By Mario Alvaro Limos/esquiremag.ph – The Philippines may have influenced the Spanish adobo, and not the other way around.
“Filipinos had adobo before Spaniards came to your country, and I have proof,” said Borja Sanchez, a Spanish chef and culinary scientist.
Sanchez revealed his findings at a lecture titled “Adobos, Vinegars, and Other Cultural Connections between the Philippines and Spain” at the Ateneo de Manila University.
Sanchez pored over tomes and tomes of books from Spain’s ancient archives to find out everything about the history of adobos, vinegars, and ancient Filipino cuisine. Sources for his research include records of ingredients brought to and from the Philippines aboard the Spanish galleons, and ancient cookbooks such as Libro de Cocina by Ruperto Nola (1529) and El Arte de la Cozina by Diego Granado (1599).
