Classic Kinilaw: Filipino Tuna Cured in Coconut Vinegar with Ginger and Cucumber
Inspired by techniques from Serious Eats.
Ruby cubes of tuna cured for a few minutes in coconut vinegar with ginger, red onion and chilli, then drained and tossed with crunchy cucumber.
Always check the labels of the products you use.
Method
- 1
Get everything cold. Dice the onion and cucumber, cut the ginger into fine matchsticks and slice the chillies, then chill. Cube the tuna last and keep it in the fridge so it never warms up.
- 2
Make the cure. Stir the vinegar, lime juice and salt together in the glass bowl until the salt disappears. Dissolving it first means it seasons every piece evenly.
- 3
Cure the tuna. Add the tuna, onion, ginger and chillies and turn them gently. After 5-10 min, with one more fold, the outside of each cube goes pale while the centre stays deep red; that contrast is the texture you want.
- 4
Drain and toss. Pour everything into the sieve to shed most of the vinegar, saving 2-3 tbsp. Return it to the bowl and fold in the cucumber with the saved liquid, which keeps it lively without making it soupy.
- 5
Serve with citrus. Spoon into the serving bowl and eat immediately, with the lime or calamansi halves for squeezing over.
Storage
Eat kinilaw as soon as it is made and discard any leftovers. Cool leftovers in a shallow container and refrigerate within 2 hours (within 1 hour on a day above 32°C).
Why it's healthy
21.6 g protein for 125 kcal = 17.3 g per 100 kcal. Our High Protein label needs at least 10 g per 100 kcal. How we decide
- Total fat: 4.3 % of energy (limit ≤ 30%)
- Saturated fat: 1.4 % of energy (limit < 10%)
- Free sugars: 0.3 % of energy (limit < 10%)
- Salt: 0.83 g (limit ≤ 1.7 g)
- Fibre or fruit & veg: 1 g fibre / 113 g veg (limit ≥ 1.6 g fibre or 80 g fruit & veg)
Per serving, worked out from the nutrition table against our WHO-based rule. Not endorsed by WHO.
Equipment
- sharp knife
- large glass or ceramic bowl
- fine sieve
- serving bowl
Nutrition per serving (estimated values)
| Per serving | Amount |
|---|---|
| Energy | 125 kcal |
| Protein | 21.6 g |
| Carbohydrate | 6.4 g |
| of which sugars | 2.5 g |
| of which free sugars | 0.1 g |
| Fat | 0.6 g |
| of which saturates | 0.2 g |
| Fibre | 1 g |
| Salt | 0.83 g |
Protein per 100 kcal
17.3 g meets the High Protein rule (≥ 10 g)
Calculated from USDA FoodData Central ingredient values
