Trying to be "Healthy" food.

I have been trying to cook "healthy" food lately. I still eat beef, pork and chicken but not as much as before. As always, Lechon is the exception to the rule. What are the different ways to cook seafood especially fish? The usual Fried, Inihaw, Baked or Sinigang. It can get boring and then will make me go off the "program". So I am discovering different and simple ways to cook seafood and vegetables. I am not a vegetable eater, especially raw leaves, so it has to be something I will like.

I consider myself quite lucky because I can get my fish fresh from the Supermarket, cook it without having to put in the freezer. It would be so divine if I can get fresh from the ocean! In my experience, fish that has been frozen tastes different from freshly bought fish. That is just my opinion or perhaps my imagination.

I am going to share some recipes of my my fish/seafood/vegetable experiments.

Pesang Bacoco (I have been eating this dish since I was young.)

300 grams Bacoco (I don't know the English equivalent but maybe white snapper?)

garlic, crushed

onions, sliced

ginger, sliced

2 C. water or "hugas bigas"

patis

leeks

pechay

Saute garlic, onions and ginger. Then add the water, when it begins to boil, drop in the fish. Cover and cook for 5 minutes. Season with patis, add the leeks and pechay and cook until the vegetables are bright dark green in color. Separate the broth from the fish and vegetables and serve with fresh tomato sauce.

Fresh Tomato Sauce

garlic, crushed

1 onion, chopped

3 tomatoes, chopped

2 T. fish stock

Patis, to taste

Saute garlic, onions and tomatoes until soft. Add the fish stock and patis, reduce the sauce.

I went to Bel-Air Market (It's actually Poblacion Public market but I call it Bel-Air Market) the other day and bought pusit. I asked the vendor how to cook adobong pusit and this is her recipe:

Adobong Pusit

1/2 K. Pusit Bisaya (small variety)

1 T. cooking oil

1 head garlic, crushed

1-2 T. vinegar

salt, to taste

green sili

Wash the squid, drain and remove the plastic membrane inside. Put the squid in a pan and let it simmer for a few minutes without adding water, drain again and reserve the liquid. Heat a pan, add cooking oil and fry the squid slightly, push to one side and saute the garlic. Pour in the reserved liquid and green sili. Continue cooking for about 10-15 minutes. Season with vinegar and salt.

Stir-fried Togue

garlic, crushed

onion, sliced

1/4 K. Togue

1 T. soy sauce

1 t. sugar

Saute garlic and onions, then add the togue and stir fry for a few minutes. Season with soy sauce and sugar.

Stir-fried Chinese Kangkong (kangkong with narrow leaves, not heart shaped)

1 bunch Chinese KangKong, tough stems removed, washed and drained

1 head garlic, crushed

1 T. cooking oil

1 t. Golden Sail Light soy sauce

Heat a wok, when smoking hot, add the oil , then garlic, cook until it is light brown. Then add the kangkong leaves, stir fry for less than a minute, season with light soy sauce and serve.

Pinangat na Sapsap (Sapsap looks like a silver angel fish)

300 grams Sapsap

3 pcs. tomatoes

6 pcs. calamansi

quarter C. of  water

salt or patis (I prefer patis)

1 t. cooking oil

Crush the tomatoes with your hand and put in a frying pan. Add water and calamansi juice, when it begins to boil and the tomatoes are soft, place the fish on top of the tomatoes, cover and cook for 5 minutes. Season with patis. Drizzle cooking oil before switching off the heat.

Tilapia with Gata ( Recipe of Ann, Tita Portia's helper)

Tilapia, cleaned and scales removed

onion, sliced

ginger, sliced

tomatoes, sliced

coconut milk

mustard leaves(mustaza), cut intot 2 inch length

Boil onions, tomatoes and ginger in coconut milk, add the tilapia and season with salt. When the fish is cooked, add the mustard leaves and season with salt.