Grilled Bangus (Milk Fish)

Now this one is really easy and really healthy!  (Well, it’s grilled and it’s fish, that’s healthy enough for me, lol!)  This is perfect when you want to have a break from all the red meats and frying.   Milk fish is actually the Philippine National Fish; it is generally a fresh water fish with slender body and silver scales.  But when I had this trip in the Province of Guimaras (somewhere in the South of Philippines) early this year, we we’re taken to a sea fish pen where they have different fish including milk fish.  And I have to say that they are really big, gigantic actually!  They say one fish could weigh as much as 10 kilos.  I didn’t doubt for a second, because when one of the caretaker threw a handful of fish food, well it was frenzy! As if they would devour a live person if you threw one in, lol!  People from the area say that milk fish grown in salt water is tastier than those grown in fresh water.  I’m quite disappointed that we didn’t get a chance to taste the difference before we left (it was our third day in the island, crunch time already!).  Anyway, hopefully when we come back we could finally sample their milk fish.

Deboned milk fish (boneless bangus) is now available at grocery stores.  A friend of mine in California is actually so thrilled to find out about it.  He loves the taste of milk fish but isn’t patient enough to go through the hassle of picking each tiny bone, so ‘boneless daing na bangus’ is perfect for him.

For this recipe, you’ll need:

1 big deboned Milk Fish (boneless bangus)

3 cloves of garlic

5 tbs. vinegar

2 tbs. soy sauce

Salt and Pepper

‘Dish’ is how I do it:

I simply marinate the fish with vinegar, soy sauce, garlic and a pinch of salt and pepper for at least an hour.  And then grill it with the skin side down first.  After about 10 minutes, flip it over.  When it turns golden brown (you can peek from the sides, but a good 10 minutes should do it), that means it’s done.  You can have a chili-soy-calamansi dip to go with it.

Fish Rolls

It was one of those Christmas gathering when I first served this dish.  I figured that it’s easier to serve, can be prepare well ahead of time, and I thought the kids would love it. (Which it turns out that I’m absolutely right).

Every Holiday, I’m obliged to cook because it’s a tradition here that your Godchildren will come and visit you come Christmas time.  And I do have a bunch of them, lol!  Plus relatives event distant ones and friends, especially those with little kids would also come and visit.  Christmas in the Philippines is definitely for children, there’s no question about that.  Sometimes, there are those who are old enough (say 10 or 12 years old) to go unaccompanied by parents!  Really, they’ll just come knocking on your door, with probably 3-4 smaller kids in tow and say ‘Merry Christmas’ and do the traditional ‘mano’ (the act of putting an older person’s hand on their forehead as a sign of respect).  And you in turn will give them little gifts or little something maybe, or cash which of course is what they really prefer.  I think these kids (well, I’m sure because I used to do that, too) we’re competing on who’s going to get the biggest ‘aguinaldo’ or cash gift of all, lol!  But there are also those who simply delight in the thought of opening gifts.  I call them the more traditional ones, like my nephews and nieces.  They like gifts more than cash, you give them a paper bill and they’d probably lose it somewhere.  While most visitors would come and go in say 5 minutes (especially the kids), there are those who would stay to eat lunch or snack maybe.  They’ll stay a little longer to chat a bit, catch up on things, and really reconnect.    Christmas after all is also a time for hearty reunions.  So no matter how chaotic things could get during Christmas time, I do enjoy it still.

For this recipe you’ll need:

½ kilo or 1 pound milk-fish meat/fish fillet

1 medium size carrot*

1 medium size potato*

1 small size red bell pepper – (about half a cup when minced)

2 tbsp calamansi/lemon juice

Salt and pepper

2-3 large eggs

Cheese – (about a cup when cubed into small bits, or half a cup when shredded)

30pcs. Lumpia wrapper or wanton wrapper

Onion

Garlic

Cooking oil

*approximately it should yield about 1 cup when minced

‘Dish’ is how I do it:

I cook the fish meat in a shallow pan with calamansi or lemon juice, a dash of salt and pepper.  Let it simmer until well done.  Make sure your milk-fish is completely boneless, if you’re using fish fillet, shred it into pieces after cooking.  Set aside.

Sauté onion and garlic in oil, add minced potatoes, carrots, and bell pepper.  Let it cook.  Then add the fish and cheese.  Cheese can be shredded or if you want more texture you can cut it into little cubes.  Season it with salt and pepper according to your taste.  Before taking it off from the stove, add the scrambled egg, it’ll act as a binder.  Your mixture should now have a more pasty texture (as opposed to being dry and loose).  Set aside, let it cool.

Get your shanghai wrapper, cut it in half.  If you’re using wanton wrapper then one piece should yield one fish roll.  I’m not just so keen about using wanton wrapper for this dish, but of course you could try both and see which one you prefer.

If you’re using shanghai wrapper, put about a spoonful in each piece, roll it tightly, fold one end (the rounded end, sort of tuck it in half way when rolling the wrapper) then sealed with water (use it like a paste, just dip your finger and run it at the edge of the wrapper).  Don’t worry about the open end, your mixture won’t just pour out of it, so relax it’s supposed to be like that.  Others prefer to use the shanghai wrapper as a whole, putting about 2 spoonful on each whole piece, then rolling it like a cigar but this time tucking in both ends and then sealing it.  They just cut it in half after cooking.  Makes sense, too, cuts the time in half I guess.  But I find rolls made in such manner to be loosely rolled, I don’t know, maybe it’s just me.  Plus you tend to break the ends when you cut it after frying.  I like mine really neat, lol!

I’m not really sure how many pieces this recipe would yield it actually depend on how thin or stocky you want your rolls to be.  Some like it all crunchy while some prefer it more meaty.  I prefer the latter actually; I like it when you’re able to really taste the fish mixture inside.

After I’m done making my fish rolls, I simply fry it until golden brown.  I make sure that cooking oil is really hot before dropping the fish rolls.  You want it to brown quickly remember that the fish mixture inside is already cooked.  Let it rest on a paper towel. And then arrange in a serving dish with a sweet and sour dip or a vinegar dip or catsup!