Something Fishy

Hmmm, i smell something fishy!

Fish, anyone? Lab-as pa (very fresh) from the rich Visayan Sea.

When it comes to buying fish, my being a loyal person mainfests even to the type of fish I buy every week and from whom I buy it. I only buy same type of fish every week and seldom do I buy any other kind. I only buy this fish which we call **tamarong. I am not comfortable to buy any other type since my children are picky and I myself is not very adventurous in terms of experimenting with cooking and trying new dishes. Yeah I know, my foodie life is kinda boring. Sometimes, I ponder if my food choices are tama (right) or wrong. Tama, rong*? 😅

I also have my suki, and I don't know if I am the only person who feels this way. I feel like betraying my suki when I buy from other vendors. 😅 So, if I would buy from other vendors, I make sure she could not see me. The wet market in our town is really small that's why even at a distance, we can see each other.

Thankfully, I don't have to deal with that feeling anymore because there is an area in town where I can buy fish which is away from the wet market and from the sight of my suki. Lol!

I don't know how they are called but I'll just call them pungko-pungko (squatting) fish vendors. These fish vendors do not have a permanent stall in the market. They only come to the market every weekend with their pails of fish, a large styrobox with ice and fish inside and a weighing scale. They stay in a specific area in the market. These vendors sells at the side of a street in town. It's not a major street though so only a few vehicle pass through this street.

What I also love about buying from these vendors is that they sell their goods at a lower price. Maybe because they don't have to pay for a monthly rent of the space. A 20 pesos (0.36$) or 10 pesos (0.18$) difference in the price is already a good savings for me.

At least there are three to four of these vendors that offer a variety of fish products. Sometimes, they sell seashells like mussels which is my favorite and other seafood like squid or crabs.

Since mussels is my favorite and this is not always available in the market, I always buy some when it's available. This time I bought half a kilo which costs 60 pesos (1.09$).
My children don't eat this so the reason I only buy a small amount.

When these vendors are not in the market, they usually go around the barangays from house to house to sell their products. They would blow a bodjong (large shell that will produce sound when blown) to inform community that fish is available.

I went home with a bunch of mussels to cook. I immediately cooked it for our dinner while it's still fresh.

Yum! Always my favorite.

That's it for my #marketfriday experience. Do you have the same fish vendors too?

If you love to share you market experiences too, check this post by @dswigle.

Thank you for reading. Have a great weekend!