Anything is bound to smell wonderful cooked in banana leaf. There is an earthiness there that you can never get from tin foil or wax/parchment paper. And banana leaf has antibacterial properties, too, especially that of Musa paradisiaca or the common cooking banana, which “showed highest activity against tested pathogens, particularly E. coli,” as per this study.
The fish “patty” pictured here was made by stuffing triangularly fashioned banana leaf (pre-seared to make it pliant) with lightly salted bolináw (baby anchovies), which were then cooked in their own juices (also with moisture from the leaf). It is what is also known as inún-unán, with (I guess) the leaf taking the place of vinegar as preservative. Also, wrapping the fish makes it easier to sell — at home, we usually just cook the fish in a pot.
It had been a long time since I ate bolináw prepared this way, and the first thing I noticed was how thin they had become — the patties, not the fish. At ₱5 a piece, you can’t expect much, of course. At least the fish remains top-notch; the other day, they came at ₱80 a kilo or half the usual price, which meant that everyone was getting sick of it — earlier in the season, ambulant vendors would only sell them by the tumbler.
Now I’m not much of an inún-unán person, but my father is, and this mode of preparation is right up his alley because he likes his with as little vinegar as possible. In fact, I joke that his inún-unán tastes like tinowa. Jenny refers to this minimalist version as lusbak. You know what I think, though? I think those patties are looking for a date with hot oil. Maybe I’ll get back to you on that one. If not, don’t ask.
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