If my father were still here, I would cook this pesang salmon belly with sotanghon for him. This is a recipe that I make again and again for my family. Cooking pesang isda (fish) is often on my menu. Some things I learned from my late father Gualberto Besa will stay with me forever. He always believed in the benefits of eating fish several times a week, if not almost daily. And he made sure that was instilled in me since I was a child.
What is Pesang Fish?
Pesang Salmon Belly with Sotanghon is a one-pot fish stew made from slices of salmon belly cooked in a clear broth with ginger, onions, garlic and patis (fish sauce). While cooking continues, you can add vegetables such as potatoes, bok choy or preferably leafy greens. To finish, I added sotanghon noodles, which extends a meal, but the silky noodles add depth of flavor to the entrée.
My Pampanga culinary friend and food anthropologist Karen Shih, quoting Filipino food historian Doreen Gamboa Fernandez (who in turn quoted Gloria Chan-Yap), reminded me that the word “pesa” comes from Hokkien, meaning “simply cooked,” and is used only in reference to cooking fish. The full term in Hokkien is peq + sa + hi, with the last morpheme meaning “fish”. In some households, pesang isda (fish pesa) must be accompanied by the traditional Kapampangan tiltilan or sawsawan (side dipping sauce) made of garlic, crushed tomatoes, pureed tauri (fermented tofu) and water – all sautéed in cooking oil.
What goes into a pesang salmon recipe?
For this recipe I went to the Asian market to specifically buy the salmon belly. And as I often remind my friends; It is best to prepare fish and seafood on the day you buy it. As soon as we got home from the market, I prepared my ingredients, which was just a short list.
- Salmon belly
- Onions
- Ginger
- Garlic
- potatoes
- Tomatoes
- Chinese Pechay or Bok Choi
- Fish tofu, fried (store bought)
- broth
- Sotanghon (cellophane noodles)
- Patis (fish sauce)
Why use salmon belly?
Salmon belly contains more fat. There are streaks of fat underneath that give the stew a special depth. Some fishmongers cut off this fat. It’s good to add it to the salmon as it adds that delicious flavor and softer fishy texture to the entire simmering stew pot of soup.
Order salmon belly with sotanghon
Pesang Salmon Belly with Sotanghon is a Filipino fish stew cooked in clear ginger broth and simmered with tomatoes, onions, sotanghon noodles and spices. The delicate ginger aroma mixed with patis (fish sauce) is the perfect base for a favorite fish – salmon belly. This is a recipe by Elizabeth Ann Quirino for ArticleSubmission.news.
Servings: 2 People
Calories: 1kcal
- 1 pound Salmon belly, cut into 10 cm thick slices
- 6 to 8 ounces Sotanghon noodles
- 1 tablespoon Lemon or calamansi juice
- 2 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 quite medium white or yellow onion, chopped
- 2 cloves Garlic, peeled, chopped
- 1 Knob (1 inch disk) fresh ginger, peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 quite Tomatoes, sliced
- 1 tablespoon Patis (fish sauce)
- 6 cups vegetable broth (or water)
- 2 quite Potatoes, peeled, quartered
- 1 quite fresh bok choy, cut into 3-inch pieces
- 4 to 6 pieces store-bought fish and tofu squares
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Prepare the salmon belly and sotanghon noodles
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Cut a long strip of salmon belly into 10cm pieces.In a large bowl, marinate the salmon with lemon or calamansi juice for 20 to 30 minutes (but no longer).Set aside.
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In a medium bowl filled with water, soak the sotanghon (cellophane noodles) until soft, about 30 minutes. When the noodles are soft, drain the water.Set noodles aside.
How to prepare Pesang salmon belly:
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In a large soup pot over medium heat, add the oil.When the oil is hot enough, sauté the onions, garlic, and ginger until fragrant and the onions are soft, about 2 minutes.Add the tomatoes. Pour the patis. Combine well.
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Pour in the broth (or water). Add the salmon belly pieces to the soup pot.Add the potatoes. Cover and simmer until salmon and potatoes are cooked through, about 15 to 18 minutes.Add the sotanghon noodles.Add bok choy and fish tofu. Season with salt and black pepper.Cook for another 5 minutes until the bok choy becomes soft.Serve warm with steamed rice.
Cook’s comments:
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To store: If there are any leftovers, store them in a covered container and refrigerate. It will keep in the fridge for 2 days.This is a forgiving fish stew. Depending on the season, you can add other leafy greens or vegetables and simmer them together with the salmon belly. If salmon belly is not available, you can use wild-caught salmon fillets.
Portion: 100grams | Calories: 1kcal | Carbohydrates: 0.2G | Protein: 0.03G | Fat: 0.01G | Saturated fat: 0.01G | Sodium: 581mg | Potassium: 3mg | Fiber: 0.1G | Vitamin A: 1IU | Calcium: 1mg | Iron: 0.03mg
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