Tinabal refers to a Visayan salted/fermented fish;  one of the fermented fish products that is popular in the Visayan Island of the Philippines, specifically a traditional fish product of Leyte Province. It is like a Bagoong (fish paste) but with a minor  variation. Tinabal is said to have a peculiar flavor and Aroma different from other Bagoong or fermented fish products from the Philippines. Tinabal is eaten as a main dish added to vegetables, or fried and sauteed with tomatoes or as an appetizer.

There are two (2) kinds of Tinabal according to the kind of fish used in its preparation:

(1) Tinabal Molmol is popular in the Municipality of Bato which is made from Molmol or parrot fish (Scarus albipunctatus). Tinabal Molmol is prepared the whole year since Molmol is available all year round. Molmol is also known as Aliyak-Yak, Loro, Mulmul, or Bontogon.

(2) Tinabal Manko is popular in the coastal towns of Sagod, Bontoc, and Cariaga which is made from a fish called locally as "Tulingan or frigate fish (Auxis thazard).

Leyte Province is located in the Visayas Island of the Philippines.


I have been to Leyte, and nobody offered me Tinabal. I miss the opportunity to eat a local delicacy from my own country. Making this glossary is an eye opener for me, I get to know more about other countries through their food and also my own. It is just a pity that I am so far away from my country to try out some of these delicious foods now. The more I read about the foods of other countries, the more I miss the Philippines. I am missing my mom's cooking, her Tortang Patatas and Tapang Baka. My Tiya Monique' Escabeche, my Auntie Mayang's Baradibud, Tata Milio's Papaitan, my sister Agnes' Callos.  I wish I am a child again enjoying all these dishes.

Patlican is a Turkish word for "eggplant". Eggplant , Aubergine or Patlican has a special place in Turkish cuisine. It is said that Patlican of Turkey with  its brown-green cap, velvety purple skin, firm and slim body, has a richer flavor than that of its relatives found in other countries. There are a lot of Turkish dishes which uses Patlican as an ingredient. Patlican is used in various Turkish dishes, such as Kitir Patlican, Alinazik, and many more.

In Germany, the Patlican which can be bought in the vegetables markets or supermarkets  are big and round and so fresh, mostly coming from Turkey and Spain. But sometimes it is Hard to find them, but just find a Turkish vegetable market and you will have them when in season. What we have in the Philippines are long and slender type. We almost cook the eggplant the same way as Turkey except that we never use yoghurt or cream with our eggplant dishes. In the Philippines, we grill or roast them, we make it a salad with only tomatoes and vinegar as dressing. It is also one of the most frequently used vegetables in the Philippines since it is cheap and versatile. Seeing the wonderful recipes from Turkey and Greece using eggplant makes me appreciate the eggplant more. We grew up with almost just grilled eggplant omelette (Tortang Talong) or potato omelette as our lunch and I was so ashamed to show it to my classmates, now I am proud to have such a great mom who invented a lot of eggplant dishes so we can survive.