Homemade Tinapa ( Smoked Fish without a Smoker )

        Tinapa is Smoked Fish of any variety. Usually sold in public markets are varieties of small fish, sardines, milkfish and round scad. I can almost guarantee that most of my countrymen are not aware that an appliance such as a smoker exists. Not because we might have no use for them but because there is no demand, so manufacturers don't sell any of them here in my country. Besides, smoked fish can be bought for cheap and is readily available all over the country.

     Last April, I searched the local classifieds for smoking machines or home smokers and found industrial sized appliances. After which, I scoured the internet for smoking recipes. There were tons with video instructions using a smoker and a grill but I searched for a tutorial on home smoking without the equipment. And luckily, I found one! The reason I knew something like this was out there was, I read my mom's vintage recipe book which simply asked for teabags and rice. 

        If you have a smoker at home, by all means use it. I did mine prepper style; meaning can-do without the equipment. The result was okay, I guess because I ate everything in 2 meals, tops.

    Tinapa is usually served for breakfast with sliced salted eggs and onions as accompaniment. It's other more commercial use is for Pancit Palabok as topping and flavoring. I have seen featured on tv, factories producing tinapa flakes specifically for this purpose.

Tinapa with salted eggs and onions

        For our dish today, I used small, bony fish called Tamban, but any small fish will do. Should you wish to use milkfish, it is best to debone it first by cutting it open along the length of its back. I will simply upload a video of how this is done because its hard to simply write about it.

         Tinapa by the way is a Tagalog term, tapa being the root word, means 'smoked anything', Tinapa therefore means anything prepared by smoking, though fish will first come to mind. To clear some confusion, Tinapa for the Cebuano-speaking Pinoys mean the canned sardines in tomato sauce. And these same people name the Tinapa, tinap-anan.

Let's make Tinapa! 

INGREDIENTS:

1 pound small to medium sized fish, (do not remove scales!)
salt
2-3 unused teabags, regular or flavored
1 cup uncooked rice
a sprig of rosemary
some orange peel or any fragrant herb

PROCEDURE:

Fish in Brine

1. Clean the fish of entrails, wash thoroughly. Prepare a brine solution of 1:9 salt to water. Example: 1 cup salt to 9 cups water. Immerse cleaned fish for 40 minutes to 1 hour. Drain on a rack.

2. Steam for 35-40 minutes. Cool. Arrange fish on a rack and let drip dry.

Steamed Fish

3. Get a deep wok. Cover with foil paper. Place rice granules in the center, open the teabags and empty contents on top of the rice. Add your rosemary and other herbs you might want to add. Stir with a spoon to thoroughly mix. Place the rack of fish on top. Cover.

rice and tea

4. Turn the heat on medium to medium high and allow the smoke to rise from the combination of dry grains and teabags. Smoke the fish covered for 35-40 minutes or until the fish has turned a lovely smokey brown shade. Turn off heat. Serve the fish hot off the smoker or you may want to keep some for later use. 

Tinapa at Itlog Maalat na Salad for Breakfast

NOTE: If you can find salted eggs, 1 piece will do. In the Philippines, salted eggs are made from duck's eggs and they are tinted purple. Peel the salted egg and slice into wedges and place on a saucer. Slice a piece of red onion and  add to the salted eggs for a perfect accompaniment to smoked fish and rice. Salted eggs is called Itlog Maalat  ( Itlog is egg and maalat means salty )

Itlog Maalat

Hope you liked this post. I just wanted to demonstrate that anything is possible, even without fancy equipment. Besides, when times should call for making things work, moms need to do a MacGyver, huh.