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LESSON 4
FILIPIN@ FOOD, HEALTH, AND DIET

DESCRIPTION: THIS LESSON WILL INTRODUCE PRE-COLONIAL FILIPINO FOOD, HEALTH, AND
DIET. STUDENTS WILL BE CHALLENGED TO THINK ABOUT THE WAYS FOOD PATHWAYS CHANGE
BECAUSE OF COLONIALISM AND THE IMPACT IT HAD IN COOKING STYLES OF THE PHILIPPINES.

GUIDING QUESTIONS: WHAT ARE PRE-COLONIAL FILIPINO FOODS? HOW HAS FILIPINO FOODS
CHANGED OVER-TIME?

PURPOSE/AIM:
1. STUDENTS WILL BE ABLE TO IDENTITY THREE DIFFERENT TYPES OF PRE-COLONIAL
FILIPINO FOOD
2. STUDENTS WILL BE ABLE TO EXPLAIN THE INFLUENCE OF COLONIZATION ON FOOD
PATHWAYS BY WRITING A SHORT REFLECTION
3. STUDENTS WILL BE ABLE TO SHARE THEIR STORIES/MEMORIES WITH FOOD TO THE
CLASS

MATERIALS:
Markers
Dry Erase Markers
White Board
Paper
Pencils

PART 1: CULTURAL ENERGIZER

THE AMAZING RACE: TEST YOUR FILIPINO FOOD KNOWLEDGE

STEP DESCRIPTION: TIME

1 The instructor will begin class by splitting everyone into three 3 minutes
large groups. The groups should stand across from the white
board and each person should line up behind each other.

2 The instructor will explain to the students that they will begin a 5 minutes
competitive game against each other. The goal of the game is to
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write down as many Filipino Foods they know of as fast as they

can as a team. The teams will have two minutes total.

Here are the rules:

- Students will begin the game behind a line on the floor
facing the dry erase board
- Only one dry erase marker will be given to each team
- One person starts the ‘race’ by running to the board and
writing a Filipino food they know of, when they finish, they
must run back to their team and stand in back of the line.
- Only one person can be at the board at one time from a
team, if there is more than two people who cross the line
designated on the floor for any time at any time, they lose
one point from their total score by the end of the two
minutes

PART 2: CRITICAL CONCEPTS

FILIPINO FOOD HISTORY

STEP DESCRIPTION TIME

1 After wrapping up the discussion from the activity the instructor will 7
introduce students to Filipino Foods. The presentation will contain minute
images and stories that explain the importance of pre-colonial food and s
how it has been influenced over time. There will be opportunities for
students to speak about foods they recognize and do not recognize, to
allow for deeper discussion on Filipino foods preparation and origins.

Before we begin the lecture, the instructor will play a video to ‘visually
introduce’ Filipino food to the class, the title of the video is: Fung Bros
Food: Filipino Food w/ @AJRafael
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLGCsFX_FzQ

2 The instructor will talk about different indigenous foods according to the 5
book, “Memories of Philippine Kitchens” by Amy Besa and Romy minute
Dorotan. Following this discussion the instructor will explain that adobo (a s
Filipino marinade sauce with main ingredients including: vinegar, soy
sauce, salt, pepper, sugar, and garlic) is an important dish to Filipino
cuisine. The instructor will then talk about other Filipino dishes like
Kinilaw (usually served raw, it is made up shrimp and various fish
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combined with onions, tomatoes, and other vegetables marinated in

vinegar and calamnasi, a citrus). Main talking points include how these
dishes originate in the Philippines because of how accessible they were
to make based on the resources in the various regions of the Philippines.

3 Moving on from this discussion, the instructor will then begin by 4

discussing common foods that are associated with Filipino cuisine; these minute
foods include: Pancit, Lumpia, Menudo, and Spam. The instructor will s
explain how many of these foods were influenced by other countries
through colonization from Spain and trade with China.

4 Following this discussion, the instructor will break down the eating habits 4
and diet of Filipinos in the Philippines verses Filipino American diets and minute
eating habits. Through an explanation through a chart, the instructor will s
compare the health risks of Filipinos in the Philippines vs. Filipino
Americans.

PART 3: COMMUNITY COLLABORATION AND CULTURAL PRODUCTION

FAMILY RECIPE PROJECT INTRODUCTION

STEP DESCRIPTION TIME

1 The final part of class the instructor will introduce the Family 8 minutes
Recipes Project. Students will be asked to think about how their
families preserve their food. The importance of the project is to
have students learn how importance it is to save and share family
recipes and how it is important to learn how to cook foods.

PART 4: CONCLUSIVE DIALOGUE/CRITICAL CIRCULAR EXCHANGE

ASSESSMENT: HOW WILL THE STUDENTS BE ASSESSED?

STUDENTS WILL BE ASKED TO SHARE THEIR OWN EXPERIENCES AND STORIES WITH FOOD. THE
INSTRUCTOR WILL ASSESS HOW THEY REFLECT AND CONNECT WITH EACH OTHERS STORIES.
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RESOURCES AND NOTES

RESOURCES
● GUEVARRA, JR. RUDY (2012) BECOMING MEXIPINO: MULTIETHNIC IDENTITIES AND
COMMUNITIES IN SAN DIEGO (LATINIDAD: TRANSNATIONAL CULTURES IN HE UNITED
STATES. RUTGERS UNIVESITY PRESS.
● BESA, AMY & DOROTAN. MEMORIES OF PHILIPPINE KITCHENS.

HOMEWORK COMPLETE FAMILY RECIPE INTERVIEW

WORKSHEET

Name:
Date:

Family Recipe Locating Project

(Or Kuwento: Locating our Families Stories Project)

Project Description:

Kuwento is a Tagalog word meaning “story.” Drawn from Philippine folk and oral
traditions, the concept of kuwento is the act of telling, listening to, and participating in a
story. Filipinos have a rich oral tradition of transmitting significant human experiences
from generation to generation (Jocson 2008). In reconnecting to our roots and oral
traditions, we will begin to uncover and locate kuwentos of our own families. For this
assignment you will be given the opportunity to explore the oral history of your family’s
relationship to food traditions. You will interview one person in your family who has
knowledge of your family’s traditional foods you may eat at home. The recommended
interviewee should be of an older generation (parents, grandparents, other relatives,
etc.).

Guidelines and Instructions:

STEP 1: The Interview

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Ask the person you are interviewing the following questions on the attached worksheet.
One of your grandparents would be the top preference as an interviewee; next would be
one of your parents/guardians; next would be an uncle or an auntie. Your siblings or
cousins are ineligible because they are of your own generation.

Family Recipe Locating Project Worksheet

Answer the following questions in the space provided. Feel free to use the back of
paper and have extra sheets of paper available in case you run out of space to take
notes.

1. What is your full name?

2. Did you have favorite food(s) as a child growing up that your family cooked? If
so, what were they?

2. a. Is there a connection to your favorite dish to your family’s ethnic history or

traditions?
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3. Was food preparation a family activity? Or was there a specific person who
cooked the food?

4. Do you or anyone in the family have special recipes? If so, can you share
them with me?
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5. Do you think it is important to pass down food traditions to future

generations? If so, why?