Local Rum Gives Dishes + Drinks a Snazzy Edge at This Recent Filipino-Indian Dinner

(SPOT.ph) You might know rum for being the base of the daiquiris and piña coladas you downed in college. And those are still good alright—but there’s more to explore with the alcoholic beverage, especially when it’s a premium brand like Don Papa Rum we’re talking about. The Filipino brand recently turned 10, and celebrated the achievement with a dinner that showcased Don Papa’s versatility—both in the food and drink realm.

Taking over the kitchen of Legazpi Village’s Xception that night was Indian celebrity TV chef Cyrus Todiwala, known for his Mr. Todiwala’s line of condiments and for helming London’s Café Spice Namaste. Todiwala was joined by our own Chef Patrick Go—formerly of Black Sheep and the current brain and hands of Your Local—and they whipped up a three-course affair melding Filipino and Indian worlds.

Also read: SPOT.ph Editors' Picks: The Dangerously Fun Drinks We Call Traydor

See how chefs Cyrus Todiwala and Patrick Go used Don Papa Rum to bring out the best of Indian and Filipino cuisine:

You can’t underestimate single island rum purveyor Don Papa Rum’s impact on the local alcohol scene. Their namesake product celebrates the Philippines' own "sugar capital", Negros Occidental, being made with their sugarcane that's distilled and aged (for more than seven years!) in American oak barrels on the island.

Not only have they raised the stakes for rum locally but they’ve also made a name for the country on a global scale. Today you can find it sold in more than 30 countries around the world; the brand was also recently acquired by London-based company Diageo (who also owns Johnnie Walker, Tanqueray, and other liquor brands) for €260 million.

For the dinner, dubbed Journey Through Sugarlandia, Todiwala and Go brought their best feet forward and fashioned a special menu of dishes with Indian and Filipino (primarily Goan and Negrense) influences, and with Don Papa Rum infused in some way. In the Tuna Loin Kilawin, the rum lends depth to a bright dressing of batwan (yup, the sour fruit used in kansi!), which then dresses a Goan peri peri masala-spiced mix of seared tuna loin, cucumber, and pomelo. Topped with tapioca chips, the resulting concoction delivers zing with every forkful—perfect for having alongside the tangy Sampinit Sour cocktail that combines Don Papa Rum, lemon juice, crème de framboise, and the highly seasonal local berry of the same name.

The use of Don Papa Rum also makes for a complex-tasting Sugarlandia Surf and Turf. The “surf” part of the equation refers to salmon, flavored a la the zesty Goan dish called cafreal and imbued with batwan. The “turf” on the other hand is beef striploin, which they marinade in a mix of red masala, inasal aromatics, and Don Papa Rum and serve with a Don Papa muscovado-soy reduction. Of course, the liquor also makes for stellar desserts, demonstrated that night by way of the Coconut and Banana Pancake. This tropical take on bananas foster features the fruit flambéed in Don Papa Rum, then wrapped in a thin pancake and accompanied by bebinca (a Goan multilayered cake) and coconut gelato.

“We love how complex the flavor of Don Papa Rum is,” the chefs share in an exchange with SPOT.ph. “It has some sweet, floral, and spice notes. Since our dishes generally has a lot of flavor combinations, we decided to incorporate [the rum] in some [of the] sauces and [marinades] we used.” And though Filipino and Indian food might not seem too similar at first glance—or at first taste—the chefs share that it was “fairly easy” to meld these worlds together. “Both cuisines have very intricate flavor combinations,” they explain, though they’re both punchy in their own way: Indians love their spices, while Filipinos love their acidity and sweetness. True enough, the dishes featured delivered on the said aspects, with the locally loved rum helping bridge the gaps.

For more information, check out Don Papa Rum's Facebook page.

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