Aeta cooking catches fancy of tourists, locals

ANGELES CITY — Aeta cooking is fast becoming a hit among tourists and locals.

For the curly-haired, mountain-dwelling Aetas, their culinary traditions are boosting their integration with the lowlanders, whom they refer to as unat (straight-haired). And foreign and local tourists like it as well.

Aeta Johnny Gilbert, fondly called Mang Johnny, attests to this. Now in demand for his expertise in using largely bamboo-made cooking utensils, he finds himself the focus of attention in small and big parties as he and his helper demonstrate cooking the Aeta way.

"I hope this fascination for Aeta cooking grows, especially now that a growing number of tourists arrive regularly at Clark Field," he said during a family party at Clark last Saturday where he cooked rice and pork sinigang the Aeta way.

City folk refer to Aeta cooking as luto sa buho, referring to the hollow stems of young bamboo, which Mang Johnny gathers from the mountains and fashions into cooking utensils.

"I have to be informed 24 hours before a party so I can gather enough bamboo. The bamboo must be freshly cut and should be used for cooking no more than two days later to make sure that it enhances food taste and doesn’t burn when placed over a low fire," he said.

Mang Johnny’s cooking paraphernalia consists of green bamboo stems measuring about three feet long, banana leaves where the cooked food is served and eaten, shorter bamboo cylinders for the soup, and bamboo spoons to scoop the cooked rice and viands.

"For us Aetas, these materials are disposable in the mountains, but most of my customers keep them for decorations at home," he said.

"Our menu consists of rice and viands such as fried poultry, adobo, sinigang and pinakbet. But we can cook other dishes which the party hosts wants," he said.

The cooking starts two hours before mealtime. But unlike in usual parties where the cooking is done in the kitchen, Mang Johnny does it outdoors and in the view of the guests.

In cooking rice, Mang Johnny layers the bamboo stem with banana leaves before stuffing it with uncooked rice and the right amount of water.

The bamboo stem is sealed with banana leaves and then placed leaning on a spit over a low fire. This same method is used in cooking viands, with all the ingredients cooked at the same time.

The dishes, especially sinigang, taste "refreshingly different," Mang Johnny’s customers seem to agree.

Asked how much he charges for demonstrating Aeta cooking, Mang Johnny said he normally asks for transport fare to enable him to gather bamboo stems and other materials at least a day before a party.

"It’s really up to the host to decide how much he pays us," he said.

For him, it’s enough that Aeta cooking is catching the attention of lowland folk and tourists alike. "Someday, we might think of the business side," he said.