There’s a reason why the province is called Pangasinan. Derived from the word asin, Pangasinan literally means land of salt.

Traveling to the extreme west of Pangasinan, to the distant town of Dasol, we soon discovered fields upon fields of salt. Kuya Kolet, our magical driver, was resourceful enough to bring us to a local community who live off the salt of the earth.

Salt water from the South China Sea is pumped into these salt fields which are made to be as shallow as possible to facilitate drying. Salt crystals or chunks are then collected.

Most of the salt fields we saw had a brick bedding. Don’t ask me why. I just saw.

The collected salt chunks are then processed and purified by boiling in water. Here, Rex is sifting out the salt from the boiling water. The wet salt is then transferred back to the basket where it is left to dry. The excess salt water drips back into the hot pool below.

Here are two baskets full of Pangasinan salt ready for trade!

The two baskets in front contain yellowish or discolored salt since these came from the last batches which most likely are burnt

Tutong kumbaga.

If you’re visiting prepare your senses as the place is mighty hot and the salty steam wafting all around is hard on the eyes and nose. Other than that, you’re set to go!

The salt-making community we visited was located just along the National Highway in Dasol, Pangasinan. There are also similar communities in the neighboring towns.