Milk Fish

My dearest Adia,

We should be thankful for living in Indonesia, an archipelago tropical country where (food) resources are plentiful (though sadly there are still many people “lacking” access to the resources). I’d like to share about the Milk fish (not about fish made out of milk), as we called Bandeng in bahasa.

Milk fish is one amazing species. It is popularly farmed at coastal area and you can easily found in traditional and modern markets. It is kinda cheap thus becoming one of the most popular protein source for the people. The price is affordable (around IDR 25k-40k per KG in 2019), much lower than “fancy” or imported fish (like salmon) while the nutrition content may be similar. Some fancy and rare fish species may be gone (extinct) when you’re older but I think milk fish is still around for the next century.

Milk fish has a round thick body with good meat ratio. Its meat has a soft-milky texture and strong flavor. It is rich in nutrients such as protein, calcium, phosporus, zinc, retinol, vitamin A, vitamin B1, vitamin C, and caroten. I’d say it’s like the “local” salmon, with much lower price (1/10 the price of salmon). The only “challenge” in turning this fish into an awesome meal is the numerous small bones like thorns in its meat. The “easy” way to prevent the bones from stuck in your throat is to tenderize it by pressure cooker (or you can manually de-bone it).

It is one of my favorite fish. I’d pick this one over salmon, not just because it’s cheaper but I can get milkfish from almost anywhere fresh (not frozen like the imported salmon). It also tastes delicious and can be used in various menus like fishcakes or batagor.

Happy cooking my dear!

Love,

Abah.