Fresh Pick: Asugon (Barracuda)

Photo below is a Guinean Barracuda, one of the more timid kinds of barracuda, it comes in many names depending on the local you're in here in the Philippines, here in Navotas and I guess, mostly in Tagalog region, it is called Asugon. The asugon on the pic below measured up to 4ft in length, I have no idea, how much it weigh, I was just astonished to see (well not really, I grew up seeing huge fishes) how big it was so I asked my tatay to put a meter beside it, to illustrate how long it is, and took the shot. I have other shots, but I just can't post it the right way, I don't know why :(


My tatay cooked it in two ways - he sliced and fried the body (first) while he cooked the head and tail part plus the egg (and other whatnots) in sour broth (second). Before you question my pop's food preference, let me tell you a side story, he used to work as a chief cook in a cargo ship before he retired, and most of his co-workers during his years of work were Japs nationals, so his quirky palette sort of came from that.



No recipes from me, not a fan of fish and I don't think, I'll ever be :p

Fresh Pick: Green Mangoes

After the Christmas season and the chilly wind and cold weather that it brings, the next most-awaited season for Pinoys is the summer. I am not a beach bum, though I love the water and the scenery, my incapability to swim and my not-so-beach-worthy physique kind of hinders me from being one, hehe. But as a foodie, one of the best perks summer could offer for me, is the availability of those summer fruits. My father-in-law bought a few parcels of land in Bulacan a couple of years back, the land came with a number of fruit-bearing trees, and other plants, and we're already reaping (literally, hahaha) the benefits of it all.

Photo below is that of the apple-mango tree in the backyard, adjacent to the dirty kitchen, I wasn't able to take pics of the other trees as the sun was blazing above me and I'm kinda not your regular happy sunny camper, I am more of a happy shady couch potato kind of person *grins*.

I'll do it next time...

Fresh Pick: Red and Green Bell Pepper

I'm just showing off *grins*. These are the products of hubby's diligence and patience, the red and green bell peppers that he had planted months ago are now bearing fruits, figuratively speaking, as peppers are vegetables, right? They are still young and small but I already have a recipe in mind *humming while waiting for the peppers to grow*.

Fresh Pick: Cream Dory

Cream Dory (close up shot)

Cream Dory (whole body)

*** Hahaha, parang modelo lang ang isda, may close up shot at whole body shot. Audition photos, kumbaga, hahaha.

Hubby's uncle harvested some Cream Dory in his Zambales fish pen to give out to relatives and friends for taste test purpose, as well as, hunting for a big market in Navotas/Malabon fishports. I'm not really a big fan of fish (when they're dead and on a platter), so hubby's the one who clean, sliced and fried it, he didn't bother to turn it into a fillet, though it is said to be the best source of white fish fillet in the country, as he was in a hurry to try it *grins*. I heard that most of the available Cream Dory in the market are frozen fillet already, so it's really a treat to try a fresh pick.

To give you an idea on how to cook or on what menu to find Cream Dory, try to visit Market Manila and Max's, I guess, you can try and search for more info if you're really up to it.

Fresh Pick: Hot Chili Peppers

We have a mini-garden at home and aside from flower-bearing plants, we also have some herbs and spices like the hot chillies shown in the photo above. I don't have a green thumb and I'm scared of worms so it's actually my hubby who keeps and maintain it - he so love gardening. He even tried his hand in planting veggies and fruits like lettuce, eggplants and tomatoes, sadly when Bagyong Ondoy struck Metro Manila, all the seedlings died.

I used those hot chillies in my previous post (Roasted Chicken recipe), I put some in the marinade and some were used in the dipping.

Two of the most wonderful benefits of having a spice and herb garden:

1. You can save some money.
2. It is easily accessible, just pick some when you need some.

Isn't it nifty?

Fresh Pick: Alileng

One of the perks of living in the Navotas-Malabon area, aside from the free swimming pool during high tides, is that you have the chance to cook and eat the freshest fish, as in straight from the fisherman's boat to your hand. But, as I am not a fan of fish and any fish-based dishes, this privilege does not apply to me but it certainly benefit my family. My antagonism to fish-based dishes is not hereditary, my family loves to eat fish, even my son, who is so picky on what he eats, prefer fried fish to other dishes. Actually, I am so thankful that he is, I don't want him to miss out on necessary nutrients and omega-3 acids that is found on fish.

Moving on... photo above is an Alileng (sorry I have no idea what is its universal name), a really big one at that, it is estimated to be 3 feet long and weighed more than six kilos, and it would have cost us more than a thousand bucks if we had gotten/bought it in the market. Well, you have to know some people to acquire a fish this big without shedding a penny *lol*.

They (my nanay and tatay) made two dishes out of it, Fish Fillet and Sinigang. I was too lazy and uninterested to snap some pics, promise I'll be snappy next time *grins*.

Ciao!