IT'S customary for Filipinos to spend a portion of their Christmas bonuses or 13th month pay to buy food for Noche Buena. It has been a tradition that to welcome December 25, family members gather and eat together at midnight to celebrate Christmas.
With this tradition, one food item that had been present on Filipino tables for generations now is the ham. Sure, there are national ham brands that we've known since we're small but here in Davao City, local entrepreneurs have also ventured into the ham business as well. The quality and the taste also compete with that of larger and more-known brands in the Philippines. As we prepare for Noche Buena tomorrow, allow us to share with you two of the Davao ham brands you can buy and share with your family.
1. Papat's Foods
Before they were known for their processed meat products as tocino, bacon, and chorizo among others, Papat's Foods first ventured into selling ham in December 2003. Seeing this market as not yet as congested, they decided to start selling hams in bazaars and food exhibits. After that, they partnered with a local supermarket which allowed them to display their ham in the store for free.
According to Aileen Galindez, one of the owners, what they believe to be the reason Dabawenyos loved their ham is the balance of its sweetness and saltiness. "We did not want it to be too salty nor too sweet. We want to make a ham that the whole family can enjoy," she said. They started with Pinya Ham, now they have more varieties such as the Season's Ball, Chicken Ham, Hamon de Bola, and the Pear-shaped ham. Aileen said the expansion and the variety of their ham was based on the health preference and budget of their consumers.
She also said the way they cooked their hams are also an additional factor. They make sure they cook it the traditional way: smoked and cured as early as September.
Despite the pandemic Peewee Galindez, also Papat's Foods owner and husband of Aileen, said they were surprised with the 200 percent increase in the demand of their hams. People start ordering as early as October and November.
"There are two reasons why hams are still in-demand. Filipinos still celebrate Christmas despite the pandemic and the ASF ban for other non-local pork products has also given us the opportunity to sell," said Peewee.
2. CK's Kitchen Counter
Cielo Claudette Rivamonte is a chef at their family's restaurant in Marilog, Montenawin Resort and Restaurant. She also has a cake decorating business Cakevolution by Cielo. But the pandemic has taken its toll on most of the food business including Cielo's. Last year, she had started selling cured hams after learning the basics from a workshop in the culinary school she used to attend. With the pandemic, she decided to push through with this business this Christmas.
"Our Christmas Hams take a lot of time to make. We use around 20 ingredients to make these hams taste the way they do. It might sound clichè but we really make these Christmas hams with utmost love. From curing, cooking, baking, and packing our products, we really took into consideration how the client would feel once they receive their orders," said Cielo.
"We were so overwhelmed and thankful because as of writing, we already sold almost 200 ham orders this Holiday season! We just had to plan our days carefully so we can keep up with our orders and made sure that the quality of our products were excellent all the time," she added.
This Holiday season, buy and support local. Make Christmas a little bit happier and special for our neighbors and entrepreneurs of our community by patronizing their products.