Papaitan or Pinapaitan is a famous Ilocano soup dish made with goat or beef innards/ internal organs (such as the liver, small intestine, tripe and lungs) and then flavored with bile. The name was derived from the Filipino root word “Pait” which means “bitter”. The bitter taste comes from the bile; which was extracted by the liver and stored in the gallbladder to aid digestion.
Papaitan is said to be a product of the Ilocano’s resourcefulness, which traces its history back in the 1800s when the Spanish friars at that time would get the best parts of the meat and the Filipinos would be given the left-over cuts.
This Ilocano dish has the right balance of bitterness and richness of the combined beef or goat innards that are boiled, then seasoned with bile, fish sauce and other condiments.
HERE’S HOW TO MAKE IT
Ingredients:
1 kilo beef or goat innards (tripe, kidney, liver, heart, intestines)
1⁄4 cup cooking oil
1⁄4 cup ginger, cut to thin strips
2 pcs onion, minced
1 head garlic, minced
1 pack sampaloc sinigang mix diluted in hot water
1 tbsp fish sauce
2 pcs bay leaves
1 tsp shrimp bouillon
1⁄2 cup beef bile
3 pcs siling labuyo
liquid seasoning, salt and pepper
Procedure:
- Clean the beef innards then transfer to a stock pan. Fill with water and boil for about 20 to 30 minutes till tender. Drain and cut into small cubes or bite sizes and set aside.
- Pour oil in a pan or wok. Saute ginger, onion and garlic. Saute until onion is translucent and the garlic lightly browned.
- Add the meats and stir fry for about 5 to 10 minutes. Add in the sinigang mix (enough to cover all the ingredients), fish sauce, bay leaf and shrimp bouillon. Cook for another 10 minutes until sauce is reduced.
- Gently add the beef bile (a little at a time) until you reach the preferred bitterness taste. Add in the minced siling labuyo and season with liquid seasoning, salt and pepper to taste.