HOW TO COOK CHICKEN & PORK PIPIAN (A TASTE OF VIGAN)

Chicken pipian is one of my favorite Vigan dishes. Today I'm going to share a 450-year-old recipe from my hometown of Vigan City Ilocos Sur. The Spaniards might have left the Philippines but their presence is felt through their culinary dishes and practices .The people of Vigan love their pipian just like they love their Longganisa! You won't find this dish anywhere else in the Philippines! Only in Vigan. Living here in America, I discovered that the Mexican people have their own version of pipian! The mexican pipian , it does not taste the same as Vigan pipian ,though they are both connected through the use of the Epazote plant- a plant that is native to Mexico and central America. Epazote is a Central American herb that has a history of use dating back thousands of years to the Aztecs and the Mayans. They used it both for its medicinal value and as a culinary herb. The main use of the herb by both these civilizations was medicinal. The epazote plant was imported and introduced to Vigan through the The Manila Galleon trade .This route was inaugurated in 1565 after Augustinian friar and navigator Andrés de Urdaneta discovered the tornaviaje or return route from the Philippines to Mexico. #philippines #mexico #epazote