In an effort to promote cultural diversity and inclusion, we’re doing a “Ballad Health’s Melting Pot” series. Ballad Health team members represent countries all over the globe to create a melting pot of diverse backgrounds. Let us know if you would like to introduce your fellow Ballad Health team members to your family’s culture by sharing your story and recipes. If so, email us at balladhealthnews@balladhealth.org and someone on the communications team will contact you.
If you’re lucky enough to work in corporate pharmacy, then you’ve probably sampled the delicious cuisine of Rosa’s Asian homeland. For the rest of us, see her recipes below to try them at home.
Rosa Octobre’s coworkers in corporate pharmacy know they’re in for a treat when she shows up to work with a hot dish of one of her or her mother’s Filipino specialties. It’s also been a delicious way to highlight her Pacific island country’s history and culture. Now she’s sharing two of her recipes here so all Ballad Health team members can enjoy them.
A family favorite is chicken adobo, a tangy vinegar-and soy sauce-simmered chicken or pork entrée served with rice, which is indigenous to the Philippines.
“It’s like mac-and-cheese here. Every café serves chicken adobo for lunch and dinner. It became popular when the Spanish occupied the Philippines,” she explained. “The Spanish found Filipinos cooking with vinegar and soy sauce and added it to their recipes.”
Pancit Bihon (pronounced pan SIT, BEE hahn) is another popular dish from the tropical island that reflects the culinary influence of the Chinese traders who frequented the Philippines centuries ago. According to Rosa, it’s always served at birthday celebrations because the rice noodles represent long life and good health. As is customary in Filipino cuisine, beef, pork and chicken are interchanged in most recipes depending on the cook’s preference or budget.
Just as the Spanish and Chinese cultures are reflected in what is now traditional Filipino cuisine, the growing number of ethnic restaurants in the Appalachian Highlands is making a mark on the culture here. Still, Rosa says there are no Filipino restaurants in the area, so she’s happy to share tasty samples of her recipes with coworkers and friends. Her egg rolls are popular with many. She’s even thought of starting a side catering business with her mother.
After living 15 years in Northeast Tennessee, Rosa says the area is now home. It was a long, 10-year wait to join her sister, who moved here when she married an American, and then her mother who followed later.
“My sister’s husband had to file a petition for her to move here. Then, when she got here, she filed a petition for my mom and that took five years to process. Eventually, my mother petitioned me and that took another five years. So, it was about 10 years before we were all together,” Rosa recalled.
“When I moved here to the United States, I left everything in the Philippines. I did not have cash, and I only brought a briefcase of clothing. I really started from scratch. However, the only struggle was for me to adapt to the surroundings. As an immigrant, I was lucky and never had a problem that made me feel like I did not belong.”
In fact, a few years ago, her Ballad Health coworkers touched her heart in a way that made her feel truly accepted. When a strong typhoon slammed the Philippines, Rosa felt the need to help, so she started raising funds to buy food, water and other necessities for the devastated area.
“My coworkers helped me openly, and I was able to send $1,000 to my sister to buy these things to give to the people who were wiped out and had nothing. To me, that was special, and the trust they gave me was phenomenal.”
As a pharmacy optimization specialist, she works on monitoring contract savings and 340B auditing. Still, she yearns to work as a pharmacist again, as she did in the Philippines, and is excited to enter the Bill Gatton School of Pharmacy this fall to pursue a PharmD degree.
While the Filipino community in the region is small, ironically, Rosa met her husband, also an immigrant from the Philippines, in a local restaurant. “We connected when we learned we were both from there and became friends. The rest is history!” she said. They now share an 8-year-old daughter.
Rosa was also delighted to find a Filipino-American community group, TriCities FilAm, that formed in 1975 when the first Filipinos moved to the region. “We get together about three times a year (when there isn’t a pandemic) and have a picnic in the summer, a Christmas party and other events,” she said. The group welcomes other Filipino-Americans from throughout the region to join them on Facebook, or for events when gatherings resume.
The group helps new immigrants navigate the new customs and enjoy friendships with those from their homeland. Rosa says the starkest culture shock she experienced was the friendliness of people in the area.
“In the Philippines, we are just more cautious and don’t say ‘hi’ to strangers or even smile at them. When I came here, strangers in the store would just say, ‘Hi, how are you?’ or would wave, so I just adopted that behavior.”
She also laughs when she remembers finding herself in a Baptist church one day, thinking she was going to a Catholic service.
“In the Philippines, there are Catholic churches almost everywhere. So, when I walked into this church near my sister’s house, I was surprised when I was greeted by everyone. I thought every church was a Catholic church!”
Rosa said her experience settling into a geographical location so different from her tropical island home minutes from the ocean has been a good one. But she knows how uncomfortable many immigrants feel adjusting to their new surroundings. To those native to this area who meet these new residents, she simply suggests making their acquaintance.
“It’s natural for new immigrants to be timid and quiet because of the new environment. Just be compassionate, be patient with them and try to learn about each other,” she said.
One great way to get to know each other is to share food and recipes. “It’s a common denominator between all people,” she said. Below are two of her favorites that reflect the delicious culture of her beloved Philippines.
Chicken Adobo
(pronounced: ah DOE bo)
Serves 4
Chicken Adobo is a popular indigenous Filipino dish cooked in soy sauce, vinegar and garlic. It’s served for lunch or dinner with warm white rice. If you like, you can substitute sliced pork loin for chicken.
Ingredients:
2 lb. broiler-fryer, cut up (or use chicken thighs and legs)
½ cup soy sauce
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons cooking oil
1 large potato, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces (optional)
1½ cups water
4 dried bay leaves
1 teaspoon whole peppercorns
¼ cup white vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon salt (optional)
Directions:
- In a large bowl, combine chicken, soy sauce and garlic. Mix well. Cover and marinate chicken in refrigerator for at least 1 hour.
- Place cooking oil in a cooking pot over medium heat.
- Once oil is hot, remove chicken from marinade and place in pot, reserving marinade. Pan-fry chicken 2 minutes per side.
- Add remaining marinade to chicken, including garlic. Add potato and water and bring water to boil.
- Add dried bay leaves and whole peppercorn. Simmer for 30 minutes or until chicken and potato are tender.
- Add vinegar. Stir and cook for 10 minutes.
- Stir in sugar and salt (optional). Cook 2 more minutes. Serve hot and enjoy!
Pancit Bihon
(pronounced: pan SIT, BEE hahn)
(Rice flour noodles with meat and vegetables)
Serves 8
Pancit Bihon is a famous Filipino staple made with rice flour noodles and choice of any meat or vegetables. It is traditionally served at birthday celebrations because the noodles represent long life and good health. You can use spaghetti noodles instead of rice noodles.
Ingredients:
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 small yellow onion, minced
½ lb. chicken breast, pork or beef, thinly sliced
1 chicken or beef bouillon cube
3 to 4 cups water
1 cup carrots cut into ½-inch pieces
¼ lb. snow peas (about 1 cup)
¼ lb. green cabbage, chopped (about 1¼cups)
½ cup chopped celery
1 (8-ounce) package rice noodles
5 tbsp soy sauce
Directions:
- In a large pot, sauté minced garlic and onion.
- Add the meat of choice, then cook 10 minutes.
- Add carrots, snow peas, cabbage and celery, then simmer for few minutes until meat and vegetables are tender.
- Add bouillon cube and water, then simmer 5 minutes.
- While vegetables cook, soak noodles in cold water about 5 minutes to soften. Cut noodles, if desired.
- Remove cooked meat and vegetables from the pot and set aside, leaving the liquid in the pot.
- Add softened noodles to liquid and cook 5 minutes over medium heat.
- Add soy sauce to noodles and mix well.
- Return meat and vegetables to the noodles mixing well. Simmer for 1 to 2 minutes.
- Serve hot and enjoy!
*Note: You can find rice noodles in the Asian section of the grocery store. Packages may be labeled “rice sticks.”
