The Philippines is not exactly celebrate for its food but as recent guest Gordon Ramsay pointed out – this isn’t because the food is bad, quite the contrary. The archipelago nation has an incredibly rich food culture packed with variety, it’s just not good at publicizing the fact.
Our favorite Filipino cookbooks do everything from introducing you to lechon and crispy pata (the most famous dishes of the nation) to walking you through modern day Filipino cookery on the cutting edge of international food. Enjoy!
The Filipino Instant Pot Cookbook: Classic and Modern Filipino Recipes for Your Electric Pressure Cooker by Tisha Gonda Domingo
The instant pot is every cook’s friend because it makes preparing even complex dishes so very, very easy and everything is cooked completely and so juicy and tender.
Tisha’s all about taking traditional Filipino fare and adapting it to the instant pot so that you can make the best Pork Tamarind Soup among other things. This is heaven.
The Filipino Cookbook: 85 Homestyle Recipes to Delight your Family and Friends by Miki Garcia
Miki took a journalism course in the UK before returning to the Philippines and she’s an expert linguist in Kapampangan as well as an amazing cook.
This contains 85 recipes that really do represent the best homestyle cooking of Filipinos and they’re all super tasty.
Quintessential Filipino Cooking: 75 Authentic and Classic Recipes of the Philippines by Liza Agbanlog
This is a very simple cookbook which focuses on recipes that don’t require a ton of ingredients and can be prepared quickly.
Yes! It’s the essential guide to weekday Filipino food and you won’t regret trying the kare kare, it’s truly memorable.
Recipes of the Philippines by Enriqueta David-Perez
This is THE classic Filipino recipe book but as it’s now out of print, you’ll need to find it somewhere they don’t know how much it’s worth or pay a small fortune for it.
If you do, you’ll get the most authentic, traditional Filipino food that there is. It’s an unbeatable trove of great good.
Filipino Cooking Here & Abroad by Eleanor Laquian and Irene Sobrevinas
Nearly every Filipino that goes overseas carries a copy of this cookbook with them.
For many Filipinos this is the taste of home and the taste of their new life and you just can’t beat that.
I Am a Filipino: And This Is How We Cook by Nicole Ponseca and Miguel Trinidad
This is as much a manifesto of Filipino heritage as it is a cookbook and it’s got the most straightforward but delightful recipes that we’ve encountered.
Their approach to adobo is out of this world and their jackfruit ice ceam may be the best thing we’ve eaten all year. Don’t miss it.
The New Filipino Kitchen: Stories and Recipes from around the Globe by Jacqueline Chio-Lauri
This is a qualtity cookbook which focuses on a small handful of standout Filipino recipes so that the author can breathe life into them through stories.
Some of the recipes in here have been contribued by the world’s most famous Filipino chefs and there’s nothing here that would look out of place at the dining table in a royal palace.
Pulutan! Filipino Bar Bites, Appetizers and Street Eats by Marvin Gapultos
Fillipino street food isn’t as famous as Thai or Singaporean food and it’s often hard to find great street food in Manila.
But if you venture around the islands, you will soon find food that is nearly as good as you can learn to make in this cookbook.
Baking at République: Masterful Techniques and Recipes by Margarita Maznke and Betty Hallock
You can’t find a better introduction to the sweet treats of the nation than this masterwork.
Maznke is a James Beard semifinalist and a world class cook, this is Fililpino pastry done better than right.
The Easy Filipino Cookbook: 100 Classics Made Simple by Roline Casper
This is a charming cookbook which makes us feel like we’re in the kitchen with Roline. Everything here is really easy to prepare and each recipe rendered lovingly with a history of the dish.
It’s an island hopping tour of the Philippines without ever steping outside of your kitchen, you just can’t go wrong with this cookbook.
Final Thoughts On Best Filipino Cookbooks
Once you’ve tried Filipino food then you’ll never want to stop trying it. These Filipino cookbooks make the archipelago’s cuisine super accessible and easy to make.
Not sure if it’s Filipino that you fancy for dinner? Then why not take a look at these excellent Japanese cookbooks, these fantastic Asian cookbooks or these exciting Spanish cookbooks, instead?
