Independency. A broad word which also encompasses how an individual could cope up with life through accomplishing things alone. All of us wants to be "independent", thus, it covers up a long process before attaining progress and overcoming "dependency."
As a woman who is eager to stand alone at her own, enabling herself to prepare an edible and taste-worthy foods is a great way to achieve independence. Moreover, foods serves as one of the main source of energy being used in day-to-day tasks. Therefore, being knowledgeable in food preparation, specifically in cooking, will contribute a lot to survive this challenging world.
Similar to what this Anonymous quoter said ...
" ... Cooking is a survival skill which every human must know."
In this entry of "Food Blog", let me share another simple yet delicious Filipino dish.
"Sarciadong Isda (otherwise known as Fish Sarciado) ... is a dish comprising of fried fish simmered in a sauce usually made up of tomatoes, aromatics and additional seasonings. In the Philippines, the dish were often consumed with white rice."
Here are the ingredients needed to prepare Sarciadong Isda:
- Fish, any kind of fish can be used (i.e. milk fish, salmon, St. Peter's fish or 'tilapia', smoked fish like tinapa, etcetera);
- Ripe tomatoes;
- Aromatics: garlic and onion;
- Seasonings: salt and ground pepper;
- Fresh eggs.
Now, let's proceed to the process of cooking:
- First, fry the fish over medium heat until golden brown or toasted (crispy).
In here, I used "tinapa" or smoked fish due to its availability and easier accessibility. This fish also tastes great and is proven to make the dish taste delicious.
- Next, sautee the aromatics such as minced garlic and chopped onions over medium heat until limp and as it starts to produce flavorful aroma.
Always remember to avoid burning the aromatics as the dish will surely taste burnt.
- Third step, add the chopped tomatoes and cook until tomatoes are well-crushed.
- Fourth, pour one cup of water and the seasonings (salt and ground pepper) to add flavorful taste. Then, let it simmer for about ten (10) minutes.
The amount of water and seasonings are both adjustable depending on the cook's preferences.
- Fifth step, beat fresh eggs and pour onto the mixture while continuously mixing until eggs are all combined to the crushed tomatoes. Simmer for five (5) minutes.
Adding of eggs is optional. Moreover, meat and other seasonings can be added as long as it jives the original taste.
- Lastly, add the fried fish (i.e. tinapa) then mix it until the fish are well covered with the tomato and egg mixture which serves as the fish sauce.
In less than an hour, our "Sarciadong Tinapa" is now ready to be served with hot rice.
To our fellow foreigner writers out there, trust me. This dish is really delicious that you'll request for another cup of rice.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
Enabling ourselves to try other things including foods is a great contributor of collected experiences.
More so, "cooking" is not only to expand our individual skills. Hence, to allow ourselves to not fully depend on other people's ability to prepare foods. Whenever we want to eat, we can prepare it for ourselves.
BLOG NO. 10 OF 2023
TITLE: FOOD BLOG 101 | "Another Filipino Dish: Sarciadong Tinapa!"
DATE OF PUBLISHING: FEBRUARY 07, 2023
