10/03/2026
It’s Filipino American History Month, and we are rocking some food history! 🇵🇭🇺🇸
Maria Orosa was born in 1893 in Taal, Batangas. She was gifted and driven, and earned a scholarship to study in the United States, where she trained in pharmacy and chemistry at the University of Washington. In 1926 she studied food processing and canning technology, observing more than 50 canneries across America, Europe, China, and Japan.
She worked on food sustainability for an entire country so that her people could be less dependent on foreign nationals and trade.
During Americas occupation they introduced tomato ketchup. Tomatoes don’t grow easily everywhere in the Philippines, but Bananas do. So, in 1930, with her knowledge of food canning and preservation she created banana ketchup, a condiment made with mashed bananas, sugar, vinegar, local spices, and red coloring. Her creation ensured that the condiment belonged to and derived from the homeland.
A century later, on this day, a variation of her creation is one of the main ingredients in our Filipino BBQ. You know what to do.. Come through
