DAGUPAN CITY – Thirty roasted pigs vied last week for the top prize in a cook-off at the city plaza in the first-ever Lechon Festival here.
Maximo
Tan Jr., chairman of the Lechon Festival, said lechoneros from as far as Ozamis
City in Mindanao joined the contest.
The
roasting started at 8 a.m. and lasted before lunchtime. The winners were judged
according to taste, aroma, crispiness, and overall appearance.
The
city government each gave the participants a pig to roast, charcoal, some
materials and P1,000 for their other needs. Each lechonero had two assistants.
The
city government under Mayor Benjamin Lim said the pigs were raised by residents
of Barangays Mangin and Salisay under a livelihood project. FeedPro, a company
that manufactures special, all-natural feeds, provided the “almost organic”
feeds for the hogs, Tan said.
Dagupan’s
Best Special Lechon contest is Lim’s brainchild as part of this city’s ongoing
Bangus Festival, now on its 11th year, chaired by his son, Councilor Brian Lim.
Winners
were Melchor Corpuz from Barangay Bonuan Gueset, first prize; Virgilio Raga from
Barangay Lasip Chico, second prize; and Richard Tamayo from Barangay Malued,
all in Dagupan City, third prize.
They
received P50,000, P30,000 and P20,000, respectively.
After the 30 entries were paraded and judged,
spectators partook of the lechon.
The
cook-off is part of Lim’s TatakDagupan project to promote not just the city’s
most popular aquaculture product, the bangus (milkfish), but other alternative
products like lechon, too, Tan said.
There are 12 registered lechon establishments
in the city, but there are also many backyard lechoneros.
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