Aired (September 1, 2024): For the first flavor of the month, Chef JR Royol traveled to Albuquerque, Bohol to experience the Asin Tibuok–a native salt known for its crystal ball shape. Discover more in this salty episode of 'Farm to Table'!
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00:00For us Filipinos, when it comes to saltiness, it's not just the simple taste of food.
00:06As a country where islands are built and surrounded by sea water,
00:11saltiness is a part of our culture and life.
00:15And all of that comes from the simplest ingredient of saltiness, salt.
00:22Salt is a very important mineral.
00:26We think of it as pleasurable to the mouth.
00:30But salt also is a vessel for delivering minerals to the body.
00:34That's why, when you eat with natural salts,
00:37not only do you get the saltiness,
00:39but you also absorb important minerals that the body needs.
00:43Calcium, magnesium, and other stuff.
00:46One thing that salt does to food is,
00:49it brings out, not just the saltiness,
00:52but the salt brings out the natural flavor of food, right?
00:56No matter where you go in the world,
00:58salt is very important.
01:00And even, as they say, the history of salt.
01:03If you compare our salary to salt,
01:06because before, in the olden times,
01:08people were paid in salt because it had so much value.
01:12Because, especially during the time of Alexander the Great,
01:16what was the value of salt?
01:17Not just for absorbing food,
01:19but they needed warriors,
01:21because without salt,
01:22the muscles, the body, will not be able to function properly.
01:27Maybe in my time, they say,
01:29even if I just swallow salt,
01:32and we think it's very lowly for that,
01:35but you know, even if you just swallow salt,
01:37during that time,
01:39it was natural salt filled with minerals.
01:42So, even if you just eat rice and salt,
01:46there is nourishment, and it is healthy.
01:49Salt is a big part of Filipino food.
01:52Proof of that is the various ways that we Filipinos
01:55make salt that can be found in different parts of the country.
02:00Like the one we sometimes know,
02:02Asing Sabuyo sa Sambales.
02:05And if you go to Bohol Island,
02:07you will find one of the most unique types of salt,
02:11the Asintibuok that is made in the town of Albuquerque.
02:15Here, we met Ma'am Veronica and Sir Nestor
02:18of Asintan Inong, where they still use
02:20the Asintibuok that is made in the town of Albuquerque.
02:23We also met Sir Nestor and Ma'am Veronica
02:26of Asintan Inong, where they still use
02:29the Asintibuok that is made in the town of Albuquerque.
02:32We also met Sir Nestor and Ma'am Veronica
02:35of Asintan Inong, where they still use
02:38the Asintibuok that is made in the town of Albuquerque.
02:41In the beginning, our forefather is our father
02:44on our mother's side.
02:46And then, he gave it to our father.
02:49Our father started in the 1940s.
02:52Our forefather is in the 1800s.
02:55When our father got old,
02:58he stopped using it in the 1980s.
03:02By the year 2010,
03:04our youngest brother passed away.
03:08Among the three brothers,
03:10he really has a passion
03:13to make the Asintibuok again.
03:16Because he knows how hard it is,
03:18what sacrifice our father made.
03:21That's why he said,
03:22even if he doesn't know the Asintibuok,
03:24even if there's no money in the Asintibuok,
03:26and then he convinced Sir Nestor.
03:29At first, Sir Nestor didn't want to use it
03:31because it's really laborious.
03:34And then, there's no money.
03:36Because the Asintibuok was only used
03:39as a barter in the town of Albuquerque.
03:41Usually, only the Asintibuok is used
03:43by the farmers.
03:45Because they use it to sell calabao,
03:48beef for farming.
03:50And then, to make nilugaw
03:52for the low-class families.
03:58The Asintibuok is a labor-intensive
04:00and long process.
04:02And because of this,
04:03only a few people continue
04:05to make it here in Bohol.
04:07Making the Asintibuok at first
04:09was really hard.
04:11Because manually,
04:13we don't have a vehicle
04:16or a mechanism
04:19to make the Asintibuok easily.
04:24Especially the carrying of wood
04:29or ropes up there.
04:31And because of this,
04:32the carrying of coconut husk
04:36is really a burden on our father's shoulders.
04:40I witnessed the process of making it
04:42when I visited Bohol.
04:44And you can't help but be amazed
04:46at the dedication of the people
04:48who continue to make this traditional
04:50and artisanal salt.
04:52In the beginning,
04:54you will carry the coconut husk
04:57and soak it
04:59for 3 to 4 months
05:01before removing it
05:03and chopping it.
05:07You put it in a pan or a pan.
05:09Natural seawater will enter the pan.
05:12The high tide will enter.
05:14That's why the coconut husk
05:16will naturally soak in the seawater.
05:18And then,
05:20the trees will gather
05:22the coconut husk.
05:24At high tide,
05:26you have to sacrifice.
05:30For 3 to 4 months,
05:32you have to wait
05:34for the coconut husk
05:36to soak in the pan
05:38before removing it
05:40and chopping it.
05:42When everything is ready,
05:44the burning process will start.
05:46After that,
05:48we put it in the filtration.
05:50We filter the hardened ash.
05:52And then,
05:54for one day,
05:56we filter it.
05:58Preparation for the cooking time.
06:00And then, cooking time.
06:02Another preparation for
06:04preparing the clay pots
06:06in the sapogon.
06:08It takes almost 7 to 8 hours
06:10for it to cook.
06:12And then,
06:14we let it cook overnight.
06:16The next day,
06:18until the clay pot is ready
06:20and not too hot anymore.
06:22Then, we take it out and clean it.
06:26Despite the many other ways
06:28of making salt from other parts of the Philippines,
06:32it is also a reality that
06:34these people are slowly forgetting.
06:36The truth of salt in the Philippines
06:38is that
06:40we import over 90%
06:42of the salt consumed in the Philippines.
06:44Because we are archipelagos,
06:46we can no longer produce
06:48sufficient salt
06:50for our consumption
06:52in the Philippines.
06:54We have a law that prohibits
06:56the sale of
06:58natural salt.
07:00The salt that you make
07:02from the sea
07:04or other sources,
07:06it's illegal because
07:08it has to be iodized.
07:10For health reasons.
07:12So, that's our law.
07:14Salt law.
07:15Natural salt is prohibited.
07:17All of our salt must be iodized.
07:19Now,
07:20in the field of export
07:22and manufacturing,
07:24our product that has salt
07:26is also rejected.
07:27Because the iodine,
07:29or the iodization of salt,
07:31here in the Philippines,
07:32is not acceptable.
07:33Because it's not healthy
07:35for humans.
07:36So, it's a huge irony
07:38that we love salt,
07:39but we don't control
07:41our supply.
07:43Number two,
07:45it's not proven that
07:47iodine is healthy.
07:49Because it's also contracted by other countries.
07:51In spite of this,
07:53there are communities and families
07:55like Ma'am Veronica and Sir Nestor
07:57who continue to value
07:59the traditions of making salt
08:01and make an effort
08:03to introduce it to the world.
08:05And to give pride
08:07to the dedication of the people
08:08who continue to make it.
08:14So, while their team,
08:16Ma'am Veronica and Sir Nestor,
08:18is busy making,
08:19one of the very key ingredients
08:21that I will use here in what we are cooking,
08:23I will prepare the other ingredients first.
08:25So, our squid,
08:27let's just cut it into portion size.
08:29If you will do this at home,
08:31this is optional.
08:33We will just add bell pepper.
08:35Different colors, of course.
08:36For this recipe,
08:38this is one of the dishes
08:40that in less than 5 minutes,
08:42when you have prepared everything,
08:44you will be able to cook the squid.
08:45So basically, you just need
08:47your pan to be very hot.
08:50Because this is just quick.
08:51And of course,
08:52you want our pan to be hot
08:54so that you can retain
08:56the perfect texture of our squid.
09:01Just a tip,
09:02so that your product will be more consistent
09:06when it comes to squid,
09:08basically, you cook its head first.
09:12As you notice,
09:14its structure is different,
09:16its appearance is different,
09:17and the thickness of the head.
09:20So, this has a tendency,
09:21if you cook them at the same time,
09:23the squid part will be undercooked.
09:28So, the small attention to detail
09:31is that instead of cooking them at the same time,
09:34you should cook them first for around 2-3 minutes
09:37before you cook the rest of the squid.
09:47I'm just cooking the squid
09:49that they use to cook their asinti buok
09:51because our butane there is a bit weak.
09:55So at least,
09:56as I said earlier,
09:57you need to cook it quickly.
09:59Perfect source of high heat.
10:26Okay.
10:50We can say that the asinti buok is a labor of love.
10:54And now, with the help of social media,
10:56it's getting more and more popular.
10:59It's like a good income
11:02that despite the challenges
11:04that the salt industry is facing in the country,
11:06one of the salts that reflects
11:11our belief in the taste of saltiness is still alive.
11:14I'm so happy because
11:16because of asinti buok,
11:17I've been to a lot of places.
11:19It's free.
11:20This is also a legacy that I can leave to my children
11:24or to our family.