On a recent trip south of Metro Manila we had a pit stop at a gas station: to split a big bowl of lomi and have a bladder break. I want to extol the yummy dish but this is not a food blog.
Just a couple of steps to the station's toilet was some firewood and a bunch of some plant resting in a pail of water. There must be something to this unfamiliar (to me) plant. Why was it being kept in water (though obviously it was already more dried out than fresh)? Must be an herb that went into the dish. A trade secret, i thought.
Until i passed their shelf of assorted snacks...
Look closer and you'll notice that sprigs of the same plant sit atop the goodies. That's when i asked the woman tending the store for the name of the plant. Turns out that this plant known to locals as balanoy is being used as some kind of lucky charm. I thought, too, that it was there to ward off undesirable cockroaches, or even ants and moths that could spoil the goods.
There must be something more to the balanoy than mere superstition. Known also as the solasi, this plant is also the Sweet Basil according to what i found on the web. If so, balanoy then is your very useful herb in the kitchen.
