Pinas Simpol: From Cookbook to Cultural Manifesto

A decade after his Gourmand Award-winning Philippine Cookery: From Heart to Platter, Chef Tatung returns with his most ambitious work yet—a book that threads together memory, history, and identity through the lens of food.

Across more than 200 full-color pages, Pinas Simpol alternates between lyrical essays and 80 meticulously tested recipes. The essays—titles like “The Mother Tongue of Our Cuisine” and “The Dirty Kitchen and the Clean”—read like field notes on Filipino life. They unpack how geography shapes flavor, how scarcity forged ingenuity, and how sharing a meal became our first language of love.

In one essay, Sarthou examines how colonial ideas of “clean” kitchens and “refined” tastes created cultural shame around smoke, soot, and soil—what he calls “the flavors of truth.” His conclusion is sharp and simple: “The dirty kitchen is not nostalgia. It is resistance.”

The Four Legs of the Filipino Table

At the heart of the book is a framework Sarthou calls The Four Legs of the Filipino Table—a philosophy of cuisine that is Rooted in tradition, Resilient in thrift, Respectful of hospitality, and Responsive to change. Together, they form both compass and conscience.

“We didn’t just absorb influences,” he writes. “We transformed them and made them serve our tables.”

The accompanying recipes are equally revealing. From tamarind-soured Sinigang to peanut-rich Kare-Kare and Pinakbet steeped in bagoong, the dishes follow his Simpol ABC Framework—Assemble, Build, Complete—a system that teaches cooks to trust their instincts, guided by tantsa, that Filipino intuition measured not in teaspoons but in memory.

A Feast for the Eyes

Visually, the book is cinematic. Photographer Paulo Valenzuela and food stylist Chester Hernandez turn every page into a love letter to the Filipino table—the smoke rising from adobo, the shimmer of vinegar, the sunlight cutting across woven mats.

It’s a book designed to be cooked from, but it demands to be read first.

A Bridge Between Home and the World

For Ponseca, who helped put Filipino cuisine on the global stage through her New York restaurants, Pinas Simpol is “a bridge for Filipinos abroad and a mirror for those at home.” It reminds the diaspora that flavor is heritage, not geography.

For Chef Tatung, the book is both culmination and beginning. “After ten years of writing and listening,” he says, “this is my love letter to the Filipino kitchen. It’s not just my story—it’s the story of all of us.”

The Tour and the Table Ahead

To mark the launch, Chef Tatung will embark on a nationwide speaking tour beginning this November, bringing the conversation about food, memory, and identity directly to audiences across the country.

Pinas Simpol: The Love and Lore of Filipino Cooking retails for ₱790 and will be available in National Book Store, Fully Booked, and major online platforms. Published by Vertikal Kreatives Inc., it marks the first volume in a two-part project chronicling Chef Tatung’s decade as an author, educator, and cultural advocate.

Pre-orders begin October 25, 2025.

A Declaration of Belonging

In the end, Pinas Simpol isn’t just about cooking—it’s about reclaiming the quiet dignity of everyday life. It challenges Filipinos to see their food not as derivative or humble, but as proof of survival, creativity, and grace.

From one humble kitchen, a boundless feast unfolds.