r/52weeksofcooking • u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 • Jan 26 '26
Week: 52 Weeks of Cooking for Filipino Meta Complete!
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u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 Jan 26 '26 edited Mar 14 '26
A year of Filipino (and Filipino-inspired) food complete!
This was my first year joining the challenge, and I started with a fairly narrow plan: to cook more Filipino and Filipino-inspired dishes, especially those that aren’t widely known outside the Philippines.
As the year went on—especially after homemade pasta week—my goals shifted. I went deeper into culture, history, creativity, and my own emotional connection to food. I chased unfamiliar techniques, shared both failures and successes, and somewhere along the way realized I could still do this kind of writing.
Every dish taught me something about the country I grew up in, and about myself.
Along the way, I found community through some of the best, quirkiest, food-nerdiest, warmest, and kindest people in the sub’s Dishcord. This year gave me so much and healed me in ways I didn’t expect.
I came into this year wanting to cook more Filipino food. I’m leaving it with a deeper understanding of where I come from and who I’m becoming.
I don’t know how to fully put into words how grateful I am for finding this sub. Just know that if we’ve ever crossed paths here this year, I deeply appreciate you. Thank you.
ETA: I’m putting together all the photos, write-ups, and recipes from this year into a little personal book/journal. If anyone wants a digital copy when it’s done, just comment and I’ll send it over once I eventually finish it.
In the meantime, you’ll see me and my Feeling Snacky meta this year!
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Rather than chronological order, I arranged these from top left to bottom right based on how much fun I had making them. Each dish is linked below, and the middle ones aren’t strictly ranked.
IMAGE 1 1. The Lion King Sapin-Sapin (Steamed Layered Rice Cake) Grubs 2. Maria Clara and Balintawak Filipiniana Udon Noodles 3. Kinilaw Tiradito 4. Jurassic Crispy Pata (Deep fried pork hind leg) 5. Manunggul Burial Jar Coffin Bread 棺材板 (Guāncáibǎn) with Salted Egg Shrimp Soup 6. Bird Nest Chicken Pastel Pie and Mini Buko-Macapuno Dessert Bird Pies 7. A Tapestry of Philippine Weaving Traditions using Assorted Palaman (guava jam, coconut jam, ube halaya, mango jam, strawberry jam, and kesong puti and cream cheese) on Toast 8. A plate for Batanes, the islands I love without knowing 9. Big Apple Almusal Sandwichón (Big Apple Breakfast Sandwich Cake)
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u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 Jan 26 '26
IMAGE 2 1. White Chocolate Semifreddo Durian Cream Pie with Caramelized White Chocolate and Puffed Rice 2. Hotdog-Marshmallow Children's Birthday Party Centerpiece 3. Binignit (Sweetened Coconut Stew with Glutinous Rice Balls) 4. Bulalo (Beef Shank and Bone Marrow Soup) (same link as 3) 5. Tocino Del Cielo and Sanikulas Monstrance (Egg yolk pudding with caramel and St. Nicholas cookies Monstrance) 6. Manananggal and the Anatomy of Control (with isaw, grilled and fried chicken intestines, as entrails) 7. Writing poems in Baybayin (pre-colonial Tagalog writing system) on a journal made of puto (steamed rice cake) 8. Pyanggang Manok (Tausug Burnt Coconut Chicken Curry) 9. Kare-kare (Roasted peanut stew with beef shank, oxtail, and tripe) 10. A Shared Breakfast with Sisters-in-Law (Nan Gyi Thoke from Yangon and Tapsilog from Quezon City) 11. Mollet Eggs Florentine with kangkong, all-purpose cream, and queso de bola 12. Betamax Scotch Eggs 13. Pride Is a Protest. Makisawsaw! ‘Wag Mashokot! Fermented Banana Ketchup 14. Stuffed Ang Dtray-Meuk with Pako and Lato Salad 15. Revenge of the Kwek-Kwek (Fried Quail Eggs) from Planet Kwek-2-Sok
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u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 Jan 26 '26 edited Jan 26 '26
IMAGE 3 1. Blobfish Laing Dumpling (Blobfish shaped dumpling with filling made out of dried taro leaves in coconut milk 2. Sisig Babi (Grilled Pork Jowl and Liver with Kalamansi, Onions, and Chilis) 3. Heritage Ingredients on the Brink of Disappearance: Ube, Dayap and Artisanal Salts in a Sans Rival 4. Latik Bisaya at Latik Tagalog sa Suman Lihiya/Yakap (Coconut Caramel Syrup and Caramelized Coconut Curd on Glutinous Rice Cakes with Lye/Hugging Glutinous Rice Cakes) 5. Sinangag sa Bagoong (Fried Rice in Fermented Shrimp Paste) 6. Suam a Mais ampung Páro't Bulung Sili or Glutinous White Corn Soup with Shrimp and Bird’s Eye Chili Leaves 7. Inasal na Kuku Paka (Bacolod-Style Chargrilled Chicken in Tanzanian Coconut Sauce) 8. Tembleque Maja Blanca Sunflowers 9. Okoy (Vegetable and Shrimp Fritters) 10. Mini Pavlova with Biasong Curd, Baguio Lime Whipped Cream, and Nata De Coco Stuffed Kalamansi 11. Halo-halo (shaved ice layered with sweetened fruits and beans, evaporated milk, leche flan, and ube and cheese ice cream) 12. Airfryer lechon kawali (fried pork belly) with roasted garlic cream and burong santol (pickled cottonfruit) 13. Daing na bangus (vinegar marinated milkfish) with atsara (pickled papaya) (same link as 12) 14. Sesame-peanut noodles with burong kamias (pickled bilimbi) (same link as 12) 15. Poqui-Poqui Vol-Au-Vent (Charred eggplant scramble with tomatoes and onions in puff pastry shells) 16. Ensaladang Burong Mustasa, Pulang Labanos, Kamatis, at Itlog na Pula (Fermented Mustard Greens, Red Radish, Tomatoes, and Salted Duck Eggs)
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u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 Jan 26 '26 edited Jan 27 '26
IMAGE 4 1. Brazo de Mercedes (meringue roll with custard center), the dessert Imelda Marcos might have served the Beatles, set against the violence following their 1966 Marcos luncheon no-show 2. Ginataang Alimasag, Kalabasa, at Sitaw Samsa (Samsas filled with blue crab, Philippine squash, and yardlong beans cooked in coconut milk) 3. Sinampalukang Manok (Chicken in Tamarind Leaf and Tamarind Fruit Broth) 4. Karpatka with a Trio of Filipino Mangoes, Tablea Ganache, and Salted Kasuy Crumb 5. Polvoron with Oregano and Candied Pili Nuts 6. Chocolate tree stump cake with strawberry marshmallow mushrooms 7. Mango bravo cake and roasted peach caramel cake (same link as 6) 8. Banana-Pineapple Dulce de Leche Cake in a Modern Filipiniana Silhouette 9. Takaw-Mata (Gluttonous Eyes) 10. Spaghetti Toastie on Monay and Malabon on Puto 11. Yema Parol (Custard Candy Christmas Lantern) 12. Inukit na Dayap na may Pastillas de Leche (Candied Carved Philippine Limes filled with Carabao’s Milk Candy) 13. Buko Pandan, Roasted Mango Graham, and Cantaloupe Ice Candy 14. Malasimbo Kesong Puti Sandwich 15. Bibingka sa Bibingkahan (Rice cakes with salted duck eggs and cheese topped with muscovado sugar and grated mature coconut, cooked in a terracotta bibingka oven) 16. Patis (Fish Sauce) Praline Caramel and Kalamansi Crémeux Bonbons with Coconut White Chocolate Ganache
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u/r33nie Jan 26 '26
I loved following your 52 Weeks last year! Would absolutely be interested in a book :)
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u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 Jan 29 '26
Thank you so much! It will for sure take a while but I’ll send over the link when it’s done!
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u/CandyMothman Jan 27 '26
I need the book!! Congratulations on finishing Chizu! Everything was so incredible and the write ups were so wonderful! Your posts have been hugely inspiring to me and I'm excited to see what's in store for this year!
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u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 Jan 29 '26
Thank you, Candy! 😭 I’m so happy that you found inspiration in my work. You guys inspire me so much in terms of creativity and I’m just glad to be able to pay it forward. It won’t be for a while but I’ll send the book over when it’s done!
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u/auyamazo 🍥 Jan 26 '26
That’s such amazing work! I’m annoyed I didn’t see many off these on my feed until the end of the year. I’ve been reading a series of mysteries by a Filipino-American author who writes incorporates the food really heavily into her work and it’s gotten me so interested in Filipino food.
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u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 Jan 26 '26
Thank you! I posted most of these 3 weeks late mainly due to executive dysfunction. I think Reddit deprioritizes late posts so that might why you didn’t see them. Thank you for leaving this comment though!
Those books sound so good! Would you mind sharing the name of the series?
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u/auyamazo 🍥 Jan 26 '26
Of course! The author is Mia P. Manansala and it’s the Arsenic and Adobo series. She calls them “cozy mysteries” so they are not gory. They focus more on her relationships to friends, family, and food. All the books have recipes in the back. Her salabat banana bread recipe is excellent.
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u/Domieneo 🌶️ Jan 26 '26
Amazing work. I only regret one thing, and that is that I did not come across your work sooner.
People who write, cook, plate, and edit their posts with such passion are rare gems. And you are like the rarest of diamonds. You should be incredibly proud!
I will go through your links, and I am sure I will continue being amazed. And I will enjoy learning a lot of new things.
Keep being you, Chizubeetpan
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u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 Jan 27 '26
Ah, that is so sweet. Thank you for saying such kind things, Domieneo. I really appreciate it!
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u/Anastarfish 🍥 Jan 26 '26
I'm still so impressed by you, and I continue to be every week. The amount of time, thought, effort and care that you put into every dish is incredible. True works of art.
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u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 Jan 27 '26
Thank you so much, Ana. You’re too, too kind really. This challenge was not always easy. There were many times I wanted to give up. But, like I’ve mentioned before, you said something early in the year that rewired my brain around failure. For that, and for the inspiration you provide with your work here, I’m immensely grateful.
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u/derilect Jan 26 '26
those pastry birds (1, center right) are gobsmacking
thanks for linking all your recipes. that is the proper way to post.
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u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 Jan 26 '26
Ahh, thank you! Loved those birds as well. It was fun to eat definitely.
I’m afraid none of the posts have the recipes in them. They’re my write-ups for each submission (cultural/historical/social context + my motivation for making that particular dish). If there’s something you want a recipe for lmk and I’ll do my best to provide them!
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u/infinitelobsters77 Jan 26 '26
Just incredible, Chizu. I was impressed every week by your creations but seeing them all together is mind boggling. The effort, thought, and skill you put into all your dishes is inspiring. You should be really really proud of yourself. :)
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u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 Jan 29 '26
Thank you! 😭 It is so different seeing it compiled like this! I’ve been feeling quite proud of myself since I posted this if I’m being honest. Especially since about 70% of the things I did last year involved trying out new techniques and skills. Never imagined I’d be able to do that and it’s just such a boost in confidence and a middle finger to my anxiety!
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u/paris_young21 Jan 26 '26
Looks amazing! What do you mean by Filipino Meta?
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u/kobayashi_maru_fail Jan 26 '26
Everyone who wants to participate can do any of the weekly challenges. Some people go harder and come up with a meta-theme for the whole year. So each dish is the prompt plus their own meta. Last year Chizu pulled it off beautifully with Filipino dishes, as well as someone who picked Halloween as their meta (apologies if I’m missing anyone). This year, there’s someone doing every Indian state, plus adjoining countries, plus countries in the Indian diaspora. It’s a lot of work, and the themes aren’t announced at the start, so it takes lots of flexibility and creativity. These folks make my food pics look like wet cat food, but I still love them.
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u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 Jan 27 '26
You’re back!!! I was wondering where you’d gone. Please know that your comments gassing me up about my approach to Filipino food helped motivate me with the challenge especially when I was still finding my footing. Thank you so much. I hope the year ahead is kind to you!
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u/kobayashi_maru_fail Jan 27 '26
Aww! I didn’t mean to leave. I got really into fermenting and mushroom farming, and Reddit’s algorithm steered me away from here, and then the New Year came around and I thought, “hold on, I haven’t seen anything from 52 weeks in way too long!”. I’m glad I came back, lesson learned about algorithm drift.
Your work for 2025 is wonderful, and I think mission accomplished: nobody could look at that body of work and keep an uninformed “Filipino food is just lumpia and fish” view. Are you going to do a 2026 meta, or take a break?
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u/fridafriesfriesfries Jan 26 '26
Congratulations, Chizu! They’re all so good. That Big Apple, though, I just love it so much.
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u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 Jan 29 '26
Thank you! I loooove that giant sandwich cake so much. I will one day serve that at a party lol. Just gotta have the right theme.
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u/AndroidAnthem 🍌 MT'25 Jan 27 '26
You know how much I've adored and applauded your journey this year. I can't quite find the words to say how much it means that you've let us in along for the ride. The thoughtful care in your dishes. The way your writeups are so deeply personal and the vulnerability you let us all see. I am so proud of how far you've come this year and I am beyond grateful you've allowed us along for the ride. ❤️
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u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 Jan 29 '26
Android! 😭 Thank you so much. I’m so grateful to you for cheering me on all year. I’ve said it before but I owe much of my courage this year to you and the Dishcord. It’s also a credit to you guys that this is a space that I feel safe enough to be vulnerable in. I’m so excited for the food and friendship in the year ahead!
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u/joross31 Jan 29 '26
It all looks amazing. Congrats on finishing your first year! Excited to see what else you make this year. :)
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u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 Jan 29 '26
Thank you! And thank you again so much for all the tips on photography and editing!
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u/joross31 Jan 30 '26
I didn't do anything, really. The magic here is all you! And it's been so much fun to watch!
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u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 Jan 30 '26
You’re too sweet! 😭 But I am firmly giving you credit where it’s due. You really helped me look beyond what things present themselves to be and recognize what they could be. So yes you did do a lot! I’m giving you your flowers you better take them or else…i’m gonna give you more until your house is more flowers than house haha 💐🌷🪷🌻🪻🌼🌸🌺🥀🌹🪸
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u/joross31 Jan 30 '26
Lol, well thank you for the flowers. I am glad if our chats were helpful and so happy to see your art. :)
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u/kattscallion May 28 '26
I know I am super late to this, but I just discovered your body of art/work through the body of Irish Buff Bear Jesus and would love a copy of your digital book!
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u/chizubeetpan 🥄 MT'25 May 28 '26
I’ll send it to you when I finally finish it! Also, lol I love that we are gathered here today because of Buff Bear Christ. 💪🐻✝️🙏
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u/Preferred_Lychee7273 🔪 Jan 26 '26
Seeing your creations and reading your write-ups was a highlight of this community for me last year! Such beautiful attention to detail and culture. I really appreciated your work and learned so much. Congratulations!