Catfish with Black and Red Beans in Coconut Cream

Ryan went fishing again for a couple of hours last weekend, and he caught 3 big catfish. Last night, he asked me to cook this...

I simply call it Catfish with Black and Red Beans in Coconut Cream. This is one of our favorite ways of enjoying his freshly caught catfish. Filipinos love anything cooked in coconut milk/cream, you know. We call it ginataan. We cook anything with gata (coconut milk/cream): from beef, pork, poultry and seafood to vegetables and fruits. I've featured some ginataan recipes here already like the Ginataang Tilapia, Ginataang Kalabasa at Sitaw and the Ginataang Halo-Halo, but this one is a bit different. This doesn't have a soupy consistency, mainly because I used coconut cream instead of coconut milk. I also added Japanese curry roux into it for more flavor and it also made the sauce thicker...and instead of vegetables, I used beans for added texture.

This very flavorful dish is always a hit on our dinner table. You should see for yourself!

Note: 

This way of cooking works well with fish fillet. For whole fish, a soupy consistency like that of my Ginataang Tilapia is more appropriate.

Ginataang Kalabasa at Sitaw (Squash & String Beans in Coconut Milk)

Ginataan is a Filipino term which refers to food cooked with gata, which is the Filipino word for coconut milk. You can cook anything with gata: beef, pork, poultry, seafood, vegetables, and fruits...so in the Philippines, ginataan is a name shared by various desserts and viands.

Here’s a very simple but delectable vegetable dish cook with coconut milk. It is called Ginataang Kalabasa at Sitaw (Squash & String Beans in Coconut Milk). It is my favorite Filipino vegetable dish. Some cook this as ginataang kalabasa or ginataang sitaw alone. I prefer cooking them together because I love the healthy combination of kalabasa & sitaw as well as the very appealing color of these vegetables when cooked together.

Ginataang Kalabasa at Sitaw is a healthy dish and is a real crowd pleaser!  See for yourself!

Prep Time: 10 mins          Cook Time: ~25 mins           Servings: 6                             

Ingredients:

• 1 small kalabasa(squash), peeled, seeds removed and cubed
• 12-15 pcs. sitaw (string beans), cut into 2 ½ inch length
• 1¼ cup coconut cream/kakang gata (I used 12-oz can coconut cream.)
• ½ lb. pork liempo, sliced into 1½ inch strips
• ¼ lb. shrimps, peeled & deveined
• 1 small onion, sliced thinly
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 thumb-sized ginger, cut into 1 inch strips (optional)
• 1 Tbsp sautéed shrimp paste (I used Barrio Fiesta’s bottled Sauteed Shrimp Paste.)
• 2 Tbsp fish sauce
• salt and pepper to taste