Kinilnat

Vegetables blanched for seconds and dressed, not stewed -- a side, not a soup.

Not vegetarian — contains bagoong, a fermented fish or shrimp paste.

Ingredients

• 200 g string beans, in short lengths
• 200 g aubergine, in thick slices
• 150 g bitter melon, deseeded and sliced
• 150 g sweet potato leaves or spinach
• 1 tomato, chopped
• 1 onion, finely sliced
• 3 tablespoons bagoong isda
• 3 tablespoons calamansi juice
• 1 teaspoon salt, for the water

Method

1. THIS IS NOT A STEW AND NOT A SOUP. The vegetables are blanched for seconds each and then dressed, and it goes beside a grilled fish rather than in a bowl of its own.
2. Bring a pan of salted water to a rolling boil.
3. BLANCH EACH VEGETABLE SEPARATELY AND BRIEFLY, in this order, lifting each out before the next goes in: beans 2 minutes, aubergine 3, bitter melon 1, leaves 20 seconds. All in together and the leaves are sludge before the beans are done.
4. Spread them on a tray to stop cooking. Do not refresh them in cold water -- they should stay just warm.
5. Mash the bagoong with the calamansi, tomato and onion into a loose dressing.
6. Arrange the vegetables and spoon the dressing over. Serve warm, within the half hour: left to stand, the acid turns the greens drab.

Our own recipe. This one was written for this site rather than taken from anywhere, so there is no source to point you at. The quantities and the order of the steps are choices, not the only way to do it.

Filed under Philippines · All recipes