Recipe: Sinaing na Tulingan
MANILA, Philippines — Tulingan is skipjack tuna, so it is very flavorful, and the white meat is solid when very fresh.
It is usually cooked by wrapping it in a piece of banana leaf with some condiments and then steaming it. Sinaing na Tulingan, or steamed skipjack tuna, is a favorite homecooked dish.
I found this recipe for Sinaing na Tulingan, which Chef Giney Villar shared with me several years ago, when I was still handling Flavors Magazine.
Sinaing na Tulingan
Ingredients:
10-12 pcs. fresh Tulingan fish, gutted and tail pulled out
3 tbsps. salt
12-15 pcs. dried kamias
1/2 kg. pork fat, skin on, cut into strips
Water
Banana leaves
Procedure:
1. Line the pot with banana leaves.
2. Sprinkle some salt on the fish and wrap each one with a strip of banana leaf.
3. Layer the wrapped Tulingan in the pot and alternate with pork fat and dried kamias.
4. Add water and the rest of the salt.
5. Cook over low heat until liquid is reduced and fish is cooked.
Note: Flavor is enhanced when reheated over a few days. Just add a little more water to cook until fish bones become tender and pork fat is almost fully rendered.
