Salamin

Yes, it is a fish, so-called because of its silvery skin. It’s a lovely fish, roundish and flat, similar in shape to kitang, but its fins are shaped like a flower of thread-like needles, beautifully curved, as if caught in graceful movement. Vilma, of course, cajoled us to get this at P120 a kilo. We are usually averse to things not familiar to us, specially food, but she is a very persuasive person. It was good that we did, for we thoroughly enjoyed the salamin, fried crisp and served with pickled radish. This is one fish with hardly any lansa (slimy smell nor taste), its flesh is soft, a cross between talakitok and lapu-lapu. Great discovery really.

It is a pity that seabass (apahap) is so rare. Freshies off BF market normally carries this, but not on the day we wanted to try a recipe from one of the Egyptians cookbooks we acquired. After consulting a friend who’s a culinary authority, we settled for white lapu-lapu. Our dinner guests loved it! Here’s the recipe for Lapu-lapu Bathed in Olive Oil with Saffron and Paprika. Clean and set aside about 1.2 kilos of fish. Make a mixture of chopped fresh coriander, crushed garlic, the juice of a knob of pounded ginger, one fourth cup olive oil, two tablespoons paprika, one red pepper, one tablespoon powdered cumin, and one fourth cup water. Take about 2 tablespoons of this mixture and, in a separate bowl, mix with 6 more tablespoons of olive oil, pounded ginger and big pinch of saffron. Marinate the fish and let stand for 2 hours or overnight.

When ready to bake, either roast red pepper or buy the canned variety. Line the bottom of the pan with this and lay the fish on top. Along the other sides, arranged some fresh tomatoes, then pour the marinade and the other sauce that you made. Bake in a pre-heated oven at 160 degrees centigrade for about 45 minutes or until fish is done. Serve with olives and lemon wedges. Try it–you and your family would love this!

There’s a new line of processed food from the Fil-Austrian Manufacturing Corporation based in Cubao, Quezon City: a collection of steaks for breakfast and we liked what we got–pork chorizo steak (P57.50 a pack) and pork and beef cheese chorizo (P73.75). They are duly accredited products with no enhancers, preservatives or coloring.

We found out that a good pesto sauce will be much better with pecorino cheese. We have been looking for this from Egypt to Manila and thankfully found it at Santis. This is an Italian cheese made from ewe’s milk–either soft and mild or dry and strong, salty with a sharp flavor and studded with whole black peppercorns. This can be cut into cubes and marinated in olive oil for bread topping. It is rather pricey though–P302 for 260 g.

The family enjoyed the chicken in marsala sauce we served sometime ago and since we were in Santis, we over-indulged and bought a bottle of Sicilian marsala wine (Il Siciliano D.O.C) for P780. This is a rich, brown fortified wine with sweet and musky flavor. There’s a marsala enriched with egg yolk, which is for dessert. Aside from blending it for sauces, this can be served as a dip for biscuits. This is a good investment because unlike sherry, it does not deteriorate after the bottle is open.

We met a young man called Ariel at a recent Food Fair. It is great to know that more and more men are managing food stalls, like our executive assistant who is doing well with his adobos and menudos off SM Bacoor in Cavite. Ariel, on the other hand, has his Ulam at Sinigang place, also in Bacoor. He seems to be happy with how his business is going.

Over at Baker Brothers on President Avenue in BF Parañaque, the new product is Gilroy Garlic Bread, inspired by a recipe from what they say is the world-famous Gilroy Garlic Festival. It is a French baguette with a blend of garlic, butter, extra virgin olive oil and parmesan cheese, ready to heat.

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