Cabbage-wrapped Tilapia in Coconut Milk or Sinanglay for my fellow ‪Pinoys‬

             So my in-laws Mom Sharon and Dad Adolphus have given me a cookbook called, Filipino-American Kitchen, for my bridal shower more than a year ago now. If I haven't been planning meals, I don't know when will I ever make this ‎yummy‪ ‎Filipino‬ dish. We made something that is a little closer to this but I know it wasn't Napa cabbage that we used to wrap the fish.

Recipe Yield: Servings for Three

Ingredients:
6 Napa cabbage leaves, trimmed off 1 in. from the root tip, washed and dried
3 small fillets of fish, quartered if your Napa cabbage are smaller
1/2 tsp. Olive oil
3 long scallion or green onion, chopped
1 med. sized tomato, chopped small
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tsp. peeled and minced ginger or 1/2 tsp. ginger powder
1 tsp. lemon or lime zest
1/8 tsp. cayenne or red chili pepper
Salt and pepper to taste
6 or more clean tooth picks
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup water
1 tsp. Fish sauce
1 small bay leaf

Procedure:
1. Season the fish with salt and pepper. Using a small bowl, combine olive oil, green onion, garlic, ginger, lemon or line zest, tomato and cayenne then stir.
2. Lay a cabbage leaf and put 2 quartered Tilapia each leaf or the halved once each if the cabbage are bigger. Spread 1 tsp. or more of the mixture on top of each leaves and Tilapia fillets. Wrap the cabbage around the fish so that it is completely covered. Stick a piece if tooth pick so the roll will be secure. If needed, you can use another leaf. Continue wrapping the remaining fillets.
3. Place the wrapped fish to a pot where they can be all in one layer. Pour in the coconut milk, water, fish sauce and bay leaf. Cover and simmer for about 7-9 mins or until the liquid is almost absorbed by the fish and cabbage or when the sauce thickened.
4. Transfer wrapped fish into a serving platter and pour the sauce over the fish. Discard the bay leaves and the tooth picks used. Serve hot and enjoy!

This is Lannie Armstrong's recipe inspired by Jennifer Aranas' Cabbage-wrapped Tilapia in Coconut Milk. She is the author of the "Filipino-American Kitchen" Cookbook. Feel free to share and use it for your home cooking.

Food for the Soul

Those who love Your law have great peace,

And nothing causes them to stumble.

Psalm 119:165, NASB