Filipino Soups

In the Filipino cuisine, the soups play a significant role, and most of them are seafood based, and sometimes served with sides or rice, or as dipping sauces for many dishes hand-served. The usual method to preparing a soup is to boil fish and other seafood in special sauces made form a blend of ingredients and condiments such as ginger root, peeled and sliced into julienne strips, sliced onions, coconut milk, spinach leaves, tamarind, tomatoes and chilies. Most soups are prepared using coconut milk that adds a special specific taste. Some of the main Filipino soups are the traditional chicken ginger soup with whole chicken pieces, green papaya and spinach or malunggay leaves, called Tinola, the mussel’s soup, the clam soup, and the tamarind soup. Tamarinds can also be used for a sour soup made with pork and mixed vegetables, called sinigang na baboy. Other soups may contain vegetables with ginger and fish sauce.