Unsettled

I can’t remember the last time it rained THIS hard in Metro Manila.  Typhoon Ondoy brought in the rain as early as 3am (from what I recall) and it went on non-stop until 10pm.  Streets and major thoroughfares are flooded all over the metropolis.

I got an SMS from my mom earlier today and she said the power went out in our home in the morning, and the rain has entered our home as well.  The water level has risen to 4 inches as of 2pm.  I was so freaked out and worried about them, I couldn’t think straight.  Around dinner time I tried contacting them again but all communication lines were dead.  According to my sister who spoke to my mom in the afternoon, the water level has reached their knees.

It’s 11:17pm right now, our electric power has been restored after more than 9 hours, and still no word from my family.  Just thinking about them and their possible situation right now just wrenches my heart.  God, please keep them safe.

Milkfish Belly Steak

Milkfish, better known locally as bangus, is, without a doubt, one of my Dear’s favourite food.  His food blog wouldn’t be named after it if it weren’t.  It’s a very tasty kind of fish, and its belly is cooked here in the Philippines in a variety of ways.  The belly is sufficiently fat and succulent but not as fat as that of the salmon.

It’s a very rainy day today (according to the news, there’s a storm coming), and we were supposed to be out all day on errands.  However, the floods surrounding our area prevented us from doing so.  My Dear has been requesting me to make bangus belly steak (a dish I tried a couple of times and turned out to be good), and I finally obliged.

Making bangus belly steak is quite simple.  All you need are:

- bangus belly, of course

- some soy sauce

- calamansi juice

- garlic

- 1 whole white onion (chopped into rings)

- pepper to taste

Since I am on a low salt diet right now, I used very little soy sauce for the dish.  As for the “sourness” factor, I specifically use calamansi instead of vinegar because its acidity is more suitable for a dish such as steak.  More importantly, the juice has a little sweetness to it, too (because of its fructose content), hence giving the fish a good sweet-sour balance.

I first marinated the bangus belly in soy sauce, calamansi juice, pounded garlic and pepper for about 30 minutes.  Afterwards, I took out the bangus belly and fried it in high heat until its skin was crispy.  I flipped it over and fried the other side for about 2 minutes then set it aside.

Using the same pan, I then proceeded to cook the onion rings for about 3-5 minutes, or until they turn slightly transluscent.  I just love onions in a steak dish.

For the sauce, I poured the marinade into the same pan (while adding a little bit of oil), added some more calamansi juice, then 1/8-1/4 cup of water.  Then I allowed this mixture to reduce on medium heat.

After the sauce was done, I poured it over the fish I fried earlier, then added the onion rings on top as a final touch.  Ta-da!

I think this is the best bangus belly steak I’ve made thus far.  My Dear and I just loved it with steaming white rice.