At the media conference for ‘Pinakbest’ book launch, which LionhearTV covered on December 8, Senator Imee Marcos recounted how she fell in love with cooking.
The lady senator said she got scolded by her parents, former President Ferdinand Marcos Sr. and former First Lady Imelda Marcos, when she was young, which led to her passion for cooking.
Marcos quipped, “I’m not a chef, I’m just a gangster kusinera”. She added, “Having been punished all the time, I must’ve been a really naughty kid kasi I was always punished to the kitchen halos araw-araw. Ewan ko kung bakit, parati akong punished at sa bandang huli ginusto ko na ‘yung kusina kasi ang saya-saya, ang gulo-gulo.”
She also detailed her bizarre idea about politics and catering when she was young. Marcos shared, “And I grew up with this bizarre idea that politics was catering, that you won or lost elections on the number and quality of food boxes you serve. I don’t [quite get] if that’s entirely right, but we [seem to] have always been cooking.”
After her father became President and her mother became his First Lady, they all learned that it was public policy to feed the people with nutribun, masagana 99, rice exportation, kadiwa, and all those other projects.
Aside from her younger years in the kitchen, Marcos also highlighted her family’s meal traditions.
She shared, ” … It was all a little bit bipolar. I’m a little bit bipolar because my mom, the [real] original gangster cook, eh she is very aslum (sour) na kumain, very Bisaya, all the Paksiw in the world, and all the Kinilaw, whereas my Dad, there’s no aslum in his taste profile. But, there’s bitterness because that’s Ilocano, the pait, the bitter taste that doesn’t exist elsewhere.”
She also noted that her book with Chef Reggie Aspiras is a glimpse of her life through food. According to her, food is family, love, and abundance. It also means “getting together.”
PinakBest, written by Sen. Imee Marcos with notes from Chef Reggie Aspiras, is currently available for pre-order for P598.00.
The book officially comes out on December 14, with a book signing event in San Juan City for those who have pre-ordered.
