Comments on: Dapa (Flatfish/Flounder/Sole)

By: angelo

angelo — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 16:20:30 +0000

hey, im interested where in the philippine islands do they get this kind of fish? tnx email me.

By: lui

lui — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 20:48:24 +0000

the smaller dapa ( 4-5 inches in lenght) is much tender and tastier than large ones. cooked whole as sinuam sa dahong sili or paksiw (lots of garlic and a tbsp of oil) , it goes very well with steamed rice and patis. tinganing-nganing…… memories of Nanay and childhood.

By: chris

chris — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 06:03:39 +0000

hi mr. mm. i should have read this blog before the christmas of 2008. i bought dapa at shopwise alabang and had it filleted. not a good place to shop for fresh fish but its last minute shopping for christmas eve dinner. anyways, i made a casserole with cream and mushroom. i must admit, it was a disappointing dish. it still smelled very fishy even if i’ve marinated it in lemon juice, pepper and salt. hay naku, i should have paid attention to my mom’s cooking when i was younger… thanks anyway for the post, i’ll give dapa another try, and maybe, buy from a real fresh market.

By: marissewalangkaparis

marissewalangkaparis — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 11:28:35 +0000

Hahahahaha MM…I was laughing at your comment about the left and right sided eyes. I was always familiar with these since my Mom would buy them when I was young(haaaayyyy sooolong ago) and they always fascinated me. I just didn’t know there was right and left. Such a laugh.I love your post!!!!
Yeah,wonder if we stayed on our tummy…if our eyes would all go to the right…or left.Harhar harr…

By: Johan

Johan — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 17:10:39 +0000

By the way, they have the smaller cousins with lighter brown and with spots , I heard they are tastier!!!

By: Johan

Johan — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 17:08:55 +0000

Well that looks like the common Indian Halibut or Pseutodes Erumei, in Australia they are Queensland Halibut. Tasty fish when fried.
Regarding the left eye, they are the most common but they do have the right eye. When I was in College, I was told that for every 1000 young left eye halibut , there will be one right eye halibut. In fact they are babies, they were normal like regular fish just like any proper fish look.As they grow older , they began to tilt , anti clock wise or clock wise direction ( But I forgot the which is which contribute to the left eye or right eye ). If I was not wrong most flat fish has similar kind of characteristics when they are young, like as if they were given a choice to go anticlock wise or clock wise. Weird !! but nature gives them the choice !! , anyway they are tasty fish.!!!

By: Marketman

Marketman — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 14:40:02 +0000

mar, if I am not mistaken, halibut is a cold water cousin among flatfishes, so it might be difficult to call dapa a halibut.

By: mar

mar — Sun, 01 Jun 2008 14:10:43 +0000

Thanks for the info, i was browsing the net for the right name of this fish i also bought in alabang market – 160=1 1/2 kilo (whole fish) i had no idea how it would be best cooked, it’s seems too late reading your blog for that lemon butter sauce, because the fish market man already prepared my fish-sliced (i thought of cooking it sinigang or pesa) well even with skin and bones on, i think it could still be cook the same.

I reckon, it would be best named as halibut rather than flounder or sole? (you think so?)

By: Bubut

Bubut — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 13:52:30 +0000

I heard a tale from my late Mom that this ‘dapa’ fish was
created during Jesus time at the miracle of multiplication of the bread. There are 3 loaves and 2 fishes that the boy gave. Jesus got only and a half of the fish to feed the crowd. The remaining half was thrown back to the river and swim. It was not in the Bible though or I’m not sure on where did she
got that story, but could be true.