Served in a bowl, the steaming hot Sinanta – a soup with lots of chicken and shrimp with sotanghon and local flat noodle ‘Laddit’  is one of the instant favorites during the lunch treat at Dept. of Tourism Region 2 Director Bless Diwa’s house, this during the coverage of the Aggao nac Cagayan event i Tuguegarao City.

The chicken and shrimp are very tasty; it glides perfectly with the noodles. I added a pinch of pepper and it tasted just right. However, the Ibanag (the locals of Cagayan Province) really have a different taste for a delicious meal, as the already yummy soup for them is completed with a ‘pinakufu’.

“Pinakufu” is a sweet foodie made with glutinous rice. Take note, they use their own glutinous rice produce which is not-so-common purple-colored.

The rice is being ground then mixes with a bit of water and shaped into bite-sizes. They would then fry them in oil. When cooked, it will be coated with caramelized sugar. According to director Bless, caramelizing brown sugar should not take long so that, some sugar bits are still visible even when the rice is coated already. 

And the proper way of eating  - get a tablespoon of the Sinanta then bite a sweet pinakufu. Yes, the two have contrasting flavors but when eaten together, it produce a complimentary taste, making the Sinanta even yummier and the pinakufu a lot better!