STREET FOODS ON THE GO!

I remember back when I was in high school where everyone pays no more attention to the last subject because of already being very busy arranging our things, fixing our hairs, powdering our faces, and just really being anxious to get out of the door, meet our friends, share about our day, and talk like we have not seen each other for years, as we walk out of the school premises. Approaching the gate, fetchers chit-chattering while waiting, students going in and out of the campus, busy roads and street vendors attending to the demands of their customers welcome us outside every afternoon. Dismissal time at 4:30 pm is a regular snack time, since it is customary for Filipinos to eat “meriendas” or snacks between meals. Therefore, for us students who are looking for foods to fill our tummies, street foods--ready-to-eat foods and drinks sold in streets or other public places--are the most convenient ones. Students buy street foods because, besides being fed up with the expensive and unsatisfying foods in the canteen, it is more affordable, more satisfying and “sulit”, as well.

There are several street foods to choose from outside the school every afternoon. One is the lumpia, the favorite of most students. Kuya Joseph, the owner and vendor, told me how to prepare the lumpia. First, prepare the wrapper and a cup of water on the table; leave it for a moment, then sauté the grind meat which is already seasoned. When the meat is already cold enough for you to touch, you can now place it inside the wrapper, roll it, dip your hand in the water, and brush it on the tip of the wrapper to seal it. He then brings these prepared lumpias in school and he fries it there so it will still be crunchy and fresh. At 3:30 in the afternoon, he organizes his stall across the school and starts frying the lumpias so it will still be fresh and hot when we eat. Harmony is created in the salty flavor of the wrapper, and the sweet flavor of the meat inside. It taste like any other typical lumpia but once you add the sauce on it, which is simply composed of 70% vinegar and 30% fish sauce, it tastes perfect! Harmony is enhanced by the sour flavor of the sauce. Then you pair it with the hanging rice or better known as the puso, plus the company of your friends around eating as well, makes your daily merienda complete. Together with its simple yet awesome taste is its affordable price at 3.00php per lumpia and 2.50php per puso.20.00php would be more than enough to fill your tummy. Being able to escape from the stress in school and just to enjoy yourself while eating is what makes it more special. Kuya Joseph has already established relationships with us, students. He has become not only our”suki” but also as our friend. He joins us as we talk while we are eating, gives us free lumpia and discount at times and he even allows us to credit if ever there comes a time that when all we have left is fare in going home or when we have no money at all. When I asked him the secret of his lumpia.,  He just smiled and told me that there is nothing really special in the ingredients of his lumpia, rather what makes it special is the fulfillment, satisfaction, and genuine happiness he gets when he sees us eating happily.

Another is the kwek-kwek which is mainly composed of boiled quail egg coated with starch that is mixed with a little water, to make it viscous, and added with orange food coloring to give more attractive look to the food. Some use boiled chicken egg but quail egg is commonly used because it is relatively cheaper than the chicken egg and it is more consumable because of its size. Ate Betty, the vendor, said that cooking kwek-kwek is easy. You only need to boil the eggs, mix starch, water and the orange food color. Then simply place and roll the boiled quail eggs into the flour so that its surface will be coated evenly. Deep fry it for about 3-6 minutes after. Your kwek-kwek is now ready to be served with the complement of the sauce. The sauce can be spicy or sweet, that would depend on your preference and preparing the sauce is simple too. Ate Betty said that for the sweet sauce, 1:1 should be the ratio for the sugar and the water that is 1 cup of water is to1 cup of sugar. Then add a small amount of starch to give it a little sticky texture. As for the sour sauce, you only have to mince spices such as onions and garlic and mix it with vinegar. The thing that makes kwek-kwek special is the way its bland yet completely desirable taste never leaves your mouth. It’s like when you have eaten one, you will keep coming back for more.

We also have the sweet corn which is the easiest one to prepare. When I was young, I remember waiting outside our house for the sweet corn vendor to pass by every afternoon. He sells sweet corns that are boiled still with its skin on it where the fun in eating it starts from peeling it, to removing the last strays of silk from it until eating the last kernel from the corncob. Yet the sweet corns he sells are different from that of the one sold nowadays. It is still prepared by boiling though, but boiling it with its skin already peeled off and the strays of silk already removed. After about 5-7 minutes boiling, it is attached to a stick and it is up to you if you add butter or most commonly, margarine, a butter substitute, and cheese on it. But kuya Willie, the vendor, makes it more convenient for us, students to eat it. He does not only peel off its skin and remove the silk but he also cuts the kernels from the cob. I wondered how he cut the kernels off  the cob, so I asked him. He said he manually cuts off the kernels by row before he boils the corn. Then after boiling, he places it in a plastic cup with different prices according to its size, and still, it is optional if you add margarine and cheese on it. He even has condensed milk, if you want. The juice that is squeezed out form every kernel once you chew it and the pleasing arrangement of the flavors make the sweet corn distinguished from the other street foods


.Last is the hotcake which, just like the other three, is prepared simply too. Kuya Dodong, the vendor, told me how easy it is to cook a hotcake that I could even make one at home. Egg, Starch, water, butter or margarine, and sugar are the only ingredients. You just have to mix the egg, starch, water and butter or margarine, which is most commonly used. After, heat the pan and add a little oil so the cake won’t stick, pour the mixture with the desired amount, shape it as you wish, it is usually circular though, and facepalm it with your desired thickness as well. Then, flip it over to cook the other side of it and your hotcake is now ready to be garnished with margarine and sprinkled with sugar. The congruity in the mildness of the flavor of the cake and the butter completely creates a great impact on the very simple food, and just like all the others, it comes in a very cheap price too.

The most common reasons why students prefer to buy and eat street foods rather than those in restaurants or fast food chains are its cheap price, its accessibility and being able to get more than enough of what you’ve paid for. Oftentimes, street foods and restaurant foods have equal quality in taste. The thing that gives street foods a completely distinguished character is the joy you get when eating it with a typical ambiance; the streets, which make you feel much more of a normal and ordinary person. It is when you eat these foods with these simple people(vendors)who are trying to get the best out of life and still manages to smile despite all the struggles  and pains that they have encountered. By this, You have shared in their struggles and helped them ease their pains even in the least way. Students unconsciously get more satisfied eating these kinds of foods that are prepared with the sweat of their brows and again, its cheap price compared to that of the restaurants that are prepared in hurry plus, the pressure to keep the quality of the food in high standards. To top it all off, most students prefer street foods because of the satisfaction it gives with its cheap and affordable price.