LA TRINIDAD, Benguet – Kinuday or kiniing cooking contest held at Wangal, La Trinidad, Benguet on November 20, urges the public to revive and learn the old golden traditions such as cooking and preserving food which may have affected the life span of Benguet ancestors.
Hon. Ruben E. Paoad, the chairman of the Committee on Agriculture, compared the ancestors’ lives to a much longer life span and said that they were healthier than the current generation. However, he noted that Benguet might still be in the top 3 or 4 among the 83 provinces with the longest life span in the Philippines. He also stated that despite modernization, people should keep intact their ancestors’ traditions and core values as it will help the province attain progress, like the country of Japan.
Inspired, the representatives from the different municipalities and schools of Benguet showcased the traditional delicacy of Cordillera, the kinuday or kiniing, with their various recipes. The cooking contest has two categories, namely the open category (representatives per municipality of Benguet), and the next category is the student category (high school and college schools from Benguet). In the open category, the Municipality of Mankayan bagged the first place. The Municipality of La Trinidad and Bakun consecutively got second and third place. Meanwhile, Benguet National High School grabbed first place in the student category. Benguet State University – Buguias and Lepanto National High School successively captured second and third place. The first placers received 10, 000 pesos cash prize, the second placers got 8,000 pesos cash prize, and the third placers had 6,000 pesos cash prize. Aside from the cash prizes, they took one set of stoves.
Meanwhile, other participants from the municipalities of Kabayan, Itogon, Atok, Tuba, Sablan, Kapangan, Tublay, Buguias, and Kibungan received consolation prizes of 3,500 pesos, including the schools of Benguet State University (BSU) – Main, King’s College of the Philippines (KCP), Cordillera Career Development College (CCDC), Benguet Technical School (BTS), and Ambangeg National High School.
Meanwhile, in the best-processed kinuday/kiniing, the Municipality of Buguias garnered first place, receiving a cash prize of 4, 000 pesos. Second place went to the Municipality of Atok with a 3,500 pesos cash prize, and the third placer was the Municipality of Kabayan with 3, 000 cash prize.
Kinuday is an ibaloy term while kiniing is Kankanaey term. Kinuday/kiniing has been a way for the Cordillerans to preserve meat through using salt and smoking. By Joan Dalacan
