assorted dried fried seafood
My mother is Ilonggo. Born and raised in Iloilo but left for good after her wedding to move here in Mindanao. My fondest memories of her hometown would be the 5 am wake up calls to rush into the nearby, bay-bay (seashore) to meet fishermen coming back from their daily catch. Since, I’ve spent most of my vacations during summer break this thing where we buy our food supply straight from a fisherman’s boat became a constant affair.
In the later years, my visits became so rare that I’ve come to not like going there anymore. Everything has changed. Kids in the neighborhood are all gaga over technology and the adults have forgotten about the old-fashioned lifestyle that I very much love.
Don’t get me wrong. I am very pleased with how lives are changed because of technology but losing sight of the beauty of our past way of life makes me very disappointed.
I am however glad that the most popular and well loved delicacies of Iloilo are very available and still has a high marketability especially because of those who live abroad. Anyways, recently my mother had a 10 day trip to Iloilo and she brought home some of my favorite items.
Rice with Assorted Dried Seafood and Tomato Salsa
fry the following until crisp:
dried rabbitfish, a handful
dried squid, 2 pcs
dried banig, a handful (banig =mat–called banig because of how it looks like after drying)
pair this with:
steamed rice (I personally prefer steamed compared to fried rice)
simple tomato salsa (seasoned with half a lime) or
garlic fried rice and steaming hot coffee
died rabbitfish
dried squid
banig and salsa
