dalag/attasi/burikaw/buntiek (mudfish, snakefish)

Mud fish is so common a freshwater fish in the Philippines you can find it everywhere in creeks, rivers, lagoons, lakes or in small and big irrigation canals and in the muddy fields and ponds. And it has quite a share of names, aside form the generic dalag, in Cagayan it's generally called attasi. While in some places, it has a name according to its size or growth. It's called burikaw when it's quite that big, and buntiek when it's small.

And there's a variety of ways and means you can prepare a sumptuous dalag dish. It's commonly cooked sinigang or paksiw a dalag, (or pesang dalag, as the Tagalog prefer) soured with any agent preferred (young tamarind fruit/flowers/shoots, pias, green mango, tomatoes, or vinegar) with soup or stewed dry. It's also great when grilled/broiled (tinuno/inasar/pinulpogan) to consume as is or made into a tinenneb, broiled mud fish poured in with hot water and then soured with crushed young tamarind fruit or with sliced tomatoes, garnished with sliced onions, and swpiced with hot chilis.  Or even baked. Or fried. Or made into a buro, pickled with rice.

Paksiw a dalag.

Tinuno a dalag.

Baked dalag.