Best Food From Gen San to Lake Sebu with Erwan

- What did the fish say
when it was cut into two?

- What?

- I'm two-na (tuna).

(funny background music)

Whoo! 5:00 a.m. comedy show.

There is nothing quite like
the possibilities

of the open road.

Every turn brings you stories—
every bump, a rush of adrenaline

and unexpected discoveries.

Stop where you want to,
sleep where you can,

and pick up some
of your favorite bites

along the way.

This is Forager.

(tribal chant)

In the T'boli origin myth,
the god D'wata warns humans

of the coming deluge.

La Bebe, La Lomi, T’mefeles,
and La Kagef hide

inside a huge bamboo.

After the waters recede,
the four split their way out

of the bamboo.

La Bebe and La Lomi married,
becoming the ancestors

of the Christian Filipinos.

La Kagef and T’mfeles also join
and go on to produce

10 sons and daughters.

Of these, Bou and Umen
are the ancestors of the T’boli.

The other 8 form couples;
their descendants

are the other non-Christian peoples
of Mindanao.

When you travel
through South Cotabato

and meet the T'boli,
you feel something ancient,

grounded, and deeply rooted
in place.

Genetic, linguistic,
and cultural traces link

the T'boli to a much older
migration story.

Good morning!

Hi! I'm Erwan.

- Good morning, Erwan!

- Nice to meet you.
Are you Maria?

- Upstairs.

- Okay. Nice to meet you.

Part of the Austronesian family,
their ancestors likely came

by sea thousands of years ago.

The T'boli and other upland groups
resisted the spread

of Islam in the 14th Century,
retreating to the mountains

as Muslim rule expanded
in the Cotabato Valley.

Protected from both Islamic
and Spanish influence,

they remained largely isolated
until the American period.

In the 1900s,
waves of Christian settlers

arrive through government
resettlement programs,

bringing with them
commercial interest

that claimed land
through formal titles.

The T'boli,
lacking legal recognition,

were pushed off
ancestral lands

they had inhabited
for generations.

From the rhythms of language
to boat-making skills,

and even spiritual world views,
you can still sense

the echo of people
who once moved to the tides.

Today, that connection
feels distant,

but it's still there.

(applauds)

Thank you!

- Welcome to the first organized
School of Living Tradition.

You are here now at the "Gono Bong"—

which means one
of the biggest traditional house

here in Lake Sebu.

We are preserving the structure.

Every Saturday, we are mentoring
the children for free.

To preserve their cultural identity.

We offer free lessons
in traditional music, dance,

and storytelling.

And also the mothers
are bringing their grandchildren

for them to observe
the practices.

Because now we are surrounded
by technology.

So our fear is that—

the next generation
won't forget the history

and culture of the T'boli Tribe.

- These are all traditional
T'boli instruments?

- Yes.
- Okay.

- It's a brass kulintang.

It's not just for weddings
or for any festivities,

but the cultural value of these—
when there's debt,

you can use this to pay.

- Ah, really?

- Yes. It's not just
an instrument

but also has economic value.

- Piece by piece
or just the whole set?

- It has to be the whole set.

And this one,
we call this Blowon.

The longer you preserve it,
but it also has meanings

and cultural symbols.

So the big gong—
the one a person can’t carry—

when someone gets sick,
a ritual can be done with it,

or it can also be for dowry,
which has great value.

So you want to listen
to how it's played?

- Yeah.

- Then, one of our cultural masters
who’s with me in SLT

is Joel Ganlal.

He’s the one who makes
the drums.

- Ah, he makes it. Okay.

I have a hard time
with it together.

- So Joel is also a traveler
and he's also a volunteer

who helps me in transferring
indigenous knowledge.

- The knowledge—
is any of it written down in books,

or is everything just
orally passed down?

- Mostly oral.
But that’s also a threat—

if the cultural bearer
or master dies,

they’ll bring the indigenous knowledge
with them to the grave

without passing it on.

That’s why it really needs
to be documented

in black and white, so at least…

- It gets transferred.

And the younger generations—
are they interested in learning?

- Yeah. Although the threat is,
of course, technology.

- Are there still a lot
of T'boli around here?

- Here, yeah.

- So still alive.

- In Region XII,
particularly in the province

of South Cotabato,
the places where the T'boli are,

are in T'boli Municipality
and Lake Sebu, mostly.

And also in Sarangani province
along the seashore.

They—we call them T'boli Mohin.

Mohin means sea or ocean.

- Ah, so it's the ones closer
to the ocean. Okay.

- Then, the first thing
we need to preserve

is the language itself.

That’s why sometimes the fear now—
even my grandchildren

are speaking English.

But that’s something
we also need to emphasize

in our community—
the fear of extinction,

cultural extinction.

- You need to use it
on a daily basis

and not just for cultural reasons.

- In the T'boli culture,
accessories are very important.

- Yes, especially for women.

You can’t just wear a blouse
without a headdress

or other accessories.

We call that Libon Lababong.

It doesn’t look good if…

It’s also forbidden for us
to have short hair.

It should be long.

The longer a woman's hair,
the higher the dowry.

- And those traditions—
are they still being practiced today?

- Yes.

- I mean, it must be so difficult
to try to teach

all of this knowledge.

Because you're teaching
a very different lifestyle

almost, right?

- Yes. Of course, we learn
from our ancestors.

Then, next is how to pass it
on to others.

It’s beautiful, because it’s like,
within a community,

you become an inspiration
to others,

and the organizing
within the community grows.

Although, as I said,
there are so many threats around,

especially the introduction
of new things—

like technology, and such.

So we need to live a life
that runs parallel

but must not compromise culture.

- Of course.

- Nature must not be
compromised either.

That’s why we need
to take good care

of nature as well.

- It’s almost like
a value system that needs

to be reminded for everyone.

- Yes.

- From weaving in Lake Sebu
to kulintang music

in Maguindanao,
Schools of Living Traditions

are quite sanctuaries
of cultural memory.

But they're under pressure.

The funding is scarce,
young people are pulled away

by modern jobs,
digital lives, and the idea

that tradition is something
you outgrow.

And the masters,
the ones who hold the knowledge,

are getting older.

What's at stake isn't a craft,
it's an identity.

We headed off to another
School of Living Tradition

to learn a little more
about their performances

and their food.

- Sir Erwan, good morning!
- Good morning!

- Welcome to Gono Ye Bong.

- Thank you!

- Since this place
is very sacred,

so every time we have
an event like this,

we need to ask permission.

So this is another way
of a ritual,

it's called humbu.

- After a ritual led
by Gono Ye Bong,

we were invited to watch
the dances and hear their music.

Each song carries memory—
a link to ancestors.

T'boli culture is deeply rooted
in nature—

through dances,
echo the movement of birds,

monkeys, and the forests
they call home.

- Sir Erwan, we would love
to welcome you

our different T'boli
musical instruments

and different dances
that we have.

So this musical instrument
called Sloli.

So this is made of bamboo.

And T'boli tribe will play
this musical instrument,

especially when they are far away
from their native lands

and families.

- Thank you!

- Our next musical instrument
is Kumbing—the harp.

This is also made of bamboo.

And among the T'boli
musical instruments,

this is the smallest
musical instrument that we have.

And Kumbing is played
during the eclipse time

to call the moonlight back.

- Thank you!
- Thank you!

Our third musical instrument
is T'boli guitar called Hegelung.

We T'boli tribe will play
this Hegelung,

especially at nighttime
so that the children

will fall asleep.

And also, when they have
an occasion like wedding ceremony

or festivals.

And T'boli women and men
play Hegelung

to court a man or a woman
while playing the music of Hegelung.

(applauds)

Our next musical instrument
is Klutang.

And T'boli tribe play the Klutang
during the planting season

and harvesting season.

Our next musical instrument
is Sumagi or Blowon.

This musical instrument,
we play this during festivities

and wedding ceremonies,
and also to welcome the guests.

(applauds)

Our next musical instrument
is Klintang,

made of bronze
and eight suspended gongs.

So we also play Klintang
during festivities

and wedding ceremonies.

Thank you!

And our last musical instrument
is T'nonggong,

and this is made
of giant bamboos

and skin of a deer.

Among the T'boli
musical instruments

that we have,
this is the most sacred

musical instrument.

Thank you!

That's all for our T'boli
musical instruments, sir.

And now, we are going
to perform

our different T'boli dances.

So this dance
that I'm going to perform

is Madal Tahu, a true dance—

a dance by a T'boli princess
and sister of legendary Tudbulol

called Kenaban.

- Thank you.

(applauds)

That's all, Sir Erwan.

- Super cool.

- Thank you so much.
Welcome to Gono Ye Bong.

- Thank you.

(applauds)

After their cultural presentation,
Gono Ye Bong taught us

how to make
the traditional nelut unok.

Nelut unok is a whole chopped
native chicken seasoned

with salt, ginger, onions,
and lots of local species

of alliums and aromatics
that I've never seen.

All of this is placed
in a fresh bamboo trunk.

Sealed with another leaf,
it is placed on top

of hot coal on a gradient
and rotated multiple times

over 90 minutes.

While waiting for the dishes
to cook, she took me

around the farm
where she probably showed me

all the traditional
and native ingredients

that she grows.

- So this is my garden, sir.

- Beautiful.

- Yeah. I planted all these
T'boli root crops.

- Oh, cool!

- So this is the leaf we can ask for.

- This one?

- Yes.

- Ah, okay.

- That’s one color.

My cassavas—
I have five varieties of cassava.

- Of cassava?

- Yeah.
- Wow.

- There’s sticky, there’s yellow.

This one, sir—it’s like saluyot,
but it’s good for paksiw.

- Oh, wow.

- Yeah.

- It’s so pretty, too.
Look at that. Okay.

Definitely taking a few of those.

- So this is our bawing.

- Ah, this is the bawing.
Okay. This one?

- That’s another variety of gabi.

So this is what we saw earlier.

Kisul.

- Kisul, okay.

- Do you want to bring
some of that?

- I’ll take some of that,
and then this also, for sure.

- Lemongrass.

Then, this is another variety
of cassava—it’s yellow.

- And do you use the leaves
in cooking here or no?

- No. This is one
of our spices earlier.

That’s the small one we saw.

- Can I take some of these?

- Yeah, sure.

- Wow. We’ve got blessings, sir.

- Termites?

- Yeah.

Let’s go to the other side instead.

(laughs)

- Okay. You can eat termite eggs.

Ooh, they're everywhere.

- Oh, there are so many.

- Thank you.

That smells good.

- So earlier there was no water.
Now, here it is.

- Wow. So all of that is just water
from the bamboo?

- Yes. And from the chicken.

- It smells so fragrant.
Lemongrass, all the herbs.

- That’s hot.
- Oh, I like this!

- It’s hot.

- Still using natural gloves.
- Yeah.

- So this is a local
rice variety.

Okay let's try this.

Just to try everything.

- So please try the broth.

- Wow. That's a lot of flavor.

Definitely from all the herbs.
It's very bright.

That's delicious.

- Thank you!

- It's very good. Thank you.

You know when people talk
about tinola,

I feel like this is
how it should be,

not the ginger/sayote
that we know.

Like, the flavor here
is incredible.

And this is way better
than tinola.

If you've been to Lake Sebu,
people will tell you

you have not been here
until you visited one

of the seven falls.

Obviously, this whole area
is surrounded

by different types of lakes,

so you'll have a lot
of different waterfalls.

We're going to try
to quickly stop

and maybe visit fall number one
and fall number two,

and then we're going
to start our long drive down

or a two-hour-drive
towards General Santos City.

I left Lake Sebu reluctantly.

I would have loved
to stay a little longer

to explore the trails
and waterfalls

but we had to start driving
towards Gen San.

As is customary,
we went out for some ihaw.

The street is packed
with options

and is a very popular stop
in town.

The food was straightforward,
perfectly grilled,

and just what we needed
after a few long drives

and a couple of eventful days.

But I couldn't help
but notice that most

of the tuna was frozen,
which I understand

is necessary for
a non-stop operation

like most of these
ihaw places run,

but I'm really excited
to get the real deal tomorrow.

What did the fish say
when it was cut into two?

- What?

- I'm two-na (tuna).

(funny background music)

Whoo! 5:00 a.m. comedy show.

We found a hotel
about five minutes away

from the port and got there
bright and early,

but there was an issue—
we needed permits.

We've gotten so used
to shooting in markets

that aren't as organized
that we forgot

that the Gen San one
is the real deal.

The admin were able
to quickly help us organize

a permit and off we went.

I'm with Hero,
an insane ex-motocross guy

come businessman
and fish broker.

We needed an insider
to understand

the organized chaos
and he was it.

Gen San is the tuna capital
of the Philippines.

Over 140,000 metric tons
landed here

in peak years.

90% of it, yellowfin tuna.

- Hello!

- Okay. So can you explain to me
what's the system?

So the boats arrive...

- That’s how it is—
when the boat arrives,

from the fishing area,
then straight here.

- Okay.

What you see here
is all line-caught.

These big boats
have smaller boats attached

to them.

Those small outriggers
fit one man

and a couple of lines.

And each time
they catch something,

they bring it back
to the bigger boat.

Boats offload massive tunas
onto icy trays,

the fishermen unload by hand.

Traders and brokers move fast.

There is no time to waste.

- After the unloading,
the fish will be piled here,

like this. Like this.

Then they—those are the buyers.

And those are the testers.

Once they get the fish,
if they win the bidding,

then they’ll test the quality
of the meat.

This is how tuna meat quality
is tested.

- Is that considered
a good tuna?

- Not so good,
but it's sashimi grade also.

- Once you’ve tested the quality
of the meat and it’s bad,

the price drops.

- Ah, so…

- That’s why testing
is not allowed right away…

- You can only test
when you buy it.

- Yes.

- Okay. That's...

- You can test it
once you win the bidding.

This one’s bad because it’s blurred.

The meat should be crystallized.

- So "yucky" means yucky.

- “Yucky” means blurred.
And white meat—

that’s what we call yucky.
That’s our term here.

What quality is that: SP, SPLM?
- Local only.

- Local. Local is the lowest class.

- Local is what's going
to be served here.

- Yes. Local market
and Manila market.

- Inside, a double-edged ritual,
a silent auction.

Buyers listen to whispers,
bids flying,

no fanfare,
just business and smiles.

We're outsiders here
so I don't think we'll get

the whole story.

The boats are financed
by boat owners or fishermen.

The crew is usually hired
with an advance,

and then paid by commission.

Every fisherman has his name
attached to his fish.

The brokers then negotiate
the prices

with the potential buyers.

You can't test the fish
until it's bought.

It happens quickly
in a way that you don't even know

it's happening.

Buyers here are from Japan,
California, Europe, and Manila.

Once purchased,
the tuna is graded

by the buyers, then shipped
to its final destination

depending on that grade.

Each fish will also be marked
by the name of the boat

and the fisherman
who hand caught it.

It's a system of commissions,
trust, gut instinct,

tinged with the rush of gambling.

In terms of who's involved,

so you have the fisherman,

then there are boat owners...

And usually the boat owners...

- They're also the dispatchers.

- Is the dispatcher. Okay.

So once they bring
the tuna down...

- On the marketplace.

- On the marketplace,
it gets purchased?

- Yes.

And then, from marketplace
going here.

- And then, what happens here?

- Display waiting
for the plant to also test.

- But these are all purchased?

- Yes.

- All bought already? Okay.
- Yes.

By that one,
the name of the buyer.

- Ah, okay. So the name
of the buyer is on there?

And usually the buyer
is the trader?

- Yes.
- Okay.

But it never happens
where one person owns

the whole process?

- That's not allowed
because the relationship

of the boat owner
and the captain of the boat

will be ruined.

- So boat owner, fisherman,
dispatcher...

Dispatcher works
for the boat owner?

- The boat owner. Yes.

- And then, buyer or trader.

- Buyer or trader.

- Okay. And the traders,
they do their own logistics?

- Yeah.
- Okay.

- There’s more.

There’s still a lot over there,
as long as you're looking

for blue ones.
There's a lot over there.

- Show your haircut.

- Oh!

- Hello!

- And how long do they stay
out in the sea?

- If this small, 10-15 days.

- That's crazy.

- Bro! Bro!

Meet my friend, Erwan.

(laughs)

This is one of their dispatchers.

- Good morning! How are you?

- And this is the buyer.

- Hey!

- This is my buyer.

Cheap buyer.

(laughs)

- That's local.

- This is the local market?

- The Filipino will eat that.

- That's a sashimi grade.

- You can eat it raw.

- I want to compare the...

- You can eat that.

(laughs)

- You can eat that.

But this one...

- Don't eat that one.

Only the red one.

- Maybe the fish is sick.

(laughs)

- So this can be grilled
or kilaw.

If you can't test it,
how do you tell

from looking at it?

- Eyes and the...

- Gills.

- Gills.

- So the buyer is allowed
to look at here, here,

and he can touch the firmness?

- It's only 50-60% chance.

- If you get this right.
- Yeah.

- Hero invited us
to his tuna restaurant run

by his wife.

So we took a quick shower
and off we went.

And here, I found
our team waiting for us patiently.

- It's very straight.

- Thank you. Thank you.

- Amazing.

- These guys are not taking
their jobs seriously.

Let's work.

The food was straightforward
but so delicious.

This is the fresh tuna
I wanted to have.

Not only did we get
a full fresh yellowfin carved

right in front of us
with the fresh sashimi that ensues,

but we also got to eat
all of our favorite parts.

The jaw, grilled to perfection,
some tuna tapa, salpicao,

and sisig which were
all delicious

and some beautiful soup
to wash it all down.

Honestly, one of the best meals
I've had this trip.

So this is Grade A
yellowfin tuna.

Very flavorful.

The sisig tastes so good.

Very nice.

It's really different
when it's fresh.

- Yeah. It's really different
when it's fresh.

- Delicious.

- There's no aftertaste.

- Yum.

Whole thing.

- Even the meat of it,
we really cook it.

- Delicious?

- It's so good.

- Put some sauce.

- Since Hero used to drive
all these trails

with his motorbike,
he knew them quite well

and was eager to show us
his backyard.

I had no idea that
the other community here

was so alive—

from hikers to motocross,
and ATV-ing.

We saw all kinds of people
just having fun

and enjoying nature.

But it was time to put
the car to the test

and drive through
some insane views.

Oh! Here it goes.

- Whoa!

- The Ford Ranger Raptor
stands out

as the best truck
for adventure thanks

to its perfect blend of power,
comfort, and innovation.

It offers a commanding presence
on any terrain

with its wide stance
and reinforced frame,

while features
like the FOX shocks

and front and rear
locking differentials

make technical
off-road maneuvers effortless.

If you're someone like me,
the Ford Ranger Raptor is built

to take you further, faster,
and with total control

without too much experience.

We are able to go full speed
on some pretty gnarly trails

without any fear.

After driving around,
we finally found

the perfect camping spot
that we had been looking for

this whole trip.

So we've been collecting
ingredients along the way.

We've got these beautiful
little alliums

from Lake Sebu which survived.

So I'm going to go ahead
and just grill these as well

with my mini eggplant.

We have our sibujing,
and then we have

a really special herb
which dried out a little bit,

obviously.

These ones, I don't know.

I don't know
what to do with them now.

Let me see.

They're still tasty.

I think that on here
would be really cool.

Okay.

We have a plan.

I ended up grilling
some tiny little eggplants

that I bought
at the market earlier

and some alliums,
and just cooking that

with some coconut milk
and onions.

For our tuna, you really
don't need to do much to it.

I just sliced the loin and made
a quick green mango salad

with some jicama
and a citrus and vinegar dressing.

Serve that with
some boiled potatoes

and it was the perfect match.

I mean, this trip,
what's cool is finally now

we have a good day.

We're finally able to camp.

With Forager,
we always have issues

but we always figure it out
at the end,

and it's all about the journey.

But if the destination
is cool at the end too,

why not?

- Cheers for Rye and Hero.

- Cheers for our fallen heroes.

- Bon appétit!

- Thank you!

- You're welcome.

Very good.

Remember Rye?

Well, we couldn't leave
without checking up on him.

- Let's have lunch.

- So before giving back
our cars to the Ford dealership,

we made sure to pass by
his town.

He looked great
and we will surely see him

again next time we take
a Mindanao adventure.