As you all know, fermentation helps break down nutrients in the food to make them easier to digest than its unfermented counterparts. Fermented foods are rich in probiotic bacteria. If you consume fermented foods it will add beneficial bacteria and enzymes to your overall intestinal flora and increase your health. On the other, fish are also rich in nutrients. In many parts of the world especially in Asia, fermented foods are very popular and are liked by people so widely that they use them in their daily diet. In a developing country like the Philippines, many food products are known not only for their flavour but also for their processing methods. One such popular dish is BurongIsda which is prepared from fermented fish. It is not only very delicious but also contains many health benefits.
This article will focus on BurongIsda and the health benefits of BurongIsda so that you can know if this fermented fish is beneficial for you or not.
What is BurongIsda?
BurongIsda is known as pickled fish. It is a Filipino dish that consists of cooked rice and raw filleted fish fermented with salt and angkak which means red yeast rice. Its place of origin was the Philippines. It is a common dish in Central Luzon. BurongIsda variants are generally named after the fish from which they are made. For example, Burongbangus for burongisda made with bangus. Burongisda is so much similar to other fermented fish and rice dishes of Asia like narezushi of Japanese cuisine and pla ra of Thai cuisine. All of these fermented dishes depend on lactic acid fermentation to preserve the food.
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It is generally prepared using freshwater fish and during fermentation flesh of the fish becomes very soft and the bones acquire the characteristics of the softness of cartilage when cooked. Then it is fried in oil, garlic and onion before serving. Like balaobalao, it is taken either as a main dish or an appetizer. It is available in two forms depending on the preference of consumers in a particular area. One is white BurongIsda which has a natural product colour while the other is red BurongIsda which is coloured by angkak or anka.
How to prepare BurongIsda?
The method of preparing BurongIsda is similar to balaobalao. The fish is firstly scaled, eviscerated and filleted then it is mixed with salt. After that, it is allowed to stand overnight before mixing with cooled cooked rice. Fermentation is also taken out for 7 to 10 days at room temperature.
Health benefits of BurongIsda
BurongIsda is a fermented fish. Now there are many benefits of fermented foods. Here are some of the benefits which you will get from fermented fish that are mentioned below:
- Fermentation increases levels and bioavailability of some nutritions like zinc, magnesium and Vitamin B.
- It reduces anti-nutrients like phytates which interfere with the absorption of minerals and other unwanted compounds like natural toxins in food.
- It reduces lactose in dairy products so that it makes them easier for some people to tolerate.
- Some fermented foods also introduce microorganisms into the gut which may help maintain a healthy digestive system.
- By-products created by them include bioactive peptides which may have a beneficial effect on blood pressure, cholesterol, immunity and cancer prevention.
- Bioactive compounds may also have beneficial effects on our brains.
- Fermentation causes the fish protein to break down so that it can make antioxidants available and this could help lower blood pressure and stimulate the immune system and control blood sugar.
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The final words
BurongIsda is a traditional fermented fish product in the Philippines that is similar to nare sushi of Japan. It was previously consumed as a condiment but now this is the main dish because of its economic conditions. There are many kinds of BurongIsda sold in the market and each is named for the kind of fish used. This fermented fish and rice are well known for their characteristic flavour and it’s health benefits. So this was all about BurongIsda which you can also consume to get its benefits to your body. I hope this article is sufficient enough to tell you the health benefits of BurongIsda .
