Sardinia

               Sardinia is a place somewhere in Europe and tonight I celebrate that place by preparing mixed veggies with sardines!

                Well, it wasn’t really what I planned to prepare for dinner. I initially wanted to cook vegetable curry to appease my pride after that disastrous curry last Sunday, but after going over the coconut milk (yep, my curry last Sat didn’t have cocomilk) and canned peas selection in the hypermarket I thought it would be a good try if I use canned sardines with cocomilk instead of canned peas.

                When I was in my elementary years, my grandmother never failed to put sardines on the dinner table every week. The most popular brand then was 555. It’s got tomato sauce on it, and for me as just a kid, having canned sardines for any meal was a treat. Basically, though it’s notorious for being a poor man’s fish as what the 80’s movies would portray (the one starred by Tito, Vic, and Joey).

                Now going back to the meal, I first sautéed carrots, cauliflower, and potatoes in the oil that came from the sardines. Then, I added the sardines themselves. I didn’t add any more salt. My friend who came over to visit said it tasted good. It wasn’t bad looking either. My camera’s with my sister who’s en route to Hong Kong as I’m writing this, so I can’t take any pictures for now.

                I’m not really sure if sardines originated from Sardinia, but my meal had a Mediterranean feel and taste on it, so it’s just apt that I call my masterpiece for tonight as just plain Sardinia. And yes, I want to pay homage to the fish otherwise known as tinapa – a poor man’s fish.