“Two people in love, alone, isolated from the world, that’s beautiful.” – Milan Kundera
We are still on lockdown here in the UK. My wife and I celebrated our sixth anniversary (of being together) at home, as all the restaurants are still closed in London. Nothing fancy but memorable and something that we haven’t done together. We prepared a special Filipino meal we called boodle fight.
WHAT IS BOODLE FIGHT?
A boodle fight is a meal that is prepared and eaten without using cutlery and dishes. Diners instead practise kamayan, Tagalog for “eating with the hands”. The food is placed on top of a banana leaf-lined long table and in the true military practice, diners do not sit in chairs but instead stand shoulder to shoulder in a line on both sides of the table. Boodle fight became popular not only in the Philippines but also anywhere in the world where there are Filipinos.
WHAT TO EXPECT?
In a boodle fight, the food is served on a table lined with banana leaves. The rice is placed in the middle and a different variety of dishes are placed either on the top or the side of the rice. You can compare the boodle fight arrangement with a cheese board or charcuterie board. This is not a fine-dining experience so do not expect any fine chinaware and silver cutlery, you will eat on the banana leaves and you will be using your hands. That makes the experience exciting and fun. For some, they may find boodle fight unhygienic because of the eating set up, so if you are a little fuzzy, boodle fight is not for you.
WHAT DISHES WE PREPARED FOR THE BOODLE FIGHT?
As for the dishes, there are no set rules but the dried ones are more popular since the food is consumed by hands. Here are the dishes we have prepared: (good for two)
*You have to buy banana leaves, if you are not in the Philippines you can buy them in any Asian stores, it can be a bit pricey though. If you can not find any banana leaves available to purchase, aluminium foil will do.
- oven grilled pomfret (pompano fish)
- oven grilled stuffed squid (stuffed with diced onion and tomato)
- oven grilled bbq pork belly
- pan-cooked prawns
- Ensaladang talong (aubergine salad) marinated in vinegar and sugar, topped with raw onions and tomatoes.
- steamed okra
- mangoes
- bananas
- CONDIMENTS: bagoong (shrimp paste) and special vinegar (with soy sauce, garlic and onions)
- lots of steamed rice
You may serve whatever Filipino dish you fancy such as tuyo, danggit, tocino, longganisa, tapa and normally charcoal-grilled meats like fish, chicken and pork. You can also serve different fruits and vegetable salads. Be creative and be aware of the amount of food you will serve. Consider how many people will be eating, just make sure there will be enough for everyone.
Water jugs (tabo) are also placed on the side used for washing your hands just before the “fight” happens. Yes, it is a “fight” you fight for the dish you want to eat and if you are a slow eater, good luck! My wife and I enjoyed our boodle fight feast and finished everything.
After our boodle fight dinner feast, my wife and I continued to celebrate our anniversary by setting up her DJ booth. We had Prosecco and Belgian beer and enjoyed the rest of the night dancing until our feet get tired and retired for the night. It was a very simple celebration but we had so much fun and we were very full. Tell me, would you like to experience and try boodle fight?
Thank you so much for taking the time to read my blog, until next Monday.
Lots of Love,
Rainne
littlemissrainne.com 