Cavite is a place known for its rich history and is home to some of the Philippines’ national heroes, including Emilio Aguinaldo, the country’s first president. It has also been the site of many important events in Philippine history. Because of its rich history, Cavite has heritage cuisines worth trying. If you are looking for new tasty dishes to try in Cavite, aside from the famous bulalo in Tagaytay, here are some heritage food items worth trying.

Tamales

Photo by Judgefloro on Wikimedia Commons

Tamales is one of the food items you would expect in a Caviteño noche buena and food souvenir from Cavite. Tamales take a long time to prepare and cook, as it involves grinding peanuts and rice flour. At the end, it is topped with chicken and bacon slices. For festive and flavorful tamales, you may add garbanzo bean bits and hard-boiled eggs. If you prefer buying tamales instead of making one, you can find ready-made ones in supermarkets and groceries near your foreclosed house and lot in Cavite.

Bibingkoy

Photo from Cavite City Trends Facebook Page

Not to be confused with the traditional bibingka served during the holidays, bibingkoy is a type of rice cake made with baked glutinous rice dough. It is filled with sweetened mung bean with tapioca, jackfruit, and sweetened coconut sauce. Bibingkoy’s texture is like baked buchi and tastes like ginataang halo-halo because of its sauce. 

Pancit Pusit

Photo from GMA News Online

If you love pancit, Cavite’s pancit pusit is a noodle dish made with bihon or rice vermicelli, baby squid, prawns, bacon, cabbage, carrots, and celery. To make it more sumptuous, it is garnished with crushed chicharon and spring onions. Don’t forget to serve it with calamansi.

Pancit Puso

Photo from Yummy.ph

Another not to miss noodle dish in Cavite is pancit puso made with bihon and miki bihon noodles. Its sauce is made from the broth of shrimp head, giving a rich flavor to the savory dish. What makes it unique is the pickled banana blossoms added to it to bring out its rich sour flavor. pancit puso is often served with generous servings of chicharon, eggs, chorizo, and shrimp. 

Bacalao

Photo from People Asia

Bacalao is a fish recipe using dried codfish boiled in water overnight. After boiling, the fish will be shredded, and garbanzo beans or chickpeas, potatoes, bell peppers, and onions are added. It is one of the dishes often served during the Lenten season in Cavite, so if you’re planning to observe lent here, don’t forget to try this dish.

Ensaymada

Photo from Baloy’s Bakeshop Facebook Page

Known for its distinct shape and a thin dusting of butter, sugar, and grated cheese, ensaymada is one of the popular snacks in Cavite, best paired with hot coffee. If you don’t have the time to make this sweet treat at home, you may get your hands on one of the tastiest ensaymadas in Cavite from Baloy’s Bakeshop. Ensaymadas from this bakeshop come with different flavors of Classic, Bavarian, Ube, Macapuno, and Dulce de Leche.

There you have it! I hope you enjoy at least one of these must-try delicacies in Cavite. Aside from trying it out for yourself, learning to make at least one of these dishes is an excellent way to preserve the rich history of Cavite.