Khaiba showcases the many ways to experience blueberries
From smoked salads to sinigang and soft serve, Chef Sonny Mariano reimagines US blueberries in bold, savory, and surprising ways during a one-of-a-kind six-course lunch
By Yvette Tan
Published Jul 9, 2025 06:13 am
SWEET STEW The kaldereta tagine was sweetened with dried blueberries instead of the usual figs and apricots.
US blueberries take on even more new and exciting incarnations as Chef Sonny Mariano, Executive Chef of the Tasteless Food Group, collaborated with the US Highbush Blueberry Council on a six-course lunch that highlighted the versatility of this distinctive fruit.
“As an industry, we've looked at opportunity markets around the world, and we're interested in growing demand in favorable, attractive locations. The Philippines is certainly one of those because it's a large country with a growing population that's becoming more affluent,” Kevin Hamilton, Global Vice President, Marketing, and Communications of the United States Highbush Blueberry Council said.
Blueberries aren’t new in the Philippines, but they’re usually seen in salads and desserts. This is why Chef Sonny was excited to showcase the versatility of blueberries for savory dishes by incorporating it into some of the Filipino-Middle Eastern popup’s signature dishes.
“The menu here is the regular menu for Khaiba but I just added the blueberries,” Mariano said in Taglish, adding that he worked with fresh, dried, frozen, and powdered blueberries. “If I’m cooking it longer in the oven or braising it on the stovetop, I use the dried blueberries so they don’t break down. For short time cooking, I use the frozen blueberries because they stay plump and juicy when eaten.”
CHEF Sonny Mariano delighted diners with sweet and savory blueberry-infused creations.
The popup began with chewy blueberry cookies placed on tables for guests to nibble on. “I just added dried blueberries and white chocolate to regular cookie dough,” Mariano said.
Small plates included sourdough bibingka with US blueberries, salted egg, and gouda; pulled beef tapa empanada with US blueberry vinegar; and chicken liver pate cigars with US blueberries and balsamic compote. “I usually serve blueberry balsamic vinegar with liver pate because it’s a good combination, the sweetness, acidity, it’s all there.”
There were three choices of drinks, all of them using frozen blueberries infused with either alcohol or tea.
The US Blueberry Calamansiade was a refreshing mix of blueberries, calamansi, honey, and green tea; the Matcha US Blueberry Freeze was a blueberry shake with organic matcha; and the US Blueberry and Lychee Fizz was a heady mix of blueberries, lychee syrup, and London Gin.
Berry Bistek Blueberry-tinged gravy added a bit of rich sweetness to the Wagyu Short Rib Bistek.
GRILL GLAZE Kahiba’s popular Chicken BBQ was given a twist by the addition of blueberry puree in the sauce.
The meal started with a Smoked US Blueberry Salad composed of mixed greens tossed with US blueberry dressing and topped with smoked US fresh blueberries. “I wanted to [keep] it fresh but with a bit of twist, that’s why I smoked it.”
This was served with Pandesal and Jamon, fried pandesal stuffed with US blueberry ketchup, prosciutto, and labneh. “We usually stuff it with tomato from the regular menu,” Mariano noted.
The mains featured a variety of proteins:
Khaiba’s popular Chicken BBQ, with its crispy skin set lovingly on top of tender hickory barbecue glazed grilled chicken fillet, was given a twist by the addition of blueberry puree in the sauce.
The Wagyu Short Rib Bistek incorporated blueberry soy sauce into its coffee cardamom gravy, with a bit of calamansi for contrast.
The Miso Prawn, a crowd favorite, was jumbo prawns in Arabic spices with US blueberry sinigang sauce. “This dish challenged me because the sinigang… can cover up the taste of blueberries, so I had to add a lot of blueberries to balance the sourness of the sinigang.”
BERRY BLISS US Blueberry soft serve ice cream with blueberry chocolate stracciatella (foreground) and chocolate profiteroles with US blueberry diplomat cream and vanilla cream sauce (background) were sweet ways to end the meal.
TART TWIST Blueberries were used to balance the sourness of the sinigang in the Miso Prawns.
The Lamb Shank Kaldereta, tagine style lamb kaldereta with coconut milk, used dried blueberries instead of other dried fruit. “I used dried blueberries so when I braised it, the berries would slowly release their sweetness without falling apart,” Mariano explained. “[The blueberries add] a little bit of sweetness and some acidity.”
The kaldereta was served with Kiniig Rice, Basmati rice flavored with smoked bacon from Cordillera. The rice was good on its own, but when paired with the fall-off-the-bone lamb, added another dimension of umami to both dishes.
For dessert, there was US blueberry soft serve ice cream with blueberry chocolate stracciatella which used powdered blueberries and chocolate profiteroles with US blueberry diplomat cream, vanilla cream sauce, which used canned blueberries.
“I enjoyed playing around with [the blueberries],” Mariano said. When asked how Pinoys can incorporate blueberries into their savory dishes, he said that it’s closest to raisins. “If they want to use it for savory, they can use it as a replacement for raisins. For example, before, we made an embutido but instead of raisins, I put blueberries.”
Blueberries may be familiar, but as Chef Sonny shows, the fruit’s versatility is a pleasant surprise.