Day 19: Steamed Cream Dory and Baguio Spinach in Oyster Sauce

I had a 500 gram pack of Cream Dory fillets that's been in deep freeze for about two months now. I was certain to make a chinese-inspired dish out of it but as to what exactly, I haven't really thought it out. It was a toss-up between sweet and sour-style or just plain steaming. Eventually, I decided on the latter option. For after all, if you have a good ingredient such as Cream Dory, it's best to let the flavors of the fish shine. My family was very pleased with my choice.

Steaming fish is very simple to do. Just place the fish on a heat-proof plate, sprinkle a 2-inch long ginger that's been thinly sliced and the white part of 3 stalks of green onions on top of the fish. Then pour a mixture of 2 tablespoons each of chinese cooking wine & soy sauce, one (1) tablepoon of sesame oil, half a teaspoon of sugar. Steam the fish for about 15 minutes; when the fish is cooked, sprinkle the remaining chopped green onions over the fish.

I paired this dish with Baguio Spinach with oyster sauce. Wash the leaves of two (2) bags of spinach and set it aside. Chope four cloves of garlic and fry it in a tablespoon of oil. Then add the washed spinach and add about four (4) tablespoons of oyster sauce, 1/4 cup of water, one (1) tablespoon each of sesame oil and chinese cooking wine, hald a teaspoon of sugar. Once the spinach wilts, remove it from the pan and thicken the sauce with a teaspoon of cornstarch dissolved in a little water.

Day 9: Fried Galunggong Patties and Suam na Mais

We had leftover Galunggong from the other night so I decided to make Galunggong Patties. Galunggong Patties are very much like Potato Latkes but with a good protein source from the fish. What I did was flake the leftover fish that made about two (2) cups, shred potatoes to make two (2) cups, chop one (1) red bell pepper and about three (3) tablespoons each of green onions and wansuy (but you can use kinchay too, whichever is available). I mix everything together with a tablespoon of cornstarch, salt and pepper to taste and a beaten egg to make the mixture stick together. I take spoonfuls of the mixture, form them into little patties and fry them in oil till they turn golden brown.

I paired the Fried Galunggong Fritters with a traditional Filipino soup called Suam na Mais. I took the recipe from Page 24 of the Maya Kitchen's "The New Filipino Cookbook". Here's the recipe:

1 tablesppon oil
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 medium-size oion, chopped
1 small ginger, sliced
3 cups shrimp stock, strained
2 pieces fresh corn, removed from the cob
Patis and pepper to taste
2 cups sili or malunggay leaves

Heat the oil in a saucepan then saute' the garlic, onions ang ginger. Add the stock and corn. Simmer until the corn is tender. Season to taste. Add the leaves just before serving.

Day 7: Gisadong Pechay at Tokwa and Piniritong Galungong

Say what you want about Galunggong, that it's the poor man's fish, etc., but it's my favorite fish! It has no pretenses and for which, it's popularity crosses class lines. I especially love eating the small-sized galunggong that's perfect for fying. I just season the fish with rock salt and a little bit of pepper and fry it crisp. Galungong is actually good with gisadong monggo but we didn't have any mung beans in the pantry so I made gisadong pechay at tokwa.

The gisadong pechay at tokwa is also easy to make. Fry about 200 grams of firm tofu or tokwa till they brown; remove the tokwa pieces from the pan. Slice the tokwa into strips. Saute' three (3) cloves of chopped native garlic and an onion till they turn translucent. Add a diced medium potato, a cup of water, patis and pepper to taste. When the potatoes are done, return the tokwa and add 1/3 kilo of chopped pechay. Adjust the seasonings and simmer till done.

Day 6: Paksiw na Bangus with Ampalaya and Talong

Okay, so we're having bangus again. But this is a totally different flavor experience from the grilled bangus that I served the last time. This is one-pot dish that has a flavorful sauce coming from the ginger and vinegar. There's something about using the traditional claypot for this dish. And, it just gets better when served the day after. My mother just used sea salt as condiment for this tart dish.


Slice medium-sized bangus on the bias into several pieces. Place tha bangus pieces into the claypot then add about four (4) crused garlic cloves, a quartered medium-sized onion, half of an ampalaya (seeded) and a large eggplant that have been sliced diagonally, two (2) thumb-sized pieces of crushed ginger, green finger chilis siling haba (apportion one siling haba per slice of bangus) a cup of water and 1/4 cup of vinegar, patis and a teaspoon of whole peppercorns. Simmer till done. Serve straight from the claypot.