Of Tinola

Tinola without the green leafy vegetables

When I was a teenager, I read one of the most famous novels in the Philippines: Noli Me Tangere by J.P. Rizal. Of all the scenes in the book, the one that would never leave my mind in that of a dinner party where they served, what I now call a very historical, tinola. Apparently this easy soup based dish used to be the ultimate party food of the 19th century. Like most kids born in the 20^th century and growing up in the 21^st, I asked why this simple dish was considered so special back then. It seems that back in the 19^th century, when there was no refrigeration, people in the Philippines would simply eat tons of fish and that chicken, pork and beef were reserved for special occasions and for the rich. This almost quite the opposite of what we’d see today, with the changes in food preservation and in the environment.

All you really need to make tinola is some good chicken pieces (thighs, legs, breasts, whatever you can get your hands on), some ginger, green papaya or chayote and onions. You can add green leafy vegetables too, if you want, like malunggay or spinach or even the leaves of pepper plant. A word of warning, sometimes a little baby pepper might find its way into the dish via the leaves and biting into that little baby pepper is not in the least bit pleasurable, especially when you’re not expecting it. That’s already happened to me once and it took quite a while before the heat left my tongue. It’s really better is you just add a big adult chili pepper instead. 

1 whole chicken cut into different parts (or its equivalent in thigh, wings or breasts)

Water or rice washings

1 knob ginger, crushed

1 small to medium sized red onion, quartered

1 small green papaya or chayote (whichever is on hand. My mom usually uses chayote), cut into wedges

1 medium sized carrot, cut into wedges

1 chili pepper

Some green leafy vegetable (like pepper leaves, malunggay or spinach)

Salt and pepper to taste

In a pot, place the chicken, ginger and onion. Add just enough water or rice washing to cover the chicken. Bring this to a boil and add the chayote/papaya and the carrot. Cook until the chicken is done and the vegetables are soft. Add the chili pepper whole. At the final minute of cooking, add the green leafy vegetable. Season the dish with salt and pepper.

The best way to serve tinola is with some warm rice. Some people also love to serve it with some fish sauce, although I generally stay away from that stuff. I have to say that this is way easier to make than standard chicken soup, which is wonderful when you have the sniffles. Tinola is also quite cheap.  I’ve also found that if you can’t find either green papayas or chayote in your grocery store, potatoes will do just fine.