Fish with Vinegar & Coconut

Click to Enlarge	Fish with Vinegar & Coconut Philippines (Paksiw na Galunggong)
	Serves Effort: Sched: DoAhead:	2 main ** 20 min Most		This very tasty dish is quick and easy to make (once you've cleaned the fish). Americans aren't accustomed to dealing with small bony fish but it's not difficult to learn (Note-3) - or you could use fillets instead. In the Philippines the fish would likely be cooked head-on, but for simplicity I remove the heads. There will be a lot of sauce so serve with plenty of jasmine rice.

1-1/2
1/2
1/4
2
1
1/2
14oz

#
c
c

in
T
can

Mackerel Scad (1)
Vinegar (2)
Water
Green Chilis (3)
Ginger
Salt
Coconut Cream

Clean FISH and discard heads. Arrange in a sauté pan just large enough to fit as one layer.
Add Vinegar,Water.
Sliver CHILIS lengthwise, slice GINGER thin and chop very fine. Add both to pan along with Salt..
Bring to a boil and simmer about 5 minutes. Add Coconut Cream, stirring it around as much as possible without breaking up the fish. Bring back to a boil and simmer for about 10 minutes.
Serve with plenty of Jasmine Rice.

NOTES:

Mackerel Scad: (often called "round scad") is the traditional fish for this dish. It is milder and much less oily than real mackerel and comes in sizes from 7 to 17 inches. Scad are related to Jacks and Pompanos so those could be considered as substitutes, but don't use a fish that's too mild. Various Scad are generally in good supply in markets serving a Philippine community. See my page Varieties of Fish for more information.
Chilis: should be Philippine Long Chili, but those aren't much available even in Southern California, so I substitute Serranos - see my Chilis page for details.
Eating Small Fish: lift off and eat chunks of the upper side of the fish taking care not to disturb the very top edge of the fish. Watch for tiny ribs you may encounter in the body cavity area. When the first half is eaten move the narrow strip of meat at the very top of the fish away from the body - it'll take all the fin spines with it. Lift off the backbone and tail. Pick out any tiny ribs in the body cavity area and eat the second side of the fish. Chopsticks are a good tool for disassembling and eating fish if you handle them well.
U.S. measure: t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup, qt=quart, oz=ounce, #=pound, cl=clove in=inch