Filipino Cooking Terms

I have compiled a few terms that might help you understand Filipino cooking terms. You might encounter these words in my recipes. I hope this will guide you as you visit my website.
You will find Tagalog and English names.

Common cooking terms

Adobo - a dish cooked usually with soy sauce, garlic, and vinegar

Binagoongan is cooked with fermented shrimp paste called bagoong.

Binalot - this word means wrapped. A lot of Filipino dishes are wrapped with banana leaves or palm leaves, like chocolate morons.

Buro - fermented

Daing - dried or salted usually fish

Ensalada - salad

Flan - is a custard dessert with caramel; an example dish is leche flan

Ginataan - also spelled guinataan, is any dish cooked with coconut milk.

Igisa or gisahin - this means to saute.

Ginisa or guisado means sauteed.

Inasal or lechon - roast

Inihaw or sinugba - grill or grilled

Kain Tayo means “Let’s Eat.” This word is expected when you invite someone to eat with you. In Filipino culture, it is impolite not to ask someone to eat with you while you are eating.

Kilawin is a dish that is usually eaten raw and usually has vinegar.
Kilawin is a dish that is usually eaten raw and usually has vinegar.

Kinilaw is a Filipino term that means "eat raw." It usually refers to raw seafood dishes marinated in vinegar or citrus fruits like Calamansi.

Kinamatisan is derived from the word kamatis, which means tomato. This word means to cook something with tomatoes.

Maalat - salty

Maanghang - spicy

Maasim - sour

Magatas - milky

Magluto - This word comes from the root word luto, which means cook. Magluto means to cook something for a meal.

Masarsa - saucy

Matamis - sweet

Minatamis - sweetened dish

Nilaga - boiled

Nilasing - a cooking method that involves cooking meat with alcohol and spices.

Paksiw - a dish cooked or simmered in vinegar.

Pangat - Filipino dish cooked with tomatoes and souring agents such as tamarind or kamias.

Prito - fried

Pochero is a Filipino dish where meat is stewed with saba bananas or plantains.

Relleno - stuffed dish, examples are rellenong bangus, rellenong manok.

Sangkap - is a Tagalog word for ingredients

Sawsawan is a dipping sauce. Sawsaw means to dip into something.

Sinigang - this is a sour-based soup famous in Filipino cuisine.

Sopas - soup

Tapa - a dish seasoned with salt and spices traditionally smoked to preserve the meat or fish.

Tinola is a clear broth soup usually made with chicken or fish.

Ulam - a dish that is paired with rice.

Ulo ng baboy - head of pig

Common Ingredients for Cooking

Asin - salt

Baboy - pork

Baka - beef

Itlog - egg

Isda - fish

Patis - fish sauce

Bawang - garlic

Sibuyas- onion

Dahon ng Laurel - bay leaf

Kamatis - tomato

Manok - chicken

Mansanas - apple

Mantika - oil

Pansit - noodles

Santol - cotton fruit

Bagoong alamang - shrimp paste

Togue - mung bean sprouts

Toyo - soy sauce

Gulay - vegetables

Langka - jackfruit

Suka - vinegar

Puso ng saging - banana heart

Kalabasa - squash