Ang Pambansang Ulam, Dried Fish

Ang Pambansang Ulam, dried fish.

Dried fish is a predisposition to being Filipino.

It is ironically pertained to, by many, as ulam ng mga mahihirap or viand of the poor ( as opposed to bayan of the poor which altogether holds a different meaning ).

But this type of food knows no class boundaries or status quo. Every filipino regardless of economics, has this as a favorite. Its price may sometimes be on the range as fresh pork and poultry in the market.

Pambansang Ulam would be more like it. If and only to borrow a popular appellation, accorded to Filipino matineè idols in this country.

And to name a few, Dingdong Dantes, John Lloyd Cruz, Gerald Anderson, Coco Martin and Daniel Padilla (sila ang Mga Pambansang Ulam). BUT ultimately : Ang Pambansang Ulam, should be dried fish.

It is an imperative. It tops the whole breakfast line, comprised of either traditional or three-in-one coffee, pandesal, fried rice, scrambled eggs, longganiza and hotdogs.

And despite its supposedly being “coterminous” with hypertension (????), it still is commonplace not only during breakfasts, but in every Filipino meal as well. It may not only be served as ulam ( viand or main course ) but it is also served as an appetizer, a side dish, or as merienda(snack).

It is best served with a dipping sauce of sukang pinakurat ( a special kind of vinegar from Iligan City ), with chopped tomatoes and onion.

Dried Fish is sometimes used as an additive to other flavorful Filipino dishes. It is also added as an ingredient for pasta sauce and sauteéd mixed vegetables.

Sometimes, its strong odor, may be found offensive by those who are not used to it. But dried fish just is, an articulation of the distinctive Filipino palette.

We call it tuyo in Tagalog or uga and bulad in Ilonggo and Cebuano dialects. It is salted fish. It is fish preserved or cured with salt, while left to dry under the heat of the sun. It may be, buo (whole ), boneless and/or daing or di-naing ( sliced open and thoroughly gutted.)

These dried products may be produced in provincial areas like, Bacolod, Bataan, Bicol, Bulacan, Cavite, Cebu, Ilo-ilo, Palawan, Pangasinan, Roxas and Zamboanga City- where numerous vast lands of bilaran ( or dried fish bays ) are located.

It can be bought from the maglalako , the vendor who goes around the neighborhood, selling tuyo on his bilao or panning basket. It is also repacked in few pieces and available in small neighborhood retail stores called, sari-sari.

In my childhood, dried fish generally came from the wet market.

It was usually wrapped in a piece of old newspaper and contained in a supot (or plastic bag ).

It can be stored for weeks in the pantry and for a longer period of time in the refrigerator.

One fine day, in my adulthood I had a suitor who brought me a plastic bag of tuyo as a present ( three days only of having known each other).

I knew our friendship would be long lasting, as that of the salt used to preserve the dried fish.

I married him of course and later found myself into the dried fish industry.

Dried fish has been in my husband’s and his family’s business. They are aptly pertained to as, Mga Magtutuyo. They are small scale entreprenuers who are into the business of buying and selling dried fish. The hard work, time, patience and effort placed into it, should be enough for one to acquiesce, that it never was an easy industry to be begin with.

It would start with fresh fish allocations, being awarded by fish brokers to the highest bidders. They usually are the fresh fish retailers or the Mga Magsasariwa. Then the remaining fishes are bought by the patrons, collectively known as Mga Nagbibilad. They own the bilaran where dried fish is processed.

The first bilaran, I ever visited was in Roxas City- the seafood capital of the Philippines. It was an amazing opportunity to have witnessed the entire process which included immersing the fish in saline solution and left there overnight.

The next day, it was rinsed with tap water, so excess salt particles would be washed away. One by one, the fishes were laid on a kaping( a flat board for dried fish).

Given a sunny day, the kapings are laid under the sun from 5:00 am to 11:00 am. They are then kept indoors, just when the sun’s heat would be too hot, enough to have cooked the dried fish instead.

By 2:00 pm it is again brought out to dry till 5:00 pm. One and a half day would be enough to have dried the fishes.

It would now be placed in crates, kahon, karton and sako, ready for shipment to wholesalers of nearby urban places and cities. And wholesalers or Mga Magtutuyo like my husband would now be able to supply dried fish to his suki/s and their retail stores.

Let me enumerate these dried fish/seafood according to our favorites and the best sellers in my husband’s store and my online customers.

1. Dried Boneless Dilis (Anchovies)

Dilis may be Twakang or Bolinao. It may be with bone. This is the more common dried dilis you may see in the Palengke or marketplace.

But my son and I prefer the boneless dilis over the buo, since we find it easier to chew.

In my husband’s store, this seem to be the best seller for moms and kids like myself and my son.

I remembered having brought this to Baguio City during one of my son’s national competition. I brought only a kilo for the parents to taste. Surprisingly, after setting the breakfast table, the boneless dilis was the first the kids finished.

Perhaps, it is because in my husband’s store, he usually sells newly delivered dried fish. It does not get to stay long in the store– so most of the dried fish are tastier and crunchier to the bite.

2. Dried Pusit ( Squid )

Majority of the provinces in the Visayas region in the Philippines like Palawan, boast of producing this dried seafood.

Sometimes dried pusit is packed as merienda or snacks where it is fried, till slightly brown, while sprinkled with brown sugar and siling labuyo.

Dried pusit may be whole and it is called Tuyong Pusit Buo.

It may also be thoroughly gutted and called Tuyong Pusit Biyak or Dinaing.

3. Dried Boneless Danggit (Samaral or Rabbit fish )

The Dried Danggit is a di-naing or daing type of dried fish.

It is processed in the coastal areas of Pangasinan, Cavite and Cebu. But it is mostly produced in the Pangasinan area. It may be salted or unsalted.

My son and I prefer the unsalted one.

4. Dried Dulong or Silver Fish

Compared with the dilis, or the anchovy, the silver fish is tiny. It is transparent and has beady eyes. The dried dulong has to be fried quickly, just right for it to be cooked and crunchy to the bite. We usually put it on top of warm rice with freshly sliced tomatoes.

5. Tuyo na Espada or Dried Scabbardfish

Espada is also called Scabbardfish. Dried Espada is also called Espada Flakes. most of the times it is sold whole, then cut in to pieces before frying.

It is like eating chips. Usually placed beside it, would be a tall glass of ice filled, Coks -an enunciation-gone-awry, for the word Coke (yet, something I once in a while, slip into saying just because it brings so much happy memories).

6. Dried Besugong Bato

Besugong Bato or Freshwater small-toothed Jobfish is usually gutted when dried. It is popular during holy week.

6. Tuyo na Tunsoy and Galunggong ( Mackarel )

*Hard-tail mackerel, galunggong babae
*Round scad, galunggong lalaki

This dried fish is a figment of childhood memory, that included coming home from school, one rainy afternoon and finding it,
beside a bowl of warm champorado, chocolate porridge poured with cold condensada, condensed milk.

Dried fish just is Ang Pambansang Ulam, especially after having been able to beat and out-ran the neighborhood cat, to it.

” Uy Muning, ulam ko to.”