Philippine cuisine

Philippine cuisine consists of the foods, preparation methods and eating customs found in the Philippines. The style of cooking and the foods associated with it have evolved over several centuries from its Austronesian origins to a mixed cuisine with many Hispanic, Chinese, American, and other Asian influences adapted to indigenous ingredients and the local palate. Cuisine in Philippines has undergone several phases of evolution. In the initial days, meat of pork, fowl, bayawak (water monitor lizard), dog, fish, clams and other shellfish were roasted or boiled and eaten with rice. Other main ingredients of Philippine cuisine are toyo (soy sauce) and patis (fish sauce), fruits like coconut milk and bananas. Vegetable like Potatoes, carrots, taro ("gabi"), cassava, purple and sweet yam, seafood like Tilapia, milkfish, shrimp, mackerel and crabs are also eaten.