Piaparan a Bakas

Aside from Chicken Piaparan, Piaparan a Bakas is one of my favorite Maranao dishes.

In Piaparan a Bakas, “piaparan” means “with papar” (if I am not mistaken) and “bakas” is smoked tuna. Papar is the cooked grated coconut which can be found in many of Maranao dishes.

In our family, we love dishes with papar and anything with coconut milk. Our piaparan dishes are similar to each other when it comes to ingredients and the method of cooking.

Piaparan a Manok uses chicken for the meat. Piaparan a Odang/Udang uses shrimps but this one doesn’t have a soup on the side – at least that’s what I know. We also have Piaparan a Badak which uses badak which means unripe jackfruit. 

I may have the chance to share a recipe of Piaparan a Badak in the future. For now, I would like to share with you Piaparan a Bakas recipe.

Bakas or smoked tuna is usually found in the province of Lanao and are sold by street side vendors. Bakas can be eaten as is since it is already cooked and often paired with soy sauce with chili and Palapa. You can also use the fish meat to make Pisasati which is a Maranao version of fish nuggets. 

Piaparan a Bakas is one of the dishes I’d like to make and I, for sure, enjoy eating. It is easier to cook if I’ll compare it with Piaparan a Manok. In Piaparan a Bakas, we only need to take the fish meat and slice it into huge chunks then proceed with the usual cooking procedure. 

This dish is usually sold in carinderias (food stalls that has small seating areas) in Lanao. Although these days, you can find it the carinderias located in other parts of the Philippines like in Quiapo. 

When cooking piaparan dishes, the use of Palapa is a crucial thing. But if you cannot find Sakurab (native scallions) in your area, you can use the white part of spring onions. I’ve explained it in this post. 

Now, on to the recipe….

I’ve shared a recipe video on my YouTube channel. I hope you can visit me there. 😉

 I am bringing this dish to Angie’s Fiesta Friday #330. Thank you to our co-host this week, Mollie @ Frugal Hausfrau.

Print

Piaparan a Bakas

Piaparan A Bakas is a dish that uses smoked tuna as the meat and is cooked with coconut milk, turmeric and a special paste called ‘Palapa’.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Filipino

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings 6

Author Jhuls @ The Not So Creative Cook

Ingredients

For the soup:

• Cooking oil
• 4 cloves garlic sliced
• 1 tomato sliced
• 1 onion sliced
• 1/2 cup palapa see notes*
• 1-2 tbsp turmeric powder see notes**
• 750 ml fresh coconut milk see notes***
• 250 ml fresh coconut cream see notes***
• 1 kilo Bakas smoked tuna, cut into chunks
• spring onions sliced

For the papar:

• Cooking oil
• 4 cloves garlic sliced
• 1 tomato sliced
• 1 onion sliced
• 1/4 cup bell pepper sliced
• 1/4 cup of palapa see notes*
• 1-2 tbsp turmeric powder see notes**
• 2 cups of fresh grated coconut meat
• 1/4 cup from the soup
• spring onions sliced

Instructions

For the soup:

1. In a pot over medium-high heat, add cooking oil.
2. When the cooking oil is hot enough, add garlic and cook until soft and fragrant. Add tomatoes and onions; cook until soft.
3. Add palapa (or palapa substitute – see notes) and turmeric powder, and then mix.
4. Pour the coconut milk into the pan and then add the chunks of Bakas (smoked tuna). Let the coconut milk boil and then add the coconut cream; let it boil again.
5. Add sliced spring onions and season with salt. Turn off the heat.
6. Remove the fish from the pot and transfer to a plate; set aside.

For the papar:

1. In a pan over medium-high heat, add cooking oil.
2. When the cooking oil is hot enough, add garlic and cook until soft and fragrant. Add tomatoes, bell peppers and onions; cook until soft.
3. Add palapa (or palapa substitute – see notes).
4. Add fresh grated coconut meat and turmeric powder. Mix until even in color.
5. Take about 1/4 cup of the soup from the pot and add to the pan; mix again.
6. Add sliced spring onions and season with salt.
7. Remove from the heat.

To serve:

1. Put the papar on a serving plate and top with the fish. Transfer the soup in a separate bowl and place next to the plate with papar and fish.
2. Serve this with cooked white rice.

Recipe Notes

*Palapa is a Maranao condiment that is commonly used in Maranao dishes. If you don’t have Palapa, you can mix ginger, white part of spring onions and chilis, then pound then into a paste.

**Some turmeric powder has darker or brighter color than the other. Start with 1 tbsp and check from there if you need to add more.

***I recommend using fresh coconut milk and coconut cream. However, if you don’t have access to fresh coconut milk and coconut cream, you may try using canned coconut milk and coconut cream. I can’t tell you how it will turn out because I haven’t tried using one before.

Thanks a bunch for spending your precious time with me!

I am also sharing this at

#CookBlogShare Week 21 | Happiness is Homemade | Full Plate Thursday,486 |

Please follow and like us: