Get this Bicolano Laing recipe! Dried Taro leaves cooked in coconut milk with a lot of chilies! A simple no-fuss recipe that is as authentic as it can get!
I wanted to make Laing for the longest time. However, dried Taro leaves are not available in Germany but now that we are back in the Philippines, I grabbed the chance to make some.
Buying the dried Taro leaves was the easiest part as they are available in most big supermarkets. Now, I had the option to buy canned coconut milk or use a fresh one. If you know me by now, you would have guessed that I chose the first rather than the latter..hehehe! I am all for making and doing it the easier way.
Now, I only needed to have an authentic recipe for Laing and it cannot get more authentic than getting it from a 100% Uragon. So I got in touch with an old friend and colleague from my very first job when I was still working in Manila (ages ago). Jonas is a born and bred Bicolano and gladly shared his simple but delicious Laing recipe. 
The truth is, I was not a big fan of Laing at the beginning until I tried the authentic Bicolano Laing. It was dried and oily, wherein the coconut milk has been cooked long enough to produce oil and the dried Taro leaves have completely absorbed the coconut milk in. Also, unlike other Laing I've tried before that, the leaves are still mostly intact and not mushy. That is how I like my Laing and this is my target.
Unlike other Laing recipes, this one contains really just the basic ingredients and I would say it is more than enough and already perfect. Thanks again Jonas Bermeo for sharing your Laing recipe and for the additional tips...
You may also like to check out another Bicolano dish: Bicol Express!
Authentic Laing Recipe (Taro leaves in Coconut Milk)
Ingredients
- 4 cups coconut milk (add 1 cup water if using coconut cream)
- 1 medium onion - chopped
- 2 cloves garlic - minced
- 8-10 pieces dried fish or smoked fish
- 5 cups dried Taro leaves
- 3 pieces labuyo chili or 5 pieces bird's eye chili - each cut into 4-5 pieces
Instructions
- Place coconut milk, water, onion, garlic and dried fish in a pot. Bring to boil over medium-low heat.
- Once it starts to boil, add the dried taro leaves. Cover pot with lid and let it boil for 10 minutes without stirring.
- Add the chilis. Season with salt if still needed.
- Let it boil until coconut milk is reduced or almost completely gone.
Thank you. Excellent recipe. Have done this for number of times now and still like it. Kuido
I am happy to hear it, Kuido!
I have fresh tarp leaves in my garden that I’m trying to learn how to use. Would you reduce the liquid if using fresh leaves?
Hi Kim, yes you might need to reduce the liquid as the taro leaves will not be absorbing them.
hello can i put bacalao instead? thank you
Hi Maria, is it also dried? You can also skip the dried fish and just add salt or fish sauce.
And can you sub out the dried fish for just fish sauce (patis)? xx
Sure you can Von.
Hi there,
Can you freeze this after making it? How does it stand up to after defrosting and reheating?
Thanks!
Hi,
I was wondering would tinapa flakes work? If not, what kind of dried fish would work? I have a seafood city down the street and my parents love this dish.
Side note* all your recipes are delicious everytime I make them. Thank you
Yes, tinapa would work wonderfully.
Yum yum 😋😍
Thank you!
Will it taste the same if I use spinach leaves vs taro? The Asian store is far from where I live but spinach abounds in the grocery store nearby.
My sister-in-law who lives in Paris does it with spinach and it is a close copy she said.
Hi Bebs,
I tried making this dish and it was delicious, however, mine had a bitter aftertaste. What could be the cause of it? Is it some preparation or cooking technique issue? Or I got the bad leaves? I used the dried ones sold in the asian store. It looked clean and properly packaged, imported from the Philippines.
I read that it could be a reaction of the leaves to stainless steel.
Hi. Did you wash first the dried taro leaves? Thanks
No Gobain. You put the dried taro leaves directly to the pot. Just make sure they are good quality leaves and clean and properly packaged.
Hi, Is the dried fish daing? What's the best alternative if there are no asian shops?
Hi Pete, dried fish is different from daing. You can use small smoked fishes instead.