Hoplosternum littorale or conchi'o (Shelly) as we call it is probably one of the weirdest Fish in the world.
Its orangish meat is covered by a hard shell that looks like an armor.
It is a river/gulf Fish and it's one of my town's traditional dishes.
My brother knows how to prepare it in different ways. This time he stewed most of them and baked a few others.
They are easy to draw or evicerate, but shell (which look like giant scales) can't be removed that easily,so the fish is cooked just like that.
Once cooked, that armor can be easily removed.
We usually accompany this fish with bola de plátano (smashed boiled green plantain), but this time he prepared it with yuca (cassava) and chino (taro).
My brother and his wife work as a team in the kitchen.
They do not always agree on the ingredients, but they usually complemento each other. My brother wanted to add beer or wine to the fish, but my sister-in-law stopped him. They settled for the traditional tomatoes, onions, sweet pepper, pepper, culantro (Eryngium foetidum) and garlic.
It is hard to.velive but a fish that ugly can smell and taste delicious!
I totally recommend it.
