Grow Your Own is now a twice-a-month blogging event, and celebrates the foods we grow or raise ourselves and the dishes we make using our homegrown products. This edition is hosted by Bee of Jugalbandi.

I used tilapia heads for this sinigang and kamias as the souring agent instead of the usual sampaloc. We have a kamias (bilimbi) tree that bears fruit profusely when in season. Coupled to that are young leaves from the birds’ eye chili (talbos ng sili) which is commonly added to tinola – a type of ginger-based soup.

In this case, I used kamias and talbos ng sili to make sinigang, this time a sour soup similar to the Thai tomyam soup minus the spicy flavor. Rather, it’s more like a blending of sourness and saltiness. Meat or seafood can be used and vegetables such as tomatoes, long beans, taro, egg plant and water spinach are the ingredients. The souring agent is commonly tamarind but other alternatives are ripe guava, kamias, or kalamansi.

In a pot, bring to a boil 2 cups of water. Add 2-3 chopped tomatoes and about 5 large kamias (also chopped). Add 1 tbsp patis. Simmer till tomatoes and kamias are tender. Mash some of the kamias on the side of the pot to release the sourness. Add 3-4 tilapia heads and 2 pcs of siling haba. Cook until tilapia is done. Taste for saltiness and sourness and adjust according to your taste. Add a cup of talbos ng sili, cover the pot for a minute or two then serve immediately.

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