Bandeng Cabut Duri Asap or smoked milkfish with bones is a traditional Indonesian fish product that came from the ways that people who live in coastal areas process milkfish. Milkfish is well known as a favorite fish in Indonesia but it has small bones that makes it difficult to eat and we have to be careful when we eat it.
People found a solution to remove the bones from the milkfish. They use tweezers to carefully take out the fine bones by hand. This way of removing bones became popular in Indonesia between the 1970s and 1990s in areas where people farm milkfish.
At the time people were already using smoke to preserve fish. This was a way that fishermen and people in coastal areas used to keep fish fresh before they had refrigerators. Smoking the milkfish keeps fresh the fish longer and it tastes a special smoky flavour and a firmer texture.
People started combining these two ways of preparing milkfish, which resulted in Bandeng Cabut Duri Asap. Smoked milkfish with the bones removed. This product became popular because it was easier to eat and more practical and it could be sold for a price.
Nowadays Bandeng Cabut Duri Asap is well known as a food from some coastal areas in Indonesia especially Sidoarjo, which is famous for its milkfish processing. Bandeng Cabut Duri Asap is often sold as a food that people buy as a souvenir or as a product, from a small business and it is also a ready-to-eat seafood dish.
Its really delicious when we eat it with rice, milkfish, clear spinach with Tempe or Tofu and sambal (chili sauce). I am grateful to be an Indonesian with rich of traditional food and culture.
Thank you all readers and I wish you have a great day, Stay Healthy and full of Happiness.
