Earlier, we read some reports saying that there’s a high probability of rain in the middle of October (October 16th to be exact). For people like me who love this kind of weather (especially that cool breeze after the rain), this it definitely a signal of a new season.
Coincidentally, this is also a perfect timing to have tuyo (dried fish) and champorado (sweet chocolate rice porridge) for breakfast. Back in the Philippines, rainy mornings are best when served with our favorite tapsilog (combination of tapa, garlic-fried rice, and fried egg) or tocino (Filipino version of bacon) and hot coffee. In other places, we love the traditional serving of puto (steamed rice cake) or pandesal (Spanish for “salt bread”)… our local counterpart for pancakes or bread toasts.
A breakfast treat from City Center Rotana
Every FRIDAYS of October, City Center Rotana Doha is rolling out a grand Pinoy Agahan (Filipino Breakfast from 7:30am to 10:30am) in one of their ballrooms serving buffet breakfast for only QR100 for 2 persons (with early booking required until Thursdays). This is ideal for groups/barkadas (bestfriends), families, for a usual get-together breakfast or even for casual meetings. City Center Rotana Doha extends the invitation to all nationalities to come and try the Traditional Filipino Breakfast in style – served in ambient setting.
The Art in Filipino Breakfast
For many Filipino families, Agahan or Almusal (breakfast) is definitely a big deal. Starting from small kids going to school up to the other members of the family who are going to work, we were told of its importance to gain strength and be physically ready for the day’s activities.
Filipino breakfast is described as heavy, filling and most of the times, repurposed from last night’s dinner – something that could test ones creativity, ingenuity and practicality. The leftover rice can be fried with garlic and other ingredients (like scrambled egg, mushrooms, sausages, etc) to make for an aromatic fried rice.
Egg is usually the most common ingredient in a Filipino breakfast. Leftovers can be simply fried with scrambled egg to produce a variety of omelette or “torta”. To add a mix of freshness in the menu, one can also prepare fresh juices or fresh fruits on the side.
Due to the influences from different colonizers, we came to appreciate other kinds of delicacies like champorado which is a variation of our usual rice porridge but with cocoa (chocolate flavor). Steamed rice cakes was influenced by Chinese in cooking their popular siopao (steamed bun). These foods are more popular in the provinces and can bring back nostalgic feeling of simple lives in the farm.
The Breakfast for Pinoy Expats
In the Middle East, Fridays are regarded as the weekend when most of the employees are off from work (except those who are in the service industries). It is the time to opt for an extended sleep or to lounge in front of the television for movie or series-marathon.
As it is the only rest day one can have in a week, other household chores like cooking are usually put aside. So offers like PINOY BREAKFAST is usually a welcome idea for those who wanted to simply relax on a weekend. In the company of family and friends, accompanied by pipe-in music that is truly very Pinoy plus a chance to meet other people in the hall is surely an amazing treat for Filipinos in Qatar.
