My mother came to visit us last Friday and one of the things she brought for us was a Tupperwareful of cooked puffer fish or loko-loko as we call them in Bantayan. The last time I ate this dish was in 1990s. I was still in college then. To say that I terribly missed eating loko-loko is an understatement. My first mouthful of the round fish is akin to the experience of a vegetarian convert who ate meat for the first time after decades of meatless sustenance. Okay, I'm a bit exaggerating here but I must tell you that my first time to eat loko-loko in such a very long time was a gastronomic delight.
Anyway, lets go back to puffer fish. Many lives were snatched by eating this fish. I don't quite know if its because those hapless souls ate the wrong type of puffer fish, or its because the fish they ate was not cooked well, or its because its just their time to die. But there's just one thing I'm most sure of, loko-loko is one the most tastiest fish I've ever eaten in my entire life. When I was a lot younger, my mother would always cook them with a bunch of libas leaves and a small knot of lemongrass. The most delicious part of this fish is its huge liver. Why a small fish like loko-loko would need a huge liver for its size is something that has always baffled me in the past. Maybe there's an evolutionary purpose to that. Whatever its cause, I am most thankful that loko-loko is made that way. People are putting their lives at risk everytime they eat this notorious fish. It's also one reason why my prayers have always been intense whenever I eat loko-loko. (Photo courtesy of Ryann Garcia.)
Anyway, lets go back to puffer fish. Many lives were snatched by eating this fish. I don't quite know if its because those hapless souls ate the wrong type of puffer fish, or its because the fish they ate was not cooked well, or its because its just their time to die. But there's just one thing I'm most sure of, loko-loko is one the most tastiest fish I've ever eaten in my entire life. When I was a lot younger, my mother would always cook them with a bunch of libas leaves and a small knot of lemongrass. The most delicious part of this fish is its huge liver. Why a small fish like loko-loko would need a huge liver for its size is something that has always baffled me in the past. Maybe there's an evolutionary purpose to that. Whatever its cause, I am most thankful that loko-loko is made that way. People are putting their lives at risk everytime they eat this notorious fish. It's also one reason why my prayers have always been intense whenever I eat loko-loko. (Photo courtesy of Ryann Garcia.)
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