If you really want to know a city, you must get to know what it’s native people eat. There’s no better hack to knowing the staple diet of a city, other than tracing the street food it’s people eat. And when it comes to the cities in Philippines, one of the street snack that is most relished and devoured is called Turon. So what exactly is the Turon? Turon is a Philippine snack made of thinly sliced bananas, dusted with brown sugar, rolled in a spring roll wrapper and fried till the wrapper is crisp. Turon can also include other fillings like jackfruit (langka). In some recipes Turon also consists of ingredients like sweet potato (kamote), mango (mangga), cheddar cheese and coconut (niyog). (These benefits of a banana leaf are a must-read)
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Did you know that Turon’s origins finds roots in the communities living in Philippines near the banana trees and crop fields? It was these tribes who started cooking this tasty snack. Initially in the olden days the extra banana produce would be cooked in to this snack and given to locals when there was a surplus from the harvest. Eventually the commercialisation of this snack began and people started selling it on the roadside.
Are you tempted to try this street food out? Here's a recipe you could re-create:
Ingredients:
Bananas saba or plantains, cut in half (lengthwise) - 6 pieces
Jackfruit ripe, sliced - 1 cup
Sugar - 1 1/2 cup
Lumpia wrapper - 12 pieces
Cooking oil - 2 cups
Method:
Roll the banana on the sugar plate and ensure that the banana is coated with enough sugar
Place the banana with sugar coating in the spring roll wrapper and add some ripe jackfruit
Fold and lock the spring roll wrapper, use water to seal the edge
In a pan, heat the oil and put-in some sugar.Wait until the brown sugar floats
Put-in the wrapped banana and fry until the wrapper turns golden brown and the extra sugar sticks on wrapper
Serve hot as a dessert or snack. Share and Enjoy!
