A MUST TRY IN IFUGAO

 

ETAG

Etag is the general term used in Cordillera about the native's traditional way of preserving pork. The etag can be eaten raw even if there are magots in it, it is edible but the etag that has magots is under process and the good etags has no magots. The process in making etag was a slab from a big slice of pork and rubbing salt in every part of the meat and also to prevent flies from landing on it before hanging. The process of hanging is either drying it under the heat of the sun or smoking it above a smoke from a variety of redwood, dried birch or using a branch of a tree which is called "alnus". Smoking requires a minimum of three hours to days until the meat is fully dry or dehydrated. Drying under the sun is also done to achieve the same purpose. The 'etag' has two types, the good etag and the bad etag. A good etag is given to occasions like weddings and birthdays and the bad etag is given to funerals. When smoked or dried, some just leave the meat hanging and let it be exposed from the smoke until it is already cooked. Some keep them in earthen jars and buried, free from insects, dust and dirt, making the meat's preservation better while making it readily available to be eaten raw or used for the pinikpikan. Etag goes best with native delicacy "pinikpikan", adding flavor to the "killing me softly" native dish. The Igorot's lives on mountains and in order to survive they hunt for food. They preserve the extra meat using the process in making the etag for the meat to last longer and not go to waste. Til the times of the ancestors until now, "etag" has been part of the lives of Cordilleran's.
 

 

BINAKLE

Among a variety of rice delicacies in the province of Ifugao, 'inatta' or also known as 'binakle' is the most traditionally prepared here and is specially made after the rice harvest in a community feast called "ahi-bakle" or rice cake season. A witness to a bountiful harvest from the rice terraces, ahi-bakle is regarded as a thanksgiving occasion where post-harvest rituals are performed by the "mumbaki" or native priests as offerings to the gods. Some also made it for them to sell early in the morning. It is a simple food, but it is done with hard work. The process of binakle first involves the unhusking of the grains by manual pounding using the 'luhung' (mortar) and 'al-u' (pestle). Three persons usually work simultaneously to pound about 2-3 bundles of rice, and the rhythm of the trio's pounding sounds add up to the fun while the women do the winnowing to separate the chaff from the grains. After pounding, the newly unhusked grains are next softened by soaking it in water for about 20-30 minutes, then the grains are drained and pounded again, this time to pulverize it. The powder-fine grains are then put over a "ligau" or a winnower designed to separate the refined powder from the coarse granules, which would be pounded again until all the grains are fine and good to be prepared for the cake. The powdered rice is simply mixed with enough water and sugar to taste. In more recent times, however, a number of people have turned to adding flavors to the batter to offer some variety for its uniqueness. Much preferred flavorings are black sesame seeds, ground peanuts and coconut meat. Other areas in Ifugao on the other hand use sweet potato or cassava to add a starchy taste to the rice cake. When the batter is ready, the banana leaves or rattan leaves that were earlier gathered for wrapping are passed over fire to both smoothen the leaves as well as to make them more durable for the folding, so that the leaves do not easily get torn when used for wrapping. The batter is then scooped onto the leaf wrap, which is thereafter rolled and slightly pressed to evenly distribute it inside the leaf. Both ends are folded to secure the batter inside the wrap. The wrapped batter is steamed over a huge cauldron until it is fully cooked. In 2-3 bundles of rice, around 60 to 100 pieces of binakle are prepared. Every household in the community prepares this delicacy as something to be shared among family, community, as well as with the unseen, from whom these blessings are believed to come. Thus, it is never to be wasted, but always valued and shared. The binakle or inatta is preferred as a take-along snack for laborious work that usually requires people to spend long hours away from the settlement, such as tending to swidden farms and distant rice fields, and when men leave for the mountains for several days to gather firewood or hunt. Others eat this as an alternative for rice meals because according to them, it fills their stomach.

    Romeo Tayaban Nagnot Jr.

Publisher

romeonagnotjr@olivarezcollegetagaytay.edu.ph