Batac, Ilocos Norte

Batac

The word "Batac" in a local dialect translates as "pull". More loosely, it refers to "the people's pulling their efforts together."

Batac has an interesting colloquial origin of its name. According to a legend, set in pre-settlement Batac, a man fell into a deep hole while he was digging for the root crop "camangeg". He struggled to get out but could not despite his best efforts. He cried for help but nobody was around. He waited for hours and had given up hope of being saved. Fortunately, two men from the neighboring town of Paoay happened to pass by. They heard the man shouting and traced it to where he was trapped. Upon seeing him, they heard the man say "Bataquennac! Bataquennac!" The two men did not understand until the man explained that he was saying, "Pull me up! Pull me up!" They did just that. When the two men reached their hometown, they told their story to their friends. Since then, the town has been called "Batac," which is derived from the word "bataquennac." but that is only a tale, the true origin of the Batac was named by the Batak tribe who exist five hundred years a ago. Before the Spanish colonization. And the ancient tribe of Batak in Ilocos Norte is related to the Batak Tribe of Toba Lake In the province of North Sumatra Indonesia.

Batac is home to these famous orange empanadas.

An empanada is a Spanish and Portuguese stuffed bread or pastry, also known as “impanata” in Italy. The name comes from the verbempanar, meaning to wrap or coat in bread. Empanada is made by folding a dough or bread patty around the stuffing. In Spain, empanadas are usually large and circular in shape and are cut into smaller portions for consumption, whereas in Portugal and South America empanadas are normally small and semi-circular (this type of empanada is commonly known as empanadilla in Spain).

In Ilocos, some towns, like Vigan and Batac, have popularized their versions of this Spanish pastry. Vigan’s version is a delightful mixture of Vigan longganisa, shredded cabbage and egg, then deep-fried to a crispy wrapper. Batac’s version, which is said to be Ilocos Norte’s Best Empanada, uses Batac longganisa, monggo sprouts (togue) and egg, then also deep fried.