VISIT ILIGAN: The famous spicy Pinakurat Vinegar

The main ingredient of the Suka Pinakurat is fermented coconut sap locally known as tuba and bird’s eye chilies “labuyo” that are harvested from the wild mountains of Iligan. These key ingredients are organically grown, with the chilies being farmed by mother nature.

There are many things to buy in Iligan if you are in the know. Mostly when people thing of pasalubong from Iligan it is almost always Chedeng Peanuts (famous for being so tasty without being greasy and salty). But my favorite pasalubongs from Iligan are:

Lechon
Cherries silvanas (best when kept in the freezer prior to serving)
Sliced bread from Kristine’s Bakeshop – the kids of my friends love this!
Suka Pinakurat (or Pinakurat Vinegar) – a spicy fermented vinegar produced in Iligan City

On our last trip to Iligan we decided to bring home a box of Suka Pinakurat which is our favorite super spicy vinegar that is proudly made in Iligan. It’s the best thing to have with…

Iligan’s famous lechon (roast suckling pig)!
The fresh seafood in Iligan – such as crabs, steamed shrimps and fish
Sunburst Chickenhouse’s crispy chicken skin
My favorite krupuk (prawn crackers) from Brunei
Tuyo (dried fish)
And so much more!

via It’s More Fun to Travel in the Philippines

Why is it called Pinakurat?

Pinakurat is a traditional Iliganon dish made from wild boar meat “sulop” cooked only by a flame-shut pot of boiling coco vinegar, chilies, and spices. Since the taste of the vinegar is very similar to that of the dish, it was then named after it.

Another surprising but practical reason is that the product presents a pleasant surprise that excites the senses to a taste long desired. The word pinakurat is from the word “kurat” which means surprise in visayan vernacular.

CAUTIONARY TALE:

If you are buying Pinakurat from Iligan, it’s better to do it while riding Philippine Airlines or Air Phil.

We have brought back Suka Pinakurat from Iligan before without a hitch on Cebu Pacific, because the company that makes them is so used to this, that they have a special box for this wherein the bottles have slots so that they don’t move and bump each other. We even made sure to buy extra weight to make sure that we don’t get charge extra. But guess what?!? Cebu Pacific came up with another lame excuse to charge their passengers extra. They classified Suka Pinakurat as hazardous so you can only bring it via cargo. They said it’s because someone checked it in and the bottles broke – if it can break with that amazing packaging (you should see how well the manufacturers pack it) it only means that their staff threw that box, despite having printed labels on it saying FRAGILE and DO NOT THROW. So that’s on Cebu Pac not on the passenger. Those are sturdy, thick glass bottles packed in a professional way.

Cashier area

So what does it mean when you ship it in Cargo?

Despite paying for a total of 50Kg and having 20 Kg extra, we had to pay more money to have it brought in cargo
The cargo area is outside of the terminal and the process is not streamlined so we were given a hard time by the staff and they kept asking us to go back and forth (go to the cashier, go back to the guard, go to the cashier, etc). Despite it being already boarding time, they weren’t in a hurry (no wonder because the plane was delayed as usual). So be sure to come early to get your package into cargo.
When you get to Manila, you have to go from NAIA 3 to NAIA 1 (the old terminal) to pick up your package. Expect to wait an hour or 2 for your package to be brought in and sorted out. We had crabs, so we had to leave asap. Just came back the next day to pick it up (you can claim it up to a maximum of 24 hours).

This had to be the most expensive (time and money) Suka Pinakurat we’ve ever purchased. Moral of the story:

Only bring Suka Pinakurat if we are on PAL or Airphil. If you’re on Cebu Pacific, better to buy it at a higher price in Manila with less hassle.

SUKA PINAKURAT FACTORY IN ILIGAN