Ginat-an nga Tilapia |Ginataang Tilapia

I remember were we used to go out for fishing with my friends here in Malogo River in Slay City and make a camp to catch Tilapia whics is abundant here locally. There are many ways to cook Tilapia like "Linagpang na Tilapia"  which is very popular pulutan of "manug-inom" here in our place.

Ginataan (or guinataan) is a Filipino cooking method that means “cooked in coconut milk”. Ginataang Tilapia is a dish where Tilapia (a fish belonging to the tilapiine cichlid tribe) is cooked in coconut milk (or cream) and served with banana peppers. This method is popularized by the Bicolanos, the fifth-largest Filipino ethnolinguistic group that lives in the southern islands of Luzon.

There are many other ingredients that can be cooked with Coconut milk but my taste buds are craving for Tilapia as of the moment. I can’t wait to put my hands on this yummy fish.




Ingredients:

2 lbs any variety of tilapia (or which ever availeble in your place), cleaned (about 1 kilo or 2 to 3 pcs)
3 cups coconut cream
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 bulb onion, finely sliced
1 knob ginger, cut into strips
1-2 banana pepper
1 tbsp. fish sauce (patis)
1 tbsp shrimp paste (bagoong)
¼ cup cooking oil
1 cup fresh spinach (or mustard leaves)


Directions:

Step 1: Sauté garlic, ginger, and onions in hot oil.

Step 2: Add the shrimp paste and fish sauce.

Step 3: Pour in the coconut cream and stir until natural oil from the coconut cream comes out.

Step 4: Add the banana pepper and simmer for 3 to 5 minutes.

Step 5: Lower the heat and add the tilapia and Simmer for 7 to 10 minutes.

Step 6: Add the spinach and simmer for about a minute (You can use Young Guaba leaves (Ugbos sang Bayabas) as susbtitute).


Step 7: Serve Hot. Enjoy!