Getting Started with this Bang Silog Idea
Alright, so I got this craving for bang silog the other day. You know, that Filipino breakfast thing. Seemed straightforward enough – fish, garlic rice, and an egg. How tough could that actually be? Famous last words, as usual when I get into the kitchen.
The Fishy Part – Dealing with the Bangus
First mission: the bangus, or milkfish. Headed to the Asian market. Saw a bunch of them lying there. Picked one that looked decent. Huge mistake. Turns out, what I grabbed was just a whole, unprepared fish. Not the nice, butterflied, marinated kind they usually use for ‘daing na bangus’. Nope. I was staring at this entire fish, scales and all, wondering where to even begin. Cleaning it and trying to butterfly it myself was… an ordeal. Let’s just say my cutting board will never be the same. Next time, I’m absolutely buying the pre-marinated, ready-to-fry stuff. No shame in my game there.
Then came the frying. Got the oil hot, slid the fish in. It splattered like crazy. Seriously, oil everywhere. My stove looked like it had been through a battle. But, hey, the smell wafting through the kitchen? Pretty darn good, I have to admit.
Garlic Rice – My Way, Sort Of
Okay, onto the ‘si’ part – sinangag, the garlic fried rice. People get real serious about this. You gotta use day-old rice, heaps of garlic, all that. Me? I just scooped out whatever leftover rice was sitting in the rice cooker from last night. Chopped up a good amount of garlic, maybe more than I should have. Tossed it in the pan with some oil, let it get a bit golden, then dumped the rice in. Gave it a good stir, broke up the clumps. My main advice: try not to burn the garlic. That smell is a nightmare to get rid of. Mine was teetering on the edge of too dark, but I rescued it just in time. Or so I tell myself.
The Egg – Can’t Really Mess This Up, Right?
And finally, the ‘log’ – the egg. Usually sunny-side up, that’s the tradition. I like mine with those crispy, lacy edges. Fired up a small pan, cracked an egg in. Sometimes it’s perfect, other times the yolk decides to break on me just for kicks. This time? It came out okay. A bit runny, just how I prefer it. It’s an egg. Pretty hard to totally ruin an egg, even for me.
Putting It All Together on the Plate
So, there I had it. My hard-won fried bangus, my questionable garlic rice, and a perfectly acceptable fried egg. Scooped everything onto a plate. Didn’t look like something out of a food magazine, that’s for sure. It was a bit rustic, a bit messy. But it was my bang silog, made with my own two hands and a fair bit of effort.
- The Bangus (definitely the most drama)
- The Sinangag (could’ve been worse)
- The Itlog (the reliable part)
So, Was It Worth the Hassle?
You know what? Yeah, it actually was. Despite the fish saga and the almost-burnt garlic, it tasted pretty good. It’s a solid, filling meal, I’ll give it that. Would I go through the whole process again? Probably. But you can bet I’m buying that easy-to-cook bangus next time. Life’s just too short to be wrestling a whole milkfish before breakfast. This cooking stuff, it’s always a bit of an adventure, isn’t it? You give it a shot, you make a few blunders, you learn something, and then you eat your mistakes. That’s the real home cooking experience right there.
