Chicken Binakol
What is Binakol?
Binakol is a Filipino chicken soup made with grated coconut, green papaya (also known as chayote), leafy vegetables, garlic, onion, ginger, lemongrass, and patis (fish sauce). Chilis can also be used to spice it up. Binakol can be prepared with a variety of meats and shellfish. Traditionally, it was cooked in bamboo tubes or on halved coconut shells. The dish comes from the Western Visayas, specifically Aklan province.
The dish is identical to tinola and ginataang manok, except that instead of coconut water, the latter two utilize water and coconut milk, respectively.
Ingredients Required for Binakol Cooking
Chicken– For a more delicious broth, use bone-in chicken chunks. If native chicken is available, use it because it has a stronger taste and less fat.
Coconut– Choose a young coconut since it contains more water and the meat is soft. If you can’t find fresh coconut, substitute 4 cups coconut water and 1 cup frozen coconut meat.
Chayote or Green Papaya– Use whatever you have on hand, whether it’s chayote or green papaya.
Chili leaves– Malunggay, spinach, or even pechay might be used instead of chili leaves.
Green Chilis- If green chilies aren’t available, Thai chili peppers can be substituted.
Lemongrass, also known as tanglad, gives the dish a crisp, lemony scent and flavor.
Ginger lends the meal a somewhat spicy and peppery flavor.
Cooking Tips
If you don’t want to go through the trouble of shredding the coconut meat, simply chop it into chunks.
To cook evenly, cut the chayote or green papaya into uniform pieces. To speed up the cooking process, cut them into bite-size pieces.
The quickest technique to peel ginger is with a little spoon, believe it or not. Simply scrape the skin with the spoon’s edge, and you’ll be shocked at how easy the skin comes off!
Chicken Binakol
Equipment
- 1 Pot
- 1 Knife
- 1 Spoon
- 1 Chopping Board
- 1 Shredder
- 1 Gas Range
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons cooking oil
- 2 cloves garlic peeled & minced
- 1 medium white onion peeled & chopped
- 3 thumbs ginger peeled & sliced
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 pounds chicken various parts cut into serving size
- 2 cups water
- 2 whole stalks lemongrass
- 1 whole fresh coconut water reserved, and meat shredded into strips or chunks
- 1 medium green papaya or chayote peeled and cubed
- 2 pcs green chilis
- 2 cups chili leaves
Instructions
- Lemongrass root should be removed. Fold and wrap the leaves around the stalks after crushing the white area with the back of a knife. Place aside.
- Sauté ginger, onion, and garlic in oil in a saucepan over medium-low heat until limp and aromatic.
- Stir in the chicken pieces to coat them in oil. Add the fish sauce last. Cover and cook for 5 minutes on low heat. The chicken will normally release juices and some fat.
- Add the lemongrass and the water. Bring the water to a boil. Using a spoon or skimmer, skim the scum from the broth.
- Bring to a boil again with the coconut water. Reduce the heat and cover the saucepan once it has reached a boil. Allow for 25-30 minutes of simmering time.
- Season with ground pepper and extra fish sauce or salt if needed after adding the chayote or green papaya, green chilis, and coconut meat. Allow for 5 minutes of cooking time.
- Finally, add the chili leaves and continue to cook for another minute. Remove from heat and serve.
Basically, I want it to be on the main page where all of my posts go but then I also want to be able to put it on a separate page of my blog dedicated to only that subject. Hopefully this makes sense!.