Unique sweets: Papaya rosettes from Dingle, Iloilo

These one-of-a-kind candies can give dried mangoes and other standard pasalubong a run for their money.

 

To paraphrase a famous quote: “Delicious things come in small packages.”

 

In the case of Dingle, Iloilo — a rural municipality in Western Visayas with no hotels or tourist-y restaurants — their star products are papaya rosettes that fit in the palm of your hand. Also known as “Dulce de Dingle,” the traditional candy is made from papaya and yema (egg-based custard). You won’t find it anywhere else in the Philippines!

 

[Planning a trip to Dingle, Iloilo? Here’s an itinerary from Drew Arellano and “Biyahe ni Drew”.]

 

A historical candy

“Isa siyang cottage industry,” says municipal tourism officer Dane Dizon. “Matagal na itong ginagawa ng mga taga-rito, at ito na ang contribution ng Dingle sa ‘one town, one product’ ng Department of Tourism.”

 

According to several locals that GMA News TV’s “Biyahe ni Drew” spoke to, Dingle residents have been making papaya rosettes as far back as the 1940’s.

Back then, making the candies was part of the high schoolers’ home economics classes.

 

After classes, they could sell the candies to their friends and relatives. Over 60 years later, papaya rosettes are still being made — this time by families in their homes.

 

Slow food

There’s no quick way to make a papaya rosette. At least five steps are involved: shaving an unripe papaya into thin strips, preparing the sticks of yema, cooking the papaya in sugar, shaping them into flowers, and cutting the “petals”. Drying the flowers and packing them into boxes take at least another day.

 

Because of this, Dingle’s little labors of love have never been commercialized or mass produced. Each order must be placed three days in advance to give the family time to make your sweets.

 

The main tourist draw in Dingle is their Nautod Wall, a 90-degree cliff of white rock that has been developed by local mountaineers and rock climbers.

Adventure-seekers come in, sleep at local homestays, and are out of Dingle in a few days.

 

Related: Watch Drew Arellano take on Nautod Wall in Dingle, Iloilo

If you want to order papaya rosettes, here’s our tip: Call the municipal tourism office in advance. They’ll help place your order and have it ready by the time you arrive in Dingle.

 

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Contact the Dingle, Iloilo Municipal Tourism Office: +639477424341

 

For more adventures, catch “Biyahe ni Drew” every Friday, 10 PM on GMA News TV!

—CM, GMA News