Ginataang Canned Mackerel is a very humble dish. It is one way to impress your love ones with a simple canned mackerel. All you need to add is the creamy coconut milk or kakang gata. Add a little of spice to give it a lovingly kick.
Canned fish are so boring to eat. It is a status symbol of a low budget meal. However, this simple canned fish is so handy and my go – to emergency food. Sometimes, a nice rainy day calls for this humble comfort food.
There are two type of canned fish in the Philippines, minus the tuna variants. The canned fish in tomato sauce and the canned fish in oil. If you are buying from a sari – sari store you would say the green or red for the canned fish in regular tomato sauce and in chili tomato sauce respectively, and the white for the canned fish in oil.
They are so simple that a squeezed of calamansi and sprinkle of salt is all you need and a hot steamed rice for a meal. However, why not try to impress you love ones? Ginataang Canned Mackerel would be a good choice if you love ginataan.
Tips
This dish is like cooking your regular fish ginataan. You are just using canned fish instead of fresh one. I prefer to slightly flake the fish using a wooden spoon but you can cook it the way it is. I just find it handy to eat.
In this recipe I added a tablespoon of cooked shrimp paste or bagoong alamang for its umami taste and added the salt at the end of the cooking process.
Another uncommon thing that you will find is the dried kamias or bilimbi fruit. It gives this dish a hint of tartness and it also counter balance the fish taste of the dish. I added it during the simmering step to bring out the flavor of the dried kamias.
You can substitute calamansi juice or even vinegar if you don’t have one. Or, you can totally eliminate it if you don’t want the tartness. However, the tartness also balances the richness of the coconut milk.
Some prefer their ginataan with white coconut milk sauce. If that is the case, simply reduce the broth of the canned fish until almost dry and then add the coconut milk. Just simmer it for few minutes before adding the other ingredients. In my case I prefer my ginataan a little bit dry until the coconut milk turned oily. I find it much flavorful.
You can check this out for other Canned Sardines or Canned Fish Recipe.
Ingredients
| 3 Tablespoons | Olive Oil |
| 1 head | Garlic, finely chopped |
| 1 bulb | Onion, finely chopped |
| 1 Tablespoon | Shrimp Paste or Bagoong Alamang |
| 2 cans | 425 grams Canned Mackerel in Oil |
| 20 pieces | Dried Bilimbi Furit or Kamias |
| 1 cup | Thick Coconut Milk or Kakang Gata |
| 1 cup | Malunggay Leaves |
| Salt | |
| Ground Black Pepper | |
| Chili |
Procedure
Sauté garlic, onion and shrimp paste in olive oil.
Add the canned mackerels and dried kamias. Boil and simmer until the broth is reduced to half
Pour in the coconut milk and further reduce the sauce until almost dry.
Add the malunggay leaves and season with salt, pepper and chili.
Ginataang Canned Mackerel
Ingredients
- 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
- 1 head Garlic, finely chopped
- 1 bulb Onion, finely chopped
- 1 Tablespoon Shrimp Paste or Bagoong Alamang
- 2 cans 425 grams Canned Mackerel in Oil
- 20 pieces Dried Bilimbi Fruit or Kamias
- 1 cup Thick Coconut Milk or Kakang Gata
- 1 cup Malunggay Leaves
- Salt
- Ground Black Pepper
- Chili
Instructions
- Sauté garlic, onion and shrimp paste in olive oil.
- Add the canned mackerels and dried kamias. Boil and simmer until the broth is reduced to half.
- Pour in the coconut milk and further reduce the sauce until almost dry.
- Add the malunggay leaves and season with salt, pepper and chili.
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