balaw-balaw
bálaw-bálaw with stress marks
fermented rice and shrimp
Usage Note
Balaw-balaw is a traditional fermented condiment made from rice and small shrimp or fish, common in Pampanga and Central Luzon cuisine. The fermentation process gives it a strong, pungent flavor valued in regional Filipino cooking, where it is used as a flavoring or side dish.
Examples
" Masarap ang balaw-balaw sa kanin. "
Natural Translation
Balaw-balaw is delicious with rice.
Literal Translation
Delicious the balaw-balaw with rice.
" Ginagamit ang balaw-balaw bilang sawsawan sa ilang pagkain sa Pampanga. "
Natural Translation
Balaw-balaw is used as a condiment for some dishes in Pampanga.
Literal Translation
Used the balaw-balaw as condiment for some food in Pampanga.
" Tuwing umuuwi kami sa Pampanga, laging may handang balaw-balaw ang lola na isinasawsaw namin sa hilaw na mangga. "
Natural Translation
Whenever we go home to Pampanga, grandma always has balaw-balaw ready that we dip green mango in.
Literal Translation
Every-time go-home we to Pampanga, always has ready balaw-balaw the grandma that dip we in raw mango.
Take Tagalog with you
The full course, a 12,500-word dictionary, and flashcards that make every word stick — free to start on iOS and Android.
Tagalog builds thousands of words from a few hundred roots.
How Tagalog words workRelated Words
Explore Tagalog by topic
Free guides on grammar, vocabulary, and culture to take you past single-word lookups.
How to Say Sorry in Tagalog: Patawad vs Pasensya
How to say sorry in Tagalog: patawad, pasensya na, and paumanhin compared on a simple severity-and-formality ladder so you pick the right word every time.
Tagalog Affixes Explained: A Beginner's Guide to Word Building
Tagalog affixes turn one root word into dozens of meanings. Learn prefixes, infixes, suffixes, and circumfixes with clear examples for beginners.
Spaced Repetition for Tagalog: How Flashcards Make Words Stick
Cramming Tagalog vocabulary fails. See how spaced repetition — the science behind smart flashcards — makes words stick for the long term.
Tagalog Greetings: How to Say Hello, Goodbye & Po/Opo
Master Tagalog greetings with pronunciation: kumusta, magandang umaga, po and opo polite forms, time-of-day phrases, and the mano po tradition.