10 Best Filipino Comfort Food to Cook in Your Condo on a Rainy Day
By: Melecio Martin G. Arranz IV
When the rain gently taps on your window and the world outside turns misty gray, the warmth of a home-cooked meal can make everything feel a little cozier.
You don’t need a grand kitchen to whip up something special. With a few Filipino classics, you can turn your condo into a source of hearty flavors and familiar aromas. These best comfort foods for rainy days are achievable in almost any condo kitchen layout.
10 Best Comfort Foods for Rainy Days in the Philippines
These options can make your rainy day a little brighter, perfect for savoring while listening to the soothing sounds of rainfall.
Breakfast
How to start your day right when it’s raining? You can’t go wrong with these tasty dishes.
1. Champorado
A quintessential rainy-day breakfast, champorado is a chocolate rice porridge that’s both sweet and satisfying. Made with sticky rice, tablea, sugar, and milk, it’s a dish that evokes childhood nostalgia.
The rich, bittersweet flavor of the chocolate pairs beautifully with a splash of evaporated or condensed milk. For more indulgence, you can pair it with tuyo (dried fish) for a salty-sweet contrast.
Variations: To make it vegan, substitute dairy milk with coconut or almond milk. For a modern twist, you can also use dark chocolate or add toppings like nuts and marshmallows.
Complexity: Easy to prepare, mainly simmering ingredients together until thick and creamy.
2. Arroz Caldo
A comforting bowl of arroz caldo warms you from the inside out. This savory rice porridge is cooked with ginger, garlic, chicken, and fish sauce, then topped with toasted garlic and boiled eggs. Its subtle, gingery flavor is soothing, especially when paired with a drizzle of calamansi juice for a zesty kick.
Variations: For a vegetarian version, substitute chicken for tofu or mushrooms. A dash of saffron should add a more aromatic flavor.
Complexity: Moderate, as it requires careful simmering to achieve the right consistency.
Lunch
A good lunch can give you the energy to power through on such a sleepy day.
3. Lomi
A steaming bowl of lomi is a good match for even the dreariest days. This thick egg noodle soup has a flavorful broth thickened with beaten eggs and starch. It also includes meat, vegetables, and sometimes seafood. These ingredients make lomi a hearty and filling dish.
Variations: For a pescatarian twist, you can include shrimp and squid. As for the vegetarian version, you can skip the meat and add more vegetables, such as carrots.
Complexity: Moderate, as it requires preparing and thickening the broth properly and ensuring the noodles remain tender.
4. Sinigang
What can anyone say about sinigang that hasn’t been stated before? Known for its distinct, tangy flavor, it’s in the hearts of every Filipino. It’s a tamarind-based soup with as many variations as there are households. It’s the best dish to enjoy on a gloomy day, as its sour and savory notes are incredibly soothing.
Variations: You can cook vegan sinigang using tofu and additional vegetables.
Complexity: Moderate to complex, depending on the protein and the variety of vegetables used.
5. Tinola
Tinola is a simple yet flavorful chicken soup with ginger, green papaya, and malunggay leaves. The broth is light but deeply satisfying, making it a comforting choice for rainy days.
Variations: You can replace chicken with fish or tofu for alternative versions.
Complexity: Easy to moderate, requiring minimal ingredients but careful cooking to achieve your desired balance of flavors.
Afternoon snack (Merienda)
What’s life without a few treats? The best afternoon snacks on rainy days are heavy enough to restore some pep but not so filling that you ruin your appetite for dinner.
6. Batchoy
Originating from Iloilo, batchoy is a noodle soup made with miki noodles, pork liver, and chicharon for crunch. Some people add shrimp to add umami to the already savory broth.
Variations: You can use chicken or skip the liver to lighten the dish.
Complexity: Moderate, as the broth needs to be deeply flavorful and the toppings properly prepared.
7. Laing
Hailing from the Bicol region, laing consists of dried taro leaves simmered in coconut milk, chili, and shrimp paste. Its creamy, spicy flavor can be a fantastic pick-me-up for rainy days.
Variations: Omit shrimp paste and use vegetable broth for a vegan-friendly option.
Complexity: Moderate, as it requires slow cooking to soften the taro leaves without turning them mushy.
Dinner
It’s been raining all day, and you want to cap it off with the perfect meal. Here’s our top three picks for this scenario:
8. Nilaga
Nilaga is a simple boiled soup made with beef, cabbage, potatoes, and sometimes saba bananas. Its mild, slightly sweet broth is incredibly comforting and filling. A bowl of nilaga, a cozy blanket, and some media to watch while you eat are the fastest ways to achieve inner peace, short of practicing yoga.
Variations: Swap beef with pork or chicken or use plant-based alternatives.
Complexity: Easy to moderate, involving straightforward boiling but requiring time to tenderize the meat.
9. Bulalo
Bulalo is a rich, hearty soup made from beef shank and bone marrow, slow-cooked until tender. Corn and vegetables then serve as the counterbalance to all that savory flavor.
Variations: Nothing can truly replicates the marrow’s distinctive flavor, but you can use mushroom broth as a substitute.
Complexity: Complex, as it involves hours of slow cooking to achieve the signature richness.
10. Paksiw na Pata
Paksiw na pata is a savory-sweet pork hock stew cooked in soy sauce, vinegar, sugar, and banana blossoms. The pork’s melt-in-your-mouth texture and the balance of flavors will take your mind out of the melancholy.
Variations: Some recipes add pineapples for a hint of fruity sweetness.
Complexity: Complex, as it requires slow cooking to tenderize the pork and meld the flavors correctly.
Warmth on a Rainy Day
Rainy days are the best time to embrace the comforting flavors of Filipino cuisine. Whether you start the day with a warm bowl of champorado or wind down with a hearty serving of bulalo, these dishes offer more than just nourishment—they bring a sense of home. Cooking these meals in your condo can transform a dreary day into one filled with warmth and joy.
If you dream of a serene space to enjoy such culinary delights, Federal Land’s pre-selling condo in Pasig offers the perfect setting. Following the success of The Grand Midori Makati, The Grand Midori Ortigas designed by Tange Associates features minimalist interiors and tranquil Japanese gardens. It offers a peaceful retreat in the heart of Ortigas Center.
Explore our website to learn more about The Grand Midori Ortigas and our other properties.
Melecio Martin G. Arranz IV
Digital Marketing Head
Martin is an experienced marketer with over 16 years of experience across various industries including real estate, banking and finance, technology, and advertising.
Martin has a broad range of expertise in having handled campaigns, brand launches, activations both in the traditional and digital space. Currently serving as the Digital Marketing Head at Federal Land, Martin leads a team focused on managing digital sales and platforms for the residential, estates and commercial business units.