Tips when buying fish, a short list.

And tips when buying processed food products.

Dr Abe V Rotor
Living with Nature School on Blog

Paaralang Bayan sa Himpapawid with Ms Melly C Tenorio
738 DZRB AM Band, 8 to 9 evening class, Monday to Friday

Bangus milkfish – Choose one with fat belly, one-kilo size is best.  If the lower tail fin is slightly shorter than the upper one, it could be the famous Bonoan (Dagupan) bangus. 

·         Tilapia – Get those with thick and supple body. Three pieces to a kilo is best. 

·         Catfish (hito) – Always buy the fish live.  Yellowish belly means it is fat.

·       Mudfish or snakehead (dalag) – Always buy it live.  Yellow to bright orange belly means it is fat, and the female may be carrying eggs.

Tilapia 

·      Carp – Sometimes called Imelda, the head is fat and fleshy. When buying the chopped fish, get the head and middle part.

·        Crab (Alimango) – Female crabs even if they are more expensive make the best buy. They have more fat (aligi) especially during New Moon than the males. This is true with talangka or freshwater crabs, shrimps, lobsters and crayfish.

·       Prawn – Freshly caught prawns are translucent. Reject if the head or cephalothorax is discolored, all the more if it is severed, and unpleasant odor detected.

·         Green mussels (tahong) – Pry open and see if it is fatty. It must have a clean, fresh smell.  Reject if it emits even the slightest foul or oil odor.

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Take heed of the Red Tide warning of the Department of Health. Red Tide is a natural phenomenon that occurs in summer and at the onset of the rainy season. During this period dinoflagellates build in enormous population in estuaries, coves and harbors. Shellfish particularly tahong, experience luxury feeding, storing high level of Paralytic Shellfish Poison (PSP) in their body. 

PSP as the name implies, causes paralysis which may be irreversible - and even death. Other marine food to avoid are oysters, halaan, shrimps, crabs, and squid.  

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------·         Marine fish – Dynamited fish invariably have eyes, abdomen, scale and flesh battered by the blast.  Report to nearest authority the presence of such fish.

·         Anchovies – It has a very short shelf life, and must be preserved in ice. Many people eat it raw (kilawin) when newly caught, with ginger, onion, and tomato. The best recipes are tamales (wrapped in banana leaves with ginger and salt), and torta (fried with egg). Anchovies are made into dilis and fishmeal.    

And remember these tips when buying processed food products.

·         Bagoong – Genuine patis is clear, golden in color, and forms the top layer, while the bagoong occupies the rest of the bottle. If mixed or it forms a layer at the middle or at the bottom, the bagoong is unseasoned, or adulterated, or both.

·         Honeybee – It should not solidify into crusty sugar in the refrigerator.  If it does, it is diluted and adulterated with sugar.

·         Vegetable oil – A trace of rancidity is clear indication it is no longer fit for human consumption.  Any food that has the slightest rancid taste and smell must be avoided.  

·         Peanut butter – Caution: Usually broken and inferior peanut is ground into peanut butter; healthy seeds are sold a whole peanut. Thus, peanut butter contains higher levels of aflatoxin, a carcinogenic substance formed by Aspergillus flavus. 

        Cassava cake - Caution (specially to children) must be exercised because of the natural cyanide content in cassava. Be sure the cake was prepared from fresh tuber of the the right variety and age of the cassava crop. 

         Canned food - Look for the date of manufacture and expiration. If you can't locate, or the printing is illegible or tampered, don't take the risk, even at a bargain price. Reject if can or package is swollen or deformed.  ~

Please share these tips with your family, friends and community.