Crayfish

Several days ago, Bacolod Central Market had, what looked like a ton, of crayfish for sale! At P50 a kilo, it was a pretty good buy, too. Crayfish look like baby lobsters, complete with claws. We only buy crayfish if they are still alive and they were at Central Market.

There are a number of different ways to prepare these delicious shell fish, depending on if you like them hot and spicy or mild. Adding red pepper flakes or actual chili peppers to the water when boiling the crayfish will kick them up a notch. Steaming will work, too. Once the crayfish turn red in color, they are ready to eat!

A dip will add to the taste of crayfish. Melted butter is a favorite. I like cocktail sauce, so I make my own using ketchup, wasabi or horseradish and lemon, lime or the local citrus known as kalamansi. Using your imagination to create a dip for crayfish is part of the enjoyment of eating.

A plate of Crayfish

If you want to create a festival atmosphere to feed many people, you can have a Crayfish Boil! It is always a big hit among hungry people unless they just don’t like seafood. A large 3-5 gallon pot is needed for the Crayfish Boil. You can add other shellfish, such as clams and/or mussels. A few crabs thrown in will brighten up a few faces.  Other ingredients include corn on the cob, potatoes, smoked sausage, two heads of garlic, bay leaves and 2 or 3 large onion. Be sure to season the water to your taste with herbs and spices before boiling. Boil the garlic, onions, corn and potatoes first before adding the smoked sausage and then the shell fish go in last.

Enjoy!

 

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Food in the Philippines

Philippine Cuisine is diverse and I could write a book about it based on my experience in the country. But, I am not going to do that here!

When I first visited the Philippines and lived here as an academic in 1986-1987, I had read and was told that the Philippine food was Chinese, Spanish and Malay influenced. There was a Shakey’s Pizza on Roxas Blvd that I enjoyed very much. It had pizza, spaghetti, draft San Miguel Beer and live rock bands at night. Not exactly Chinese, Spanish and Malay! 

Ma Mon Luk in Quezon City was my favorite Chinese Restaurant. The Aristocrat Restaurant on Roxas Blvd was one of my favorite Filipino restaurants in Manila back in those days. Back to the Future!

I moved to the Bacolod area 3 years ago and the Filipino food here is a little different from the fare in Manila but it is still food. Nowadays, we have Mexican, Thai, Korean, Middle Eastern, German, American style, Italian, Mediterranean and many other locally owned cuisine restaurants. We don’t have a Chili’s Bar and Grill or a Taco Bell or a Burger King. There is McDonald’s, Pizza Hut and KFC.

My wife and I enjoy preparing food at home but we still go out to restaurants several times a week. We thank all those Boyz from Bacolod Food Hunters for telling us about new places to go and eat when dining out. Way to go guys! Two thumbs Up!

I enjoy Japanese food but some of the Japanese restaurants leave a lot to be desired in our area, however, I have not tried them all.

This past week, I took a simple can of Century Tuna in oil and turned it into a nice delight!

I put the canned Century Tuna in the freezer for about 40 minutes to chill . In the mean time, I whipped up a Japanese style Mayonnaise. I used the non-sweet mayonnaise, about two tablespoons. I added one half tablespoon of wasabi paste from the tube, one tablespoon of soy sauce and one half tablespoon of Worcestershire sauce. I mixed all together and put in the ref for about 30 minutes to chill. Japanese Mayonnaise.

I don’t really like boiled eggs in tuna salad but you can do that if you like. I opened the can of chilled Century Tuna and drained it especially well in a strainer, as I don’t want oil or much liquid in the tuna when making the tuna salad since it really becomes watery. The less oil left in the tuna, the better!

Tuna Bowl

I like to do things right and be authentic as possible.

One portion of tuna

Japanese Mayonnaise

Waiting to be mixed! The Japanese Mayonnaise and the tuna. I had this last night and munched on Skyflake saltine crackers, as I enjoyed eating the tuna salad. Will this work served over rice? You betcha! If you want to go that route. It will also work on a bed of lettuce and you can add mango slices, too. Now, that is a tropical delight right from the Philippines!

Food in the Philippines can be kicked up a few notches for creative flavor and your meal is only limited by your imagination.