Nilarang bakasi or sour eel coconut stew at Six Sisters, Bohol

There’s something about the tender meat of eel in coconut soup that makes it just right. To be honest anything cooked in coconut milk is a must-try, but add seafood and even a bit of spice or heat and you’re good to go.

Nilarang bakasi or sour eel coconut stew is a delicious concoction in the Visayas, particularly Cebu, Bohol, and many coastal towns in the area. Although it made its “debut” on Netflix in a documentary called “Street Food,” this was always a beloved dish in the region. The episode highlights the Nilarang Bakasi of 71-year-old Florencio “Entoy” Escabas who runs Entoy’s Bakasihan, a karinderia in Cordova, Cebu. Articles tend to liken nilarang to the northern Sinigang, which is also a sour stew. I wonder though if it’s more like a coconut-based seafood stew from Bicol. But to each their own.

The Nilarang Bakasi we had is from Six Sister’s karinderia in Tagbilaran, Bohol. The restaurant was once a smaller eatery like many others in the city, but it began to grow as its delicious dishes including their Nilarang Bakasi attracted more and more people.

Their recipe includes red bell peppers, onions, tausi or fermented black beans, coconut milk, and reef eel, which I guess is no different from the recipe found in Cordova. We also had kinilaw, pinakbet, and tinunuan na utan or vegetable coconut stew. Whenever I’m in Bohol to visit family I always try to stop by the karinderia to get kinilaw and other local dishes you can’t get as fresh or readily available in Manila.

Six Sisters expanded to a bigger space near its original location, which by the time lunch rolls around is full of people, employees on their lunch break and tourists too at times.

To get there simply hail a tricycle driver from anywhere in Tagbilaran and ask for Six Sisters karinderia.