Ayungin Eaters
We always wanted a tamarind tree to prosper in our backyard. It never did. I must say, it is one of our true frustrations. My mother used to say that we just have to throw the tamarind seed, spitting it out from our mouth onto the ground after munching the flesh of the ripe fruit. Don’t bite hard or you might crack the seed, thereby leaving the pungent taste on your tongue. The seed that hits the ground will germinate — it never happened. We had papaya trees, rambutans, kamias, guyabano, and even banana trees but the tamarind was a desire. It was highly demanded in our household cooking, not only for “sinigang” but also for another native recipe called “pinangat”. In my younger years, our mornings were oftentimes greeted by women fish vendors going around. Our barrio happens to be near the Laguna de Bay and the connecting channels of the Pasig River. Two kinds of fish were always offered or sold by these ambulant sellers shouting the combination: “ayungin at biya” (silver perch & n