Ano Pong Ulam Ninyo?: Makikikain and Salo-Salo As Methods in Food Ethnography

The COVID-19 pandemic posed unprecedented challenges to ethnographic research, particularly in the realm of fieldwork and data collection. The "Great Lockdown" brought forth restrictions that hindered conventional methodologies reliant on in-person interactions and direct observations. This paper addresses the methodological shifts necessitated by these constraints, presenting an autoethnographic account of conducting food ethnography within the boundaries of my home and its immediate surroundings. I enlarge my experiences of making sense out of ‘small data’ and restricted fieldsite, in an attempt to navigate possible methodological approaches. Drawing from my earlier work on the changing taste of Sinaing na Tulingan: I engaged in informal interactions asking “ano pong ulam n’yo?” (what’s for lunch/dinner?) with our neighbors; I also navigated my positionality as nakikikain (eating as an outsider) in attempting to make sense of the emerging patterns in the foodways and food preparations during the pandemic. Reflecting on this extraordinary situation, it demonstrates several methodological approaches centered on local knowledges and practices. It includes makikikain (to join a meal) and nakikikain (eating as an outsider), pakikisalo and salo-salo (eating together) as tools to look at the community dynamics, food practices and preferences, and eating patterns. Additionally, salo-salo (communal eating) could be a useful set-up for group discussion. These approaches not only provide meaningful data collection strategies but also align with efforts to decolonize food ethnography by centering local forms of social engagement.