I remember this one time I was having dinner with my pregnant sister and her boyfriend. My sister’s boyfriend, who is a cook, was talking about the distinctive taste of different spices, such as cayenne, chili, Spanish paprika and the like. He was talking about the kind of spicy flavor he liked when he suddenly mentioned this adobo I cooked a few months ago (I rarely cook anymore). He said it was delicious and spicy in a really good way. I was surprised that he would still remember that. Even more surprising was that my pregnant sister suddenly asked me to cook adobo for our next meal, coz she also remembered my adobo and would love to have it again. It was surprising because my sister had started hating adobo after she got pregnant. She would never let her boyfriend cook the dish for her.

Then they started asking me what spices I added to my adobo. Was it chili powder? Cayenne pepper, perhaps? The funny thing is that I could not remember. All I could remember was that I was doing it in my aunt’s kitchen, and was simply experimenting with what was available. Luckily, my aunt’s pantry is well-stacked with the usual McCormick spices. When you have all sorts of McCormick spices in the kitchen, you could do magic!

 

 

Yes, I love McCormick and how they make spices easily accessible. So naturally, when I got an invite to the McCormick Flavor Nation Festival, I was more than eager to go.

 

 

The festival brought together aficionados and homemakers, so we could have fun with great food and music. Moreover, the event placed the highlight on McCormick’s meal recipe mixes (from kare kare and caldereta recipe mixes to Cajun marinade and Korean marinade mixes). These mixes are great for those who would love to capture the goodness of McCormick’s spices without having to experiment in the kitchen. If you are the type who can’t cook to save your life, or you simply prefer to follow a structured recipe, these mixes are just the thing for you. They will make life in the kitchen easier for you.

 

 

The Flavor Nation Festival featured four of the best chefs in the food business: Privatus’ AJ Reyes, Tipple and Slaw’s Francis Lim, Locavore’s Mikel Zaguirre, and Black Sheep’s Patrick Go. They created signature dishes using McCormick’s seasoning blends and meal recipe mixes as base. We were able to watch them do a live cooking demo. Even better, we were able to try the finished products. Needless to say, they were really delicious. Patrick Go whipped up a Sloppy Joe Bao, Mikel Zaguirre a Kare-kare with Bagoong Glaze, Francis Lim a Curry Fried Chicken, and AJ Reyes a Cajun Shrimp and Corn.

 

 

The Flavor Nation Festival was also graced by the presence of a curated selection of concessionaires, including Down to Earth, Ice Pops MNL, and Primo Wagyu. And of course, there were the Jensen and the Flips and Tandems ’91 to keep us entertained with great music.

The event was co-presented by F&B Report, the leading food service magazine in the Philippines.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Urban Ponder