Tita Irene’s Tinola

The reason Krizkitch was started was bc I wanted to learn and document food from my family, so it could be passed down generation after generation, what I like to call, a food heirloom.

When my Tita Irene left this earth 2 years ago, my family and I stumbled upon her many notebooks. She was someone who wrote down everything. And in between pages of quotes, phone numbers, and appointments, were pages of scribbled-down recipes. She wrote down these recipes not only so she wouldn’t forget, but unknowingly, now we wouldn’t, too.

I read an article about how food becomes an heirloom. In a sense, these recipes are like seeds of knowledge, being passed down. Teaching us techniques, preparation, cultivation, and also taste. It talked about how this practice of treating food as a literal heirloom has disappeared in many parts of the world.

And although Tita Irene isn’t physically with us anymore, there are things she has left us with that will live on forever, just like in this food heirloom of edible memories.