Sarciadong Isda

It's Friday again...and today, I'm bringing you this fish recipe from the Philippines called Sarciadong Isda which simply means "fish cooked in sauce". 

Though in some regions Sarciado is cooked with scrambled eggs, in the province where I grew up, it has no egg. The one with egg is what we call Cardillo. Anyway, they are basically the same. In both dishes, fried fish is simmered in a sauce which consists mainly of garlic, onions, ginger & tomatoes. The only difference between them is that Cardillo contains scrambled eggs mixed to the sauce while Sarciado is cooked without the eggs. Both dishes are very popular due to their simple preparation. Filipinos find them to be the best ways to recook/reuse left-over fried fish.  But whether using leftover or not, fish is fried beforehand to prevent from falling apart while cooking in the sauce. 

Ryan & I like adding a little kick to it, so I often cook my Sarciado with Jalapeño. I always remove the seeds to make it kid friendly for Clarise and Cherlin. If you don't like it hot, it would be totally fine to omit this ingredient. :)

Hope you'll like this Meatless Friday recipe! 

The next time you have left-over fried fish, you should try either this or the Cardillo.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend with your loved ones! Enjoy!

Cardillong Isda

Cardillong Isda is an old Filipino dish that is very popular due to its simple preparation and availability of ingredients.  In the Philippines, it is a way to re-cook left-over fried fish. But whether using leftover or not, fish is fried beforehand to prevent from falling apart while cooking in the sauce.  Cardillo is almost similar to Sarciado. The difference between the two is that Cardillo contains srambled eggs mixed to the sauce while Sarciado is cooked without the eggs. In both dishes, fried fish is simmered in a sauce which consists mainly of garlic, onions, ginger & tomatoes. The secret to a good cardillo or sarciadong isda is to use the same oil (where you fried the fish) in sautéing, so that all the other ingredients can absorb the fish flavor.

This Filipino dish is so simple yet so delicious & nutritious! Try it!

Prep Time: 10 mins          Cook Time: ~30 mins           Servings: 6-8                              

Ingredients:

• 2 medium-sized whole golden pompano, cleaned, gutted and each cut into 4 pieces (You can use other fish like bangus, maya-maya, cod, tilapia, or scad)
• 5 Tbsp Light olive oil
• 2 big tomatoes, washed, seeds removed and chopped
• 1 medium onion, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp ginger, minced
• 1 ½  cups water
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 stalks green onions, chopped
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 Jalapeño pepper, seeds removed and sliced into rings (optional)