get the best flavor for your dishes.
The Filipino Instant Cookbook was not written by Tisha alone but by 5 other cooks as well. The book’s goal is to explore intimate Filipino dishes cooked on the home island one dish at a time. The central focus of this instant book revolves around dishes that take less time to cook. So, if you are always on a tight schedule with very little time to cook, you will find the information in this book truly rewarding.
There are 75 recipes in all fully dedicated to Filipino food. It is a great read with attractive pictures showing the reader a clear vision of what they can achieve by dedicating themselves to Filipino culinary art.
Why do we like it?
- Written with heart and humor
- Contains simple recipes for small and large families
- Contains flexible menus
- The preparation process for all the recipes are clearly laid out
2. The Easy Filipino 100 Classic Recipes by Roline Casper
Roline Casper lays it all in this cookbook. If you have never tried your hands on Filipino recipes before, this book will give you a jolt. The book is so titled because the recipes it contains are indeed very easy to prepare. Roline Casper took the time to carefully select 100 simple and easy to prepare recipes. Every single recipe in this book is practical, not some fictional recipe conjured from nowhere.
In the beginning, the author gives the reader a quick review of Filipino historical cuisine and how it has influenced the world. Then as you proceed, the recipes are itemized one after the other with their preparation steps highlighted consequentially. The Easy Filipino Classic Cookbook contains regional recipes from several Filipino islands such as Mindanao, Luzon, Calabarzon, Bicol, and the Visayas, to mention a few.
All you need to know about each of the recipes in this book is laid bare, and you are not left hanging. It has more than enough recipes to last you a whole year.
Why do we like it?
- The recipes are easy to prepare
- Different flavor styles are espoused
- Contains recipes for all occasions
3. I Am Filipino: And This is How We Cook by Nicole Ponseca and Miguel Trinidad
Nicole Ponseca and Miguel Trinidad team up to bring to life the national and regional dishes of the motherland. Many reviewers have called it both a cookbook and a manifesto. The authors leave nothing to the reader’s imagination in I Am Filipino And this is how we cook. It provides with a step-by-step process on how to prepare dishes with available resources. The amazing thing about this book is that you learn how every ingredient can influence your food’s final taste.
There are pastries and quick snack recipes like adobo and chorizo burgers. If you like Filipino desserts and will like to learn how to prepare some yourself, there is an entire chapter dedicated to dessert, and ice creams liKe the jackfruit ice cream, which is a favorite of Filipinos and non-Filipinos. The ingredients for every single recipe are itemized, and the authors go a step further to provide you with substitute ingredients in case you don’t have the main ones in stock.
The texts are bold, and the information in the book is well structured. There are also nice images depicting the recipes discussed in the book.
Why do we like it?
- A great guide for beginners
- Ideal for those looking to learn a thing or two about Filipino culinary culture
- Flexible recipes for everyday cooking
4. The Filipino Cookbook by Miki Garcia
Chef and author Miki Garcia published this work to provide first-timers and professional cooks with a rich resource they can rely on for culinary inspiration. All the recipes in this book are focused on Filipino dishes, and there are 85 recipes in total. For those who may not know, the Philippines’ island is a conglomeration of islands, and each island has its own regional recipes. Then there are national recipes enjoyed by the entire country.
In The Filipino Cookbook, Miki Garcia introduces regional and national recipes and provides easy preparation steps for all 85 of them. There are step-by-step instructions that are easy to follow. Even if you plan to try your hands on Filipino food for the first time, this book will serve as a guide and a companion.
You can learn how to make the famous seafood enjoyed by the natives of the Tagalog Peninsula or the tasty noodles enjoyed by the Visayas islands’ inhabitants. The Filipino cookbook is one of the best Filipino cookbooks because it is rich in history and recipes.
Why do we like it?
- Reveals new cooking styles
- Teaches the reader how to measure ingredients correctly
- Filled with brilliant pictures
- All the recipes are tried and tested
5. Quintessential Filipino Cooking by Liza Agbanlog
Liza Agbalog is a blogger and owner of the Salu Salo Recipe blog, and she has been teaching her fans excellent recipes for years now. In this book, Liza transfers her wealth of experience into a single volume for your reading delight. All that she teaches online are compiled into this culinary compendium for the reader looking to learn a thing or two about Filipino dishes. Quintessential Filipino Cooking contains 75 recipes culled from modern and traditional cuisines.
She does not stop at Filipino menus alone but also highlights standout Austronesian and Malay-Indonesian recipes. There are also Chinese, Japanese, American, and Spanish recipes that have become quite popular among American-Filipinos. You will learn how to prepare Lumpia Spring Rolls, Adobo, Kare Kare, Sinigang, Leche Fan, and so much more.
Although The Quintessential Filipino Cooking is her debut work, she writes like a veteran author with years of experience. This book is one of the best Filipino cookbooks you will ever read because it takes you by the hand and guides you every step of the way.
Why do we like it?
- Contains standard and Classic recipes
- Self-explanatory cooking methods
- Steps are listed in successive order
Filipino Cookbooks Buyer’s Guide
If you are looking to buy the best Filipino cookbooks, you need to know what you hope to achieve with the information the book contains. The best cookbooks have the following.
Filipino recipes
When shopping for a Filipino cookbook, you need to be intentional in your search. Don’t go for a general cookbook that contains general recipes but one that focuses on Filipino recipes only.
Modern or Traditional Recipes
Whether you go for a book filled with modern or traditional recipes is up to you. The fortunate thing is that cookbooks are timeless, and the information they contain never goes out of fashion. For more value, we recommend that you buy a cookbook that has both modern and traditional recipes like the ones we reviewed.
Pictures
You don’t need pictures to learn how to cook a Filipino dish, but pictures give you a clear idea of how the food should look. Furthermore, pictures serve as an inspiration to spur you on, especially when you are unsure if you are getting the steps right.
Hardcover
The best Filipino cookbooks are published in hardcover, and we recommend hardcover over soft covers. Hardcovers stand the test of time, unlike softcovers that are prone to wear and tear as you open and flip through the pages.
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