US Ambassador Harry K. Thomas Jr. shows he can be into Pinoy food—from ‘balut’ to ‘durian’
IT HAD BEEN BARELY A month since Harry K. Thomas Jr. became US ambassador to the Philippines, but the self-confessed foodie and music lover was already feeling at home in Manila as he welcomed guests to the US Ambassador’s Forbes Park residence Tuesday night for the “Great American Barbecue.”
The host’s attempts to speak in Filipino didn’t go unappreciated. Apart from English, Thomas, according to an entry in Wikipedia, also speaks Spanish, Hindi and Bengali. He’s also reportedly learning Filipino.
“Hali(na) kayo. Kain na tayo (Come. Let’s eat),” said Thomas, to his guests’ delight. He is a former US ambassador to Bangladesh and the first African-American to assume the post here.
American staples
Thomas thought of reviving the tradition, said an embassy staffer, to showcase the wide range of US agricultural products, including various types of meat, potatoes, raisins and wine, available in the Philippines.
Guests had their fill of US-style corned beef, ham, chicken, corn on the cob and various salads made from all sorts of US produce. California wine and American “craft” beer flowed freely.
The evening’s menu had such American staples as char-grilled US rib eye steaks, grilled seafood and vegetable skewers, Cajun-style beer can chickens, smoked US pork loin, all-American mini cheeseburgers, fried potatoes and various desserts.
Guests also made their own macaroni ’n’ cheese in an on-the-spot cooking booth.
American Jay McCarthy, corporate chef for Catskill Place Restaurant Company in Colorado, flew to Manila to work on the cuisine that night.
Asked what his favorite dish was, Thomas, a true diplomat, replied “all.” In the past weeks, he has also sampled Filipino food, from balut to durian.
“That’s my problem,” the hefty and self-effacing Thomas said. “Busog ako (I’m full).”
Tradiing partner
Thomas also used the occasion to thank the US agricultural industry’s trading partners in the Philippines, composed mainly of Filipino importers, distributors, suppliers and restaurateurs.
The Philippines is the 15th biggest market in the world for US agricultural products such as unmilled wheat used for baking bread, soybean meal for livestock, pet food and aquaculture feed.
“If you’re eating bread today, there’s an 80-percent chance it’s from the US,” said David Wolf, the US embassy’s acting agricultural counselor, referring to the wheat used to make bread.
In 2008 alone, the Philippines imported almost $700 million worth of wheat from the US. But Wolf stressed the relationship between the two countries as far as agriculture goes is a “two-way street.”
The US, for instance, is the largest market for Philippine agricultural exports, specifically coconut oil.
Choosing US beef over other beef produced elsewhere, said Wolf, is simply a matter of preference. But as a consumer himself, he said US beef has a distinct, if not better, taste.
Since cows in the US are corn-fed, their meat tends to have a marbling effect that makes it more flavorful. It doesn’t have the “grassy” taste, he said, commonly found in beef produced in other countries. In other words, US beef tastes, well, “corny.”
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