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If you grew up in a Filipino household, Filipino Style Spaghetti has probably been served at your birthday parties. The sweet and salty versions of pancit (for long life, of course) and the creamy, rich carbonara are popular noodle dishes in Filipino households. The dish we all know and adore, the traditional Pinoy spaghetti, continues to be the most well-liked. It is packed with meat, tomatoes, and sugar.

Instead of meatballs, which are more commonly used in a typical spaghetti recipe, Filipino-style spaghetti includes ground beef or pork, red hotdogs, red bell peppers, and sweeteners such as banana ketchup or condensed milk. There are tomato or spaghetti sauces developed especially to go with this sweet pasta flavor because it is well-liked in the Philippines.

Although adding sugar and ketchup to a pasta sauce may seem blasphemous to pasta connoisseurs, it is a popular dish in the Philippines. Filipinos were introduced to a wide range of American goods, including hot dogs and ketchup, due to American colonialism in the Philippines in the late 1800s. General Douglas MacArthur, who consumed Spaghetti Neapolitan, which contains ketchup as an ingredient, while on a trip to Japan during World War II, is credited with inspiring the development of Filipino spaghetti. When MacArthur relocated to the Philippines, his team changed the recipe to suit the local flavor profile and included, among other things, banana ketchup.

The sweetness of Filipino Style Spaghetti sets it apart from other renditions of the traditional noodle meal. Even with hearty, savory dishes like spaghetti, Filipinos never pass up the opportunity to sweeten things since we have an almost incurable sweet craving. At first glance, the components for this spaghetti variation seem strange — sugar? Banana ketchup Hotdogs? — but they combine to make a dish you cannot get enough of!

Whether it is Noche Buena, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve, Father’s Day, someone’s birthday, or graduation, you would most likely find spaghetti being served. It is difficult not to enjoy the flavors when served with mouthwatering fried chicken, orange juice, or Coke! Spaghetti is a fantastic dish for lunch, merienda, or dinner because of its rich combination of sweet and salty.

It is a fantastic meal for the weekdays too. Who said the ordinary could not be extraordinary?

I hope you give it a shot!