Kinilaw

I will be sharing with you a dish called kinilaw. From the root word “kilaw” meaning “eaten fresh”, this dish refers to a type of dish where raw meat or fish is prepared in acidic marinade of fruit juices or vinegar and then consumed without passing through heat. This is considered as an appetizer, but is commonly used as side dish during beer-drinking sessions (referred to as “pulutan”).

Now, if you’re familiar with ‘ceviche’ (a seafood dish popular in the Pacific coastal regions of Latin America) then kinilaw is very similar to this. The difference is that the ‘ceviche’ is soaked in citrus juices, while kinilaw is rather soaked in vinegar.

There are many ways or serving kinilaw, but a common way of serving it in the islands of Visayas and Mindanao is sinuglaw, which combines fish kinilaw (usually tuna) and charcoal-grilled pork belly (sinugba).

Personally, aside from using as side dish during pulutan, I love to eat this during beach outing. Aside from it is EASY to prepare and it doesn’t involve cooking at all; the ‘fishiness’ of the dish, the mix of flavors, and the transformation when you see the fish change from translucent pink to opaque white complements the sea vibes when you go beach outing. Be sure never to miss this dish the next you go beach outing.