One of the food that Filipinos love is lumpia. You can almost always find it during parties. It is one of the dishes that non-Filipinos like, aside from pancit and adobo. Lumpia is a stuffed pastry that originated from China and introduced all over the world. The word lumpia is derived from Hokkien word lunpia. It is eaten as an appetizer, main course or snack. Different countries have their own version of lumpia. In the Philippines, there are several varieties that are all delicious.
The most famous is lumpiang Shanghai or eggroll. This is most commonly served in parties. Kids love it. It is usually dipped with ketchup or sweet chili sauce. Contrary to its name, it didn't originate from Shanghai, China. They don't have this kind of lumpia. This lumpia is made of ground pork or beef, minced carrots, onion, bell pepper, raisins, pickles, egg and flour or breadcrumbs for binding. Whenever I have time, I would make my own lumpiang Shanghai. Two reasons, one is because it is expensive if you buy it in the store. Two, store-bought ones are made of pork, which I'm trying to stay away from... instead of pork or beef, I use ground turkey or chicken. Fish can also be used as an alternative. I remember my mother uses galunggong or bangus. Fish is boiled and shredded before it is used in lumpia. Lumpiang Shanghai is best eaten after it was deep fried, while it's still crunchy and hot.
Another favorite is lumpiang gulay (vegetable lumpia). It is also called spring roll. It has togue (bean sprout), julienned carrots and beans. Shrimp or ground pork is also added. The vegetable is usually sautéed before it is wrapped. It is also deep fried and best eaten when dipped in spicy vinegar.
Lumpiang shanghai and gulay is wrapped the same way. The filling is placed diagonally, the sides are folded and then rolled. it is sealed by either beaten eggs or flour and water as paste.
Next is Lumpiang sariwa or fresh spring roll. It is also made of vegetables. It is eaten fresh. Usually singkamas (jicama), beans, carrots and ubod are used. This is also sautéed before it is wrapped in lettuce and then a special wrapper made of egg crepe. Gravy is poured on top of the spring roll and sprinkled with toasted peanuts. The best lumpiang sariwa I have tried was the one from Goldilocks. Probably because of the gravy they use.
Another variety is lumpiang hubad. It is similar to fresh lumpia except it is not wrapped in the crepe.
A not so common lumpia that kids love is cheese eggroll. It is cheese (usually cheddar, but you can use other kinds of cheese) wrapped in lumpia wrapper. It is deep fried and best served in children's parties.
The wrapper is also used in turon. It is a snack made of banana. Saba is commonly used. It is covered with brown sugar and ripe langka or jackfruit is added before it is wrapped. It is also deep fried. Nowadays, Filipinos have different varieties of turon. Sweet potato or kamote, squash or pumpkin are also used as an alternative to banana.
Making your own lumpia is tedious and time consuming. You need at least an hour or two to be able to make it. But if you want alternative to the common lumpia sold in the market, then it is best you make your own. Local stores sells the wrapper now, in their Asian frozen isle. Common brand is Menlo or Spring Home that is only less than $2.
Guess what's for lunch today? I made home made lumpiang gulay. Lets eat!!
I recently had a conversation with a friend of mine who is taking up Masters Degree in Regulatory Affairs at San Diego State University. She asked me if I am in favor of genetically engineered food. And my answer was a big NO! But then it got me thinking, how will I know if the food I'm eating is genetically engineered or not. And that's when I started researching. I have always been a firm believer that we should be responsible with whatever we eat. And I haven't been (I thought I was). Unknowingly, I have been consuming food that has been genetically engineered.
Let's start with a little detail about genetically engineered food or GM foods. They are also called genetically modified organism or GMO. These are food that has been genetically altered to resist pathogens, herbicides, or to increase its nutrients. The DNA of the food is altered by removing unwanted traits and at the same time introducing 'good traits'. Genetic engineering is the method used. In layman's term, these are mutated food.
But how do we know if the food we buy is genetically engineered or not. In 64 countries, labeling is required for all products. But not in the USA. FDA doesn't require the labeling of food with GMO. It only requires producers to label the nutrient contents of the food on the market. Although producers can voluntarily label if their product has GMO ingredient or not.
There is no known side effects of GMO. It is a general conclusion that GMO is not riskier to human health compared to conventional food, and that there is no difference between the two. But still, would you prefer to know if what you are eating is GMO or not?
Here are some common food available in the market that has been genetically engineered. Corn- as of today 90% of the corn in the market here in the US is GMO. I wonder if that's the reason why the corn here is not as sweet as the corn I eat back home. I searched a bit more and was surprised that Philippine corn is also GMO!!! In fact, Philippines is now the 12th biggest grower of genetically modified (GM) crops. USA is number one.
Another crop is soy bean, 94% of soy bean is GMO. And as of today, almost 70% of all processed food available in the market contains soy bean by-products. You can find it in salad dressings, cheese, soymilk, juice powders, cereals and soups. Next is sugar. 90 % of commercially available sugar comes from genetically modified sugar beets and cane.
I noticed that the only approved genetically modified food are crops. Aside from corn, soy bean and sugar, USA is also producing genetically modified papaya, squash, tomato, sweet pepper, alfalfa and eggplant. Soon on the market are genetically modified apple that doesn't turn brown and potato that doesn't bruise.
Genetically modified fish and animals are not approved for human consumption. This I'm glad. For decades, animals have been genetically modified to produce more muscle mass, faster growth rate, more milk production, prevent certain diseases, produce human drugs etc. As of today, there is no approved genetically modified fish and meat in the market. Although, since 1995, a genetically modified salmon is still waiting for approval. But it didn't stop the producers from marketing it commercially. In 2010, FDA has approved AquaBounty salmon safe to eat. As of today, this salmon is still undergoing assessment. These genetically modified salmon is sterile, meaning the female salmon will not breed mutant offspring. Trader Joe's, Aldi, Whole Foods and other stores wouldn't sell this fish though.
I guess the most controversial GMO is the "golden rice". It is a genetically modified rice with beta- carotene, a precursor of Vitamin A. It was designed to combat the deficiency of Vitamin A in children, which causes a high percentage of mortality (up to 2M deaths annually). Golden Rice won the Patents for Humanity Award 2015.
In the Philippines, no GMO has triggered more controversy than golden rice. Farmers are protesting, they don't want to plant the golden rice. Some farms with undergoing golden rice trials have been vandalized. Farmers said a bowl of golden rice is not enough to solve malnutrition. Even the Pope expressed his personal blessing in the usage of golden rice, although there was no official statement from the Vatican. The Golden Rice Project of International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) has been going on for years in the Philippines. As of today, golden rice is not yet available in the market in the Philippines because of its inconsistency in the trial results. It will only be available once it yields favorable results and approved for commercial use.
Would you be willing to eat genetically modified food? If yes, then it would be easy for you to buy food anywhere. But remember, GMO food is developed to resist pesticides and herbicides for its survivability. Therefore, its not unusual to find residue of these chemicals in GMO food. The challenge is for those people who prefer to eat a non-genetically modified food. Generally, certified organic food has no GMO, or has a minimal amount on it. In addition, it doesn't have pesticides or herbicides. It doesn't have growth promoting antibiotics. But when a product is said to be organic, it doesn't mean that it is completely GMO free. Both non GMO and GMO can be grown organically. If you want an organic food that has no GMO ingredient, look for USDA certified organic food label or non-GMO Project verified label on it.
The more important questions are. Why is there a lot of resistance to GMO? Why do we have to certify organic food? Why is there a need for GMO when our ancestors survived with organic farming? Is it really necessary to grow GMO? What motivated companies and individuals to develop and market GMO? Is it for the benefit of mankind? Or for company growth and power? Will future studies show side effects of GMO? Will this future studies prove that GMO presents health risk to us? What health risks should we be looking for? Will there be adverse effect on earth if we keep planting GMO?
