Tinola
Tinola
Ginger chicken soup with green papaya or chayote — the get-well pot that is also Tuesday dinner.
Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen. Native name preserved: Tinola.
0 people cooked this in the public kitchen yet. Kitchen-tested by I Want Some Food. Not a purchased rating.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 40 min
- Total
- 55 min
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Spice
- No chilli
- Cost
- Weeknight budget$8–16 USD · indicative, not a store price
About
Tinola is chicken simmered with a lot of ginger, fish sauce, and wedges of green papaya or chayote, finished with chilli leaves or spinach. The broth should taste of ginger first. It is not tinola if you skip the ginger.
Ingredients
- Chicken800 g
- Ginger40 g
- Onion1
- Garlic4 clove
- Green papaya, or chayote300 g
- Fish sauce30 ml
- Spinach, or chilli leaves80 g
- Water1½ l
- Rice, uncooked, to serve300 g
Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.
Steps
Step 1
Sauté ginger, onion and garlic. Add chicken and colour it. Add water and simmer 25 minutes.
30 minStep 2
Papaya, fish sauce. Simmer until the papaya is tender. Greens at the end.
12 min
Adapt this recipe
The canonical recipe stays intact. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are maths, not AI.
Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 24 August.
Substitutions
Green papaya → Chayote or zucchini
Softer, still a ginger pot.
Tips
- Malunggay or chilli leaves are the traditional green. Spinach is the grocery stand-in.
- A splash more fish sauce at the table is allowed.
History & culture
The soup you make when someone is tired. Also a regular lunch with rice.
Ginger-chicken pots are old. Green papaya is the Luzon vegetable that people photograph.
Traditional
Provenance: Editorial adaptation. Original editorial adaptation for I Want Some Food. Not copied from another recipe site. Official recipe photography is pending. Photograph: Obsidian Soul via Wikimedia Commons (CC0). https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chicken%20tinola%20with%20kalamunggay%20(moringa%20leaves)%20and%20chayote%20(Philippines).jpg
Questions about this recipe
Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips — not a chatbot.
How long does Tinola take?
55 min all in — 15 min prep, 40 min cook. That is the time on this recipe, not a guess.
How many does it serve?
The recipe is written for 4 pots. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.
How hard is it?
Easy.
How spicy is it?
No chilli.
What allergens should I watch?
This recipe is labelled for Fish. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.
Does it fit a diet?
The published recipe is labelled Gluten-free, Dairy-free, Nut-free.
What does it cost to cook?
Weeknight budget — about $8–16 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.
What equipment do I need?
Saucepan.
How much salt do I put in?
This recipe does not list salt as its own ingredient. Saltiness comes from Fish sauce — 2 tbsp. Taste at the end rather than adding a number we did not write.
How much fish sauce?
2 tbsp of Fish sauce.
What can I use instead?
Green papaya → Chayote or zucchini. Softer, still a ginger pot.
Any tips from this recipe?
Malunggay or chilli leaves are the traditional green. Spinach is the grocery stand-in. A splash more fish sauce at the table is allowed.
Can I use an air fryer?
This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.
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