Dagami Binagol

A petite friend, Jill Untivero brought home from Tacloban City, Leyte a delicacy called Binagol. Tacloban became globally known when Typhoon Haiyan, locally named Typhoon Yolanda struck it and the nearby provinces, especially so, when Pope Francis held the most solemn mass I’ve ever seen, made dramatic while the heavy rain falls as he officiated it. Jill says the rise of Tacloban is great, a feat indeed from an area quite devastated and where thousands drowned and died.

Anyway, I marveled at the pasalubong’s packaging. It was tied with dexterity. The tie could easily be removed in just one pull of the string. Wrapped in banana leaves, the ingredients as listed contained coconut, gabi [talyan], sugar, milk, margarine peanut, vanilla, malagkit rice and eggs. Coconut shell serves as the bowl. It was my first time to eat it, and I found it quite yummy.

“Binagol is a delicacy that originated in Eastern Visayas, in Dagami, Leyte…It is taro pudding with nuts, which derives its name from its container — a polished coconut shell, called “bagol” in the local dialect. It’s just half of the coconut shell, because if it’s in the whole shell (with glutinous/sticky rice as the main ingredient), that would be the kalamay of Bohol.” For the recipe and how first-timers should eat it, click: http://andelsblog101.blogspot.com/2014/07/binagol.html
I unfortunately read this blog after I have consumed it. I ate it as if I was eating any kalamay [glutinous sweets]. I did not realize that it should be treated like leche flan which should be turned upside down first so that the caramel sugar would coat it, the reason why at first taste, I found it bland.