You can order these dishes throughout September in OASE’s Strandtent.
Precilla Schrier was born and raised in Rotterdam, with a Filipino mother and Dutch father. She works as an independent programme maker and project manager, and was the project manager for Rotterdam Pride, which takes place from 17 to 27 September this year. She is also trained as a wine sommelier and is always curious about food, flavours and the stories behind them.
Her love of cooking, creativity and ability to make something good out of whatever is available are qualities she inherited from her mother. From her Dutch grandmother, she learned a different kind of cooking: simple, practical and centred around caring for others. Although Precilla grew up mostly Dutch, Filipino food has always connected her to her mother, aunts and family gatherings. Now, she is rediscovering that part of her background in her own way.
"We didn't eat Filipino food very often at home because my father isn't really a fan of it. You know the saying: 'what the farmer doesn't know...he doesn’t eat'. And my dad is actually a farmer! So my memories of Filipino food are mostly connected to family gatherings and to my mother, aunts, cousins and other relatives. I remember tables filled with different dishes, lots of family around me, and the smell of garlic, vinegar and soy sauce coming from the kitchen.
On my father's side, food looked very different. I mostly remember my grandmother and classic Dutch ‘AVG'tjes’: potatoes, vegetables and meat. Maybe less elaborate, but there was just as much warmth and care in the food. So from a young age, I grew up with two very different food cultures.
Filipino food never felt like an everyday thing to me. It was something special, connected to being together, celebrations and my Filipino family."
"My mother is from the Philippines, but my brothers and I were raised quite Dutch. My Filipino background was always there, but it wasn't necessarily something that was present in everyday life. Food was one of the moments when that side of my family became very tangible.
Adobo is closely associated with Filipino cuisine, but every family has its own way of making it. I like that. As I've grown older, I've also started rediscovering my Filipino heritage in my own way. So this dish represents both my family history and the freedom to give that history a new meaning.
I've also realised more and more how much I learned from my mother in the kitchen. My love of cooking, my curiosity about flavours and my creativity all come from her in many ways. Combined with the Dutch practicality I inherited from my father and grandmother, it creates a nice balance. These aren't just qualities that shape the way I cook, they're also part of who I am. And I'm very proud of that."
"That food is a way of showing care and creating connection. At Filipino family gatherings, it's not just about what's on the table. It's about sharing. Everyone eats, and there's always enough. You could easily go back for a third serving and still bring back home enough leftovers for the next few days.
Recipes also aren't always explained very precisely. You taste, adjust and cook from experience. And everyone is stubborn enough to immediately create their own version, haha. If you're missing an ingredient, you just figure something else out. Recently, I even made my own banana ketchup with sweet ketchup and leftover bananas because the banana ketchup at the toko was sold out.
That curiosity, creativity and ability to find a solution are skills I got from my mother. For her, there's always a solution, and often it makes things even more interesting. I recognise that in myself, both in the kitchen and outside of it.
My grandmother on my father's side taught me a different way of cooking and caring for people: simpler and more practical, but just as much about feeding people and bringing everyone around the table. The kitchens on both sides of my family were very different, but in both of them, caring for others was an expression of love."
"I wanted to make something that brought my Dutch and Filipino backgrounds together. A literal fusion turned out to be more difficult than I expected, especially because OASE's guest menu is completely vegan. I even tried combining my grandmother's Dutch AVG cuisine with adobo, but honestly, it didn’t really work well.
Eventually, I realised that your family history doesn't have to literally end up on the same plate. The connection is already part of me: in the simple, familiar meals of my Dutch grandmother and in the bold flavours and generous family tables of my Filipino family. The menu doesn't have to force those two worlds together to tell my story. My story is already a form of fusion.
Traditionally, I'd make adobo with chicken thighs, but for OASE I chose tofu. The characteristic flavours of adobo (vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, bay leaf and black pepper) are still there, but the dish gets a plant-based twist that fits the setting. I serve it with a Filipino sweet and sour cucumber salad, followed by banana turon and vegan ice cream."
"I hope people get to discover Filipino cuisine and experience something of the culture behind it. To me, it's a warm, caring and generous culture. Filipino people and culture are present all over the world, but they don't always demand the spotlight. Thankfully, that's slowly changing. In Rotterdam, for example, we have Tasty Dishes, a Filipino restaurant and toko, and Grace Supperclub Rotterdam, a home restaurant that I highly recommend!
I also hope this dish shows that you don't have to experience your heritage in one fixed or 'perfectly authentic' way. You can rediscover traditions, adapt them and make them your own. For me, this menu is exactly that: a way of reconnecting with my Filipino roots through the person I am today, with the flavours, creativity, practicality and curiosity I inherited from my parents.
And ultimately, I hope people feel something of what food has always meant in both sides of my family: caring for one another, sitting down together and making sure everyone has enough."
Curious to taste it for yourself? You'll find Precilla's tofu adobo with sweet and sour cucumber salad at OASE's Strandtent throughout September, followed by banana turon with ice cream.
