It was in the early 1930s when Ramon Tan Chingto and Lim Kim Tua left China to do business in Iligan. They would sell peanuts and candles, and some decades after, the business was inherited by Isidra "Cheding" Tan, the couple's daughter-in-law. At first they would just sell toasted peanuts in movie houses, and from there it expanded into what it is now. Dubbed as "The Pride of Iligan," Cheding's products are sold not only in Iligan, but in nearby provinces, and is also available in the US as well.
Some products brother took home:
Cheding's Pinipig Polvoron. Nothing exceptional about this, but the taste is definitely something we all have come to love. Very milky and not too sweet, our family was able to consume this in no time. Be careful in eating though, as it tends to break very easily.
Cheding's Peanut Bars. Typical peanut brittle molded into bars, this is a notch higher than other peanut brittle products I've tasted because it had more peanuts and less sugar coating. It is quite difficult to bite, so do take your time in eating this. What we do here in the house is to place it in the fridge, and take it out while eating our meals, so the sugar would melt a bit in time for our desserts.
Cheding's Peanut Balls. Bite size peanut balls that tasted much, much better than the bars. I guess this one had honey in it (sorry, I forgot to check the ingredients list), because the sweetness was really different from the bars, and this had a deeper shade of brown compared to the other.
Cheding's Toasted Peanuts. The heart of Cheding's. I first got a taste of this peanuts in high school, when we had a field trip in Laguna. Back then, I thought this was a Laguna product, until brother took home a bag (well, it says "Iligan's Pride"). Truly different from every other loose peanuts I have eaten... I could compare it the Sung-Sung Peanuts, but this was much easier to much than the sung-sung, which tends to be really hard. It was slightly seasoned, too... but even if at first one could say it lacked taste, it still tasted delicious. Aside from eating it solo, I also love to use this kind of peanuts for dishes like the Kung Pao Chicken and Lumpiang Sariwa. The toasted peanuts come in different bag sizes, but brother usually takes home this one, the 1/4 kilo bag.
Aside from peanut products, Cheding's also has cashew nuts, barquiron, ampao, and tablea, which we will try when brother travels back to Cagayan de Oro next year (hopefully).
*** Jenn ***
I come from a family who loves cooking and eating. I never had any formal training in cooking and that I taught myself how to cook based on the handed down recipes, but I could say that I can cook good food. In 2008, I started documenting my food trips for my