Making the most out of pritong isda (fried fish)
September 7, 2007
Filed under How to cook
The simplest — and fastest — way to serve fish is to fry or grill it. Most people I know simply season the fish with salt and pepper then serve the fried fish with one sawsawan (dipping sauce) or another. In the Philippines, the dipping sauce is usually a mixture of vinegar and soy sauce, spiked with crushed chili pepper and some minced garlic. I have nothing against dipping sauces. But I really think that one can go beyond salt and pepper to perk up the flavor of fish.
Granted that it is best not to overpower the natural flavors of fish with too many seasonings and spices. Still, there are herbs that can actually enhance the taste of fish. You may be thinking that adding herbs and spices to fish is simple if one were cooking a soup or a stew but how does one do it with fried fish? It’s simple — you coat the fish with the herbs.
We had fried talakitok for dinner tonight. The heads had been cooked as a soup earlier today — that goes into the cookbook 
— so I fried the fish minus the heads. I made incisions on the flesh, about 1/3-inch deep, and rubbed them all over with salt. I let them sit in the fridge for an hour to allow the salt to penetrate the flesh. Then, while heating the cooking oil, I prepared the mixture that I intended to dredge the fish in.
Dried tarragon and thyme mixed with flour, pepper and sesame seeds. I stirred them all together (I should have used more herbs and less flour), dredged every surface of the fish in the mixture and I even stuffed the cavities of the fish with herbs. Then, I deep-fried the fish in very, very hot oil.
When the fish were done, I sprinkled more dried herbs over them. The moisture from the heat softened the herbs, releasing the flavors.
What can I say? We had a lovely dinner.
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is d best wala akong masbi sa sobrang sarap…
nice twist.. love to have it now with three tablespoons of garlic rice (diet)
new twists help keep a very ordinary food from becoming boring.
My husband is not into my fish-frying, lalo na Filipino style, yung bang talagang over cooked para sa kanya. And then he is not into frying because of the oil splatter (although I bought a deep fryer and I use coconut oil nowadays); so when I lambing for fish, he thinly sliced some lemons, julianne the carrots, slivers of garlic and onions, and topped the fish with salt and pepper and some dry italian herbs.. then wrapped it in foil and grill or broil. Serve it steaming hot with newly cooked rice. Sabi ko sa kanya next time, try enveloping the fish in banana leaves before wrapping it in the foil.
Wanted to share a healthy Italian recipe for grilling fish that is so simple. Season the fist with salt and let it sit for a while. In a bowl, mix bread crumbs, Rosemary and olive oil. Mix it well and rub this mixture in to the fish. You can also stuff the head and cavities to make your fish more tasty.
you may also add more olive oil while grilling the fish.
I’ll do this next time hubby fries our fish
Hi Connie!
Dolor’s Kakanin is available in Mommy’s Malabon Pride (same price in all branches):
Concepcion, Malabon (beside Concepcion Church):2829710/2812739
Congressional, QC:9274453
Sucat, P’que:8230806
SM Mega B: 09228773367
SM Makati: 09228299667
other natives delicacies available: pansit malabon, puto, puto galapong, ube halaya, kutsinta, maja blanka, akai-akai(botse with monggo), tibok-tibok, rellenong bangus, bibingkang malagkit, cassava cake
Hey Connie
I’ve always enjoyed reading your blog. My lola’s cook taught me to dredge it in flour so the fish won’t stick to the pan when frying. I mixed salt, black pepper and some onion powder on one occasion just to spice things up. twas great. leftovers were used for monggo soup
Hi Curlywurly, dredging in flour minimizes all spatters too.