In the debate of the role of pineapples on savory dishes, my official stance is: the more, the merrier! I like it on its own and I like it slathered on pizza, on adobo, and teriyaki. One of my favorites would have to be Jollibee’s Amazing Aloha Yumburger, where a juicy pineapple ring counts as one of its main ingredients. It’s unique, it’s delicious, and most importantly, it’s back!
Jollibee recently announced that it’s bringing back its Amazing Aloha Yumburger after it was launched in 1996. It caused quite the stir when it came out, and when it reappeared in 2013 and 2014 (as the Amazing Aloha Champ). It reached cult status when chef, TV host, and author Anthony Bourdain declared it as one “very tasty burger” when he tried it for his show Parts Unknown.
This time, it’s back as a Yumburger and customers can enjoy it with a single patty (Solo) or two patties (Double). Either way, there’s the langhap-sarap pure beef patty, mixed with the sweet pineapple ring, crisp bacon strip, honey mustard dressing, and fresh lettuce.
For those who say that pineapples don’t belong on savory dishes, I’d like to point out something that Barb Stuckey wrote in her book TASTE: Surprising Stories and Science About Why Food Tastes Good. She wrote, “We like sweet because it signals calories, or energy, to us. And we like salt because we need it for normal bodily function. We have no sodium storage system, as we do with other minerals (i.e. we store calcium in our bones), so Mother Nature’s solution is a built-in craving for it. The combination of these two positive biological responses is very pleasurable.”
Sweet and salty belong together. Just check out Jollibee’s Salted Caramel Choco Sundae!
The Amazing Aloha Yumburger is available in all Jollibee stores nationwide.
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