Food Trip 34 - Sinantol

My girlfriend introduced sinantol to me and she said that it is one delicacy in Quezon Province. At first, I thought it was a joke because I had known santol all my life as a fruit and not as a vegetable. I got curious that time and true enough, it was good. 

Yesterday, I attended a birthday party from the side of my girlfriend and sinantol was one of the food being served. I tried to recall its taste but my last taste of it was a long, long time ago and no matter how I tried, my taste bud was helpless.  But since I got the liking of this dish before and I wanted to have a recollection of its taste, I fondly got a modest serving.  And when I tasted it, I immediately had a flashback of my first taste of this dish and I easily associate it with our own version using the meat of the unripe jack fruit.

The pulp of santol is shredded, mashed with salt, and rinsed with water for 2 to 3 times in order to get rid of its bitter taste. The santol pulp is then boiled together with onions, tomatoes, garlic, sili, and fresh coconut cream. The moment the coconut cream is cooked, the dish is now seasoned to taste and is ready to serve.  Likewise, an addition of crabs, shrimps, and/or shredded fish meat will further enhance its taste.