Native Nut · Brittle & Candy
Pili Nut Candy
Photo: Shubert Ciencia / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0
Much of Bicol's pili still comes from wild and backyard trees rather than planted orchards, and each nut has to be cracked from a hard shell by hand, usually with a bolo knife.
Pili nuts are roasted and set into brittle with sugar and margarine, or coated whole in caramelized sugar, sold in small paper packets from roadside stalls throughout Albay, Camarines Sur, and Sorsogon. The nut's high fat content gives the candy a richness closer to macadamia than peanut brittle.
Why it's made this way: The pili tree is native to the Philippines and thrives in Bicol's volcanic soils and wet climate, making the region, especially Sorsogon, the country's main source of the nut and its candies.
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