Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Dagupeña Bangus Belly


One of my favourite ulams these days is bangus belly made by Dagupeña. I usually buy it at SM or Shopwise, and one bangus belly costs around P120. Relatively expensive considering that a kilo of pork liempo (good for at least four meals) costs only P150+; however, if you like bangus belly (which I do) it's really worth the price given the size. Their bangus bellies come in four flavours: (a) honey mustard, (b) pesto, (c) teriyaki, and (d) Thai green chili. Notwithstanding my reservations about the stability of preference relations, I'd say my ranking of the four flavours is b > a ~ c > d (> reads "is preferred to" and ~ reads "is indifferent to").

It's very simple to prepare and very bachelor-friendly. First I thaw it in lukewarm water-- this takes around 20 minutes-- but instead of frying the belly I broil it. Since broiling doesn't give even heat (all from the top), I fold the belly in half and broil each side (both of them skin side) for around 10 to 15 minutes until the skin is browned and crisp. Finally, I reopen the belly and broil the meat and belly until it's browned. I often add granulated garlic to the pesto and Thai green chili bellies, while I add unagi sauce on the teriyaki belly.
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While searching the web I found Anne Castro's blog. Perusing her appropriately-named blog and IP address, I gather that she (or her family) is the owner of Dagupeña Bangus. Nice food blog too, I should say.

7 comments:

ANNE CASTRO said...

thanks, thanks...hahaha. im glad you like our products. i cook our products very very simple. teflon pan and 1 tbs oil (voo if you like). heat the oil to smoking point. 3 minutes each side, belly side first :-)

nice blog too :-)

xsaltire said...

Thanks, Anne. Oh, I forgot to mention in my post, I also coat the belly with voo before I broil them. I'll try your quick fry method soon.

I'll add you to my links page. :)

ANNE CASTRO said...

cool cool...

how do i add the links page? i'm not such a techy. i will add you in too

xsaltire said...

Hi, Anne. Glad to help. After you sign in (and are viewing your blog), click Customize (upper right corner), then click the Template tab. Click on Page Elements below the tab, then on Add a Page Element under the Navbar-- a popup screen will appear. Look for the box that says Link List then click Add to Blog. It'll go to the page where you can add links and customise the list. Click Save Changes and you're on your way. :)

ANNE CASTRO said...

great...will do it soon. thank for patronizing and blogging about our products. allow us to give you a bunch of our best tasting bangus chorizo :-)

xsaltire said...

You're welcome-- I recognise good food when I see it. I actually haven't tried your chorizos yet, so sure! Hehehe. :)

Btw, my folks in the US (Bay Area) are asking if you plan to sell your products over there.

ANNE CASTRO said...

Let me know when you like to meet up. I'll be out of town most days but I'll be in Manila Thursday nexy week. I'll also give you fab recipes for our chorizo :-)