SteemFoods: Tinolang Bangus with Malunggay

Hello my lovelies! Hello Steemit foodie friends! How have you been? I hope you're having a wonderful day.

It's been a while since the last time I've shared my recipes at home. Work has been keeping up my time with schedule, paperworks, deadlines, grades, school forms and school year-end requirements. But hey, I'm glad I'm here again talking with you, sharing with you one of my favorite things to do at home: cooking.

For today, I'm going to share with you one of our favorite Filipino dish that uses two of Philippines' most abundant ingredients that are available whole year round: bangus (milkfish) and malunggay (moringa leaves).

From this side of the Earth, the Philippines is very abundant with this silver like fish. Bangus or milkfish is considered as our national fish. It can be cooked by broiling, frying, boiling, steaming or baking. It has white and tender flesh. And to make sure that you get the freshest bangus, you'll have to visit your local wet market. Check for the clear eyes, the bright red gills, the fresh seaweedy smell of the fish, the scales should be firmly adhering to the skin and flesh is firm when pressed.

Malunggay or moringa leaves on the other hand, is also rich in vitamins and minerals that are beneficial to the body. It is rich in antioxidants, it lowers blood sugar levels, reduces inflammation and lowers cholesterol. In a tropical country like the Philippines, it can easily grow and produce leaves whole year round.

For dinner, I prepared this one simple Filipino dish using bangus (milkfish) and malunggay (moringa leaves). These are the ingredients that I used:

1 piece (about 1/2 kilogram) bangus/milkfish
4 cups water
2 pieces sliced tomatoes
6 stalks lemon grass (tied/braided)
3 pieces sword pepper
Crushed ginger (I used about the size of my thumb)
Salt and pepper to taste
Malunggay

Let's get cooking!!!

Step 1: Check for the freshness of fish. Check the scales, the eyes, the gills and firmness of flesh. Clean the fish and slice it in steaks. Set aside.

(I wasn't able to take a picture of how I cleaned the fish.)

Step 2: In a pot, pour 4 cups of water. Add sliced tomatoes, lemon grass, sword pepper and crushed ginger. Bring it to a boil.

Step 3: While waiting for the water to boil, prepare the malunggay or moringa leaves.

(These malunggay or moringa leaves came from our backyard garden.)

Step 4: Once it boils, you can add your bangus/milkfish already. Season it with some salt and pepper. Let it simmer for about 3-5 minutes.

Step 5: Add the malunggay leaves to your soup a minute before turning off the fire.

And here it is!!! My Tinolang Bangus with Malunggay is now ready to serve 🧡🧡🧡

I hope you enjoyed our dish today. I hope you'd try cooking this at home with your family. I would really love to hear from you.

COOK SMART: Buying from your local wet market is way cheaper than buying in grocery stores. Plus you get to choose the freshest ingredients available!

Huge thanks to @steemitfoods @alikoc07 of the SteemFoods community for supporting and encouraging people like me to write and share recipes that we are cooking locally. It gives us the great priviledge to represent our place by sharing our way of cooking as part of our cultural heritage. Indeed, food is what makes us bond together as one. To cooking and food!!!

Your Filipina foodie,
Rose