Catch of the day #2: a trip to the wet market for the first time in nearly 2 decades!

You read it right. Back when I was living in the Philippines many, many years ago, I avoided going with my mother to the wet market. The place has always been packed with people, noisy, hot, dirty, and smelled horrendous.

Nearly two decades later, everything I had feared about these types of places still hold true! But as a photographer and blogger, I have to force myself to go to places like these because of the many photo opps they provide.

Of course I still feel squeamish about going to the wet market with an expensive camera. And truth be told I was not able to take that many photographs since I was minding more what I was stepping on rather than what was in front of me. I am sure I will be able to master taking photographs in places like these later on.

And who would not feel squeamish at the sight of live fishes squirming and flapping their fins about! It can be quite a culture shock, but nevertheless reassuring because you know what you are getting is fresher than fresh (it's alive FFS).

Of course whenever my mom stopped to look at something I would point my camera somewhere and take a picture. And no visit to the wet market would be complete without a visit to the smoked fish section. The sight (not the smell!) of smoked fish glistening in the hot afternoon almost made the fish look as if they were made of gold.

So after a purchase of a couple of kilos of smoked fish (called "Tinapa" in the Philippines), me, my mother, brother, and sister-in-law made the rounds around this wet market by the river for the reason why we went here in the first place: CRABS!

 And unlike the crabs we buy in Norway which were caught from the sea and are already shelled, picked and packed in saran wrap when bought, the crabs we were after were fresh, live crabs caught in the Pampanga river, and two to three times larger than the crabs we are used to seeing in the western world. And even though we are in the Philippines, be warned: these crabs still cost a fortune!

So after purchasing about 3 kilograms of these delicacies we headed home, and my sister-in-law and I started to prepare what would be tonight's dinner. It's my first opportunity to make food again here in the Philippines (I've already been here 2 weeks), and my first time to make a proper meal eversince I started the move-out process in Norway many weeks ago. Judging from the result, I should make food more often!

I made crabs baked in Mornay sauce, a favorite of ours from The Red Crab restaurant in Clark Field (where crabs cost a whopping Php 2000 per kilogram). It was simple enough. I was afraid I would ruin the Mornay sauce (which is actually just Bechamel sauce with cheese), but with a little patience, and a LOT of whisking, it turned out to be very creamy and without lumps.

My sister-in-law made a more tradional asian dish: steamed crab with chili sauce. I didn't exactly figure out how she made it. I think she mixed hoisin and sweet chili sauce together with lots and lots of garlic and a handfull of spring onions. But both dishes tasted heavenly nonetheless, and the whole family had a very (cholesterol-rich) hearty meal.

Today had been a really exciting day, and cooking for the family felt more like a bonding ritual rather than a chore. I only wish I had more guts to roam the marketplace even more and take more strange and colorful pictures. But I am sure I will also get used to these types of environments eventually.

Until then, I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, and many sumptuous meals ahead!

June 8, 2013, Guagua Market, Pampanga, Philippines.