I was in the market the other weekend and spotted the loveliest looking little fish. Their smooth bodies, no bigger than my finger, were translucent white with a shiny silver stripe down its length. They were plump and clear-eyed and fresh and absolutely tempting. These little fish are called dilis in our local vernacular and, to the best of my knowledge, are some sort of anchovy. Dilis are relatively inexpensive and, really, quite an ordinary-joe type fish in these parts. They are delicious though. Usually served deep-fried or in a kilawin (what is essentially our local ceviche of sorts – fish ‘cooked’ in an acid, usually vinegar or citrus juice). What I’ve done here is try to replicate a Spanish version of our beloved kilawin called boquerones en vinagre. Boquerones are sometimes referred to as white anchovies, and, although I haven’t a clue what the exact relation is to our dilis, they seem to be in the same family. So, that, along with some advice from friends and family, was enough to make me attempt one of my most favorite Spanish tapas of all time. I have no set recipe as of yet, since this was my first go at it, but I will share my method and findings since many many have been asking after this photo on Instagram.
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