How about something a little bit exotic? Have you ever tried stingray? This Kinunot Na Pagi (Flaked Stingray in Coconut Cream) will surely give you a spicy and creamy kick to your meal.
Well, kinunot na pagi isn’t really that exotic since it is a commonly eaten dish in the Bicol region. Whether you miss eating this or you’re curious to try, we’ve got you covered.
In this recipe article, we will be sharing many things about the dish including tips on how to best cook it. I suggest you read through before jumping to the recipe.
What is Kinunot Na Pagi?
Kinunot Na Pagi directly translates to “flaked stingray”. It is a ginataan dish wherein the flaked stingray meat is cooked with coconut cream and spices. Others also call this Ginataang Pagi.
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Since it is Bicolano, you may see the dish’s resemblance in other dishes like Bicol Express and Laing.
The kinunot dish isn’t just exclusive to pagi or stingray. This cooking method can be also done with fish or with the equally exotic shark meat.
How to Remove the Stingray’s (Pagi) Smell?
If you ever get your hands on this type of meat, you’ll notice that it has a strong funky smell. You can minimize this smell by soaking the meat in water mixed with vinegar and ginger.
For this dish, we will be doing this by boiling the meat with the said solution. And at the same time, the meat will also tenderize and will be ready for flaking.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Stingray (Pagi)
Stingray and shark meat is commonly used for this dish. In case it is a challenge for you to find these types of meats, you can also use fish like tuna or tanigue.
Malunggay
Malunggay is a nutritious leaf that goes well with ginataan dishes. In case you don’t have this, you can also use kangkong leaves.
Aside from these, we will also be using other regular pantry ingredients like gata, vinegar, garlic, onion, salt, black pepper, chili, and ginger. If you are filling up your pantry, here’s a handy shopping guide:
Equipment You’ll Need
- Cooking Pot (Kaldero)- You will need a cooking pot or any deep pan or casserole to boil the pagi before cooking this dish.
- Cooking Pan (Kawali)- When the pagi is ready, you will cook it together with all the ingredients in a cooking pan or any similar pan or skillet.
In need of kitchen tools and equipment? Read this before you buy:
How to Cook Kinunot Na Pagi
Cooking kinunot na pagi isn’t as complicated as it appears. We can divide the cooking process into 3 simple parts.
The first part is where we boil the meat. The second part will be the flaking part. Lastly, we cook all the ingredients together in a cooking pot.
For the first part, we will combine the water, vinegar, and ginger and boil the stingray meat for a few minutes. This part will help remove the odor and cook and tenderize the meat.
For the second part, we will be using our hands to flake the meat apart. This is the “kinunot” part of the dish.
For the third and last part, we will be cooking the meat in a delectable coconut cream sauce. We do this by combining the first set of ingredients and simmer the meat with it. We will then add-in the rest of the ingredients towards the end of the cooking.
The key to a delicious kinunot dish is a creamy sauce. We have some tips for you below so you can achieve this also.
Cooking Tips
- We will be using kakang gata (coconut cream) and not coconut milk for this recipe. In case you confuse these two, see this article: Gata vs Kakang Gata.
- To achieve thick creamy sauce, avoid adding cornstarch. Instead, we will be adding more coconut cream towards the end of the cooking process
- Like most Bicolano dishes, we will be adding-in red and green chilis for that spicy kick. If you’re not into spicy food, simply reduce the amount in this recipe.
How to Serve Kinunot Na Pagi
Kinunot na pagi is best eaten with hot white steamed rice. Try having this with other seafood dishes like shrimps, crab, and squid.
I also recommend pairing this with a glass of cold soda.
Other Seafood Recipes
For a quick reference about this recipe, see the recipe table below:
Kinunot Na Pagi (Flaked Stingray in Coconut Cream) Recipe
Equipment
- Cooking Pot
- Cooking Pan
Ingredients
For Stingray Boiling
- 500 g (1.1 lbs) stingray (pagi) meat, head and tail removed
- 3 cups water
- 2 tbsp vinegar
- 1 pc thumb-sized ginger, sliced
For the Sauce
- 2 cups coconut cream (kakang gata)
- 1 pc large-sized onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 pc thumb-sized ginger, sliced
- 6 pcs long green chili (siling haba), sliced
- 2 pcs red chili (siling labuyo), sliced
- 1 bundle malunggay leaves, stems removed
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Place the stingray (pagi) in a cooking pot then add-in the water, vinegar, and ginger.
- Apply heat and let it boil for 5 to 10 minutes or until the meat can be easily flaked.
- Discard the liquid and flake the stingray (pagi) meat. Discard the stingray’s skin as well.
- In a cooking pot, add-in 1 cup of the coconut cream, together with the onion, garlic, ginger, salt, and black pepper.
- Apply heat and bring to a boil.
- Once boiling, lower the heat then add-in the flaked stingray meat and simmer for 15 minutes or until the sauce slightly thickens.
- Add-in the remaining 1 cup of the coconut cream together with the red and green chilis then simmer until thick.
- Stir-in the malunggay leaves and cook for another 1 to 2 minutes or until the leaves change in color.
- Remove from heat then transfer to a serving plate. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
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