A feast of flavors delighted visitors at the Pindang Festival 2025 as participants showcased creative twists on pindang, the town's signature cured carabao meat, in an on-the-spot cooking competition.

Each contestant gave a unique spin to their tapa-based dishes.

One entry featured Japanese-style sushi with carabao meat, served in a miniature Japanese boat.

Mangaldan National High School presented a honey-glazed jerky beef dish with mashed potatoes.

Meanwhile, Chef Joedhel Ocomen made crispy noodles with tapa fora more international appeal.

“Bago na ‘yong crispy na noodles sa mga mall na nabibili, nag-ano ako sa sarili ko na noodles with tapa para maiba,” Ocomen said.

The competition had four participants in the business category and three in the school category, all given just three hours to prepare their dishes.

Mangaldan’s Chief Administrative Officer Helen Aquino said innovation is important in cooking, especially pindang.

“We are trying to experience ‘yung mga bagong luto ng pindang. So alam ko sa panahon ngayon marami pa ring lumalabas na bagong putahe na pwedeng gawin natin sa tapa o carabeef dito sa Mangaldan,” she said.

Constantine Visperas, a tourism consultant, praised the reinvention of pindang, and said it introduced something new to local palates.

“Ang lasa ay ang galing... dahil na-reinvent nila ang pindang into a new delicacy, into a new menu na something new sa ating panlasa,” he said.