Papaitan Recipe

As the word says “Papaitan” is derived from the word “Pait” (Tagalog) which means “bitter”.  It is actually because of its unique ingredient (the bile) that makes this recipe bitter. Papaitan, an exotic stew dish from the mountainous areas of northern Luzon, is the perfect comfort food to warm your body.  It is mostly made using beef innards and bile.

In our Papaitan Recipe, we will be using goat innards instead. Some Ilocano folks serve papaitan as soup during meals. In this case, you need to add more water and balance the taste by adding more bile juice, tamarind broth and salt in our ingredients.

Let us start now how Papaitan is cooked. Before we begin, you’ll need the following:

Papaitan Ingredients:
1/2 kg of goat innards (kidney, heart , pancreas, liver, intestine, blood (cooked)), sometimes you can get     them in a pack already.
1/4 cup of goat bile juice
2 cloves garlic (chopped)
1 bulb onion (sliced)
2 inches ginger (cut into smaller shapes)
3 tbls of oil
1 cup of tamarind broth (boil 10 pcs of tamarind fruit until I become soft, filter the broth) or you may use 1 small pack of tamarind powder which is always available in the market.
Salt to taste

Papaitan Cooking Procedure:
1) Put goat internals in a casserole. Put enough water and boil for about 30 minutes.
2) Remove meat from casserole and discard the water.
3) Chop all the internals to at least ¼ of an inch and then set aside
4) In a separate pan, Sauté garlic, ginger and onions until golden brown.
5) Add 4 cups of water and put into boiling.
6) Add tamarind broth and mix and simmer for at least 20 minutes. Add water if required.
7) Add bile 1 table spoon at a time according to your taste.
8) Add some salt to taste.
9) Serve hot.