Ginataan#Sweet variants

{{Infobox prepared food

| name = Ginataan

| image_size =

| caption = Top: Ginataang kalabasa (calabaza and string beans in coconut milk) with shrimp;
Bottom: Ginataang mais, a dessert rice gruel (lugaw) with sweet corn and coconut milk

| alternate_name =

| country = The Philippines

| region =

| creator =

| course = Main course, dessert

| served = Hot or cold

| main_ingredient = Coconut milk (gatâ)

| variations =

| calories =

| other =

}}

Ginataan (pronounced: {{respell|GHEE|nah|ta|AN}}), alternatively spelled guinataan, is a Filipino term which refers to food cooked with gatâ (coconut milk).{{cite web | title =Spanish Influence on Filipino Food | url =http://asiarecipe.com/phispanish.html | access-date =March 20, 2009 | archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20070214073452/http://asiarecipe.com/phispanish.html | archive-date =February 14, 2007 | url-status =dead }} Literally translated, ginataan means "done with coconut milk". Due to the general nature of the term, it may refer to a number of different dishes, each called ginataan, but distinct from one another.

During the Spanish colonial era, ginataan was brought to Mexico through the Manila galleons which docked in Acapulco. Today, it has become naturalized in the regional cuisines of Guerrero and Colima, like the zambaripao or the tuba. In Spanish it is called guinatán.{{Cite web|last=Muñoz Zurita|first=R.|title=Guinatán - Diccionario enciclopédico de la Gastronomía Mexicana|url=https://laroussecocina.mx/palabra/guinatan/|website=Larousse|language=es}}{{cite journal |last1=Machuca |first1=Paulina |title=La herencia asiática en México: nuestra cuarta raíz |journal=El Universal |date=8 August 2021 |pages=2–3 |url=https://www.academia.edu/61090274}}

Terminology

Ginataan is the affixed form of gatâ ("coconut milk"): g- + -in- + -atâ + -an ("done with coconut milk"). It usually refers to dishes which are eaten with rice during the major meals of the day. It normally follows the form "ginataan na/ginataang + (whatever it is cooked with)" or "(dish name) + sa gatâ". For example, ginataang hipon refers to shrimp cooked in coconut milk, ginataang gulay to an assortment of vegetables cooked in coconut milk, ginataang alimango is mud crab cooked in coconut milk, while ginataang manok is chicken cooked in coconut milk.{{cite book|author=Myke Sarthou|editor=Angelo Comsti|title =The Filipino Family Cookbook: Recipes and Stories From Our Home Kitchen|publisher =Marshall Cavendish International Asia Pte Ltd|year =2014|page=92|isbn =9789814634946}}{{cite book|editor =IBP|title =Philippines Country Study Guide|publisher =International Business Publications|year =2007|page=112|isbn =9781433039706}}{{cite book|author =Linda Civitello|title =Cuisine and Culture: A History of Food and People|url =https://archive.org/details/cuisineculturehi00civi|url-access =limited|publisher =John Wiley & Sons|year =2007|page=[https://archive.org/details/cuisineculturehi00civi/page/n262 240]|isbn =9780471741725}} Coconut milk may be added to existing dishes as in ginataang adobo (known more commonly in Tagalog as adobo sa gatâ).{{cite web|url=http://www.kawalingpinoy.com/2013/11/adobo-sa-gata-2/|title=Adobo sa Gata|date=November 5, 2013|publisher=Kawaling Pinoy|access-date=January 3, 2015}}

There are other dishes which are known by unique names including Bicol express, laing and variants of pinakbet, which nonetheless fall under the ginataan category because they use coconut milk as one of the main ingredients.{{cite web|url=http://panlasangpinoy.com/2009/05/25/bicol-express/|title=Bicol Express Recipe|publisher=Panlasang Pinoy|access-date=January 3, 2015}}{{cite web|url=http://www.foodbatangas.com/2012/05/pinakbet-with-gata-vegetables-cooked.html|title=Pinakbet with Gata (Vegetables Cooked with Coconut Milk)|publisher=Food Batangas|access-date=January 3, 2015}}

=Sweet variants=

Various sweet desserts may also simply be called ginataan, especially in the northern Philippines. For example, the Visayan binignit, a soup made with coconut milk, glutinous rice, tubers, tapioca pearls, and sago is simply called ginataan in Tagalog (a shortened form of the proper name, ginataang halo-halo).{{cite web|url=http://www.essshiii.com/foods-holy-week-binignit/|title=Foods to Have During the Holy Week: BINIGNIT|date=April 16, 2014|publisher=Essshiii Food Blog|access-date=January 3, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150103153054/http://www.essshiii.com/foods-holy-week-binignit/|archive-date=January 3, 2015|url-status=dead}} This soup is also called "giná-tan" in Bikolano, "ginettaán" in Ilokano, and "ginat-ang lugaw" in Hiligaynon. If gummy balls made of pounded glutinous rice are used instead of plain glutinous rice, it becomes a dish called ginataang bilo-bilo or simply bilo-bilo.{{cite web|url=http://www.pinoycookingrecipes.com/ginataang-bilo-bilo--sticky-rice-balls.html|title=Ginataang Bilo-Bilo (Sticky Rice Balls in Coconut milk)|publisher=Pinoy Cooking Recipes|access-date=January 3, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150103154508/http://www.pinoycookingrecipes.com/ginataang-bilo-bilo--sticky-rice-balls.html|archive-date=January 3, 2015|url-status=dead}} Ginataang mais is another example of a dessert soup; a warm, sweet, thick gruel made with coconut milk, sweet corn, and glutinous rice.{{cite web|url=http://www.food.com/recipe/ginataang-mais-corn-in-coco-milk-496425|title=Ginataang Mais (Corn in Coco Milk)|date=March 2, 2013|publisher=Food.com|access-date=January 3, 2015}}