Kinilaw

Kinilaw is raw fish cut into cubes and dressed with vinegar, which denatures the surface of the flesh in minutes, along with ginger, red onion, chilli and often calamansi; coconut milk is added in Davao and much of Mindanao, and the sour fruit tabon-tabon is used in some places to cut the fishiness. Tuna, tanigue, malasugi and lapu-lapu are common, and shellfish, sea urchin and even goat appear in versions across the country. It is older than the Spanish period by a long way - fish bones and vinegar residues excavated at Butuan point to the technique being practised well over a thousand years ago - which makes the comparison with ceviche a matter of parallel invention rather than borrowing. The critical variable is freshness: kinilaw is properly made from fish landed the same day, dressed at the last moment and eaten immediately, which is why it is best on a coast and worst inland.

What you actually see

• The cubed raw fish - cut and dressed at the last moment.
• The vinegar cure - the flesh turning opaque within minutes.
• The aromatics - ginger, onion, chilli and calamansi.
• The regional additions - coconut milk and tabon-tabon in Mindanao.

When to go

Year-round, and at the coast. Eat it where the fish is landed - kinilaw made from anything but very fresh fish is not worth having.

Honest expectations

This is raw fish - freshness is everything, and it is best avoided inland or anywhere the turnover is slow. Vinegar levels and chilli vary sharply between cooks. Pregnant travellers and anyone with a compromised immune system should treat it as they would any raw fish.

Nearby

Davao, Surigao and the Visayan coastal towns make the versions worth travelling for.