WHY FISH HEAD?

In Asia and some parts of the modern world, it’s common to eat an animal (or fish) from head to tail. In Malaysia, fish are normally served whole – with the head and tail.

Funny thing is that the fish head is considered a delicacy. I remember my uncle who dotes on his daughter always saves the cheek of the fish for her. According to him, it’s the best part because it’s the softest, most delicate part of the fish.

Though we call it ‘fish head’ curry,  we don’t only serve the head alone. The head is attached to the upper part of the fish and the curry is made with a lot of vegetables too!

MUST I USE FISH HEAD?

Nope.  You can just put the fleshy part. In fact, I personally prefer the body over the head. My Mom and the older generation like my Uncle on the other hand eat the head like a pro.

WHAT KIND OF FISH HEAD SHOULD I USE?

Any fish head will do. Even if you want to use salmon (which is not commonly used here in Malaysia). But in Malaysian Chinese restaurant normally offers garoupa (grouper) or snapper. I like garoupa’s flaky texture so it’s my preferred choice.

TWO TYPES OF FISH HEAD CURRY IN MALAYSIA

There are two types of Fish Head Curry: Mamak Fish Head Curry and Nyonya Fish Head Curry. Mamak-style is from the Indian & Muslim community in Malaysia. In this curry, we used spices like mustard seeds.

Whereas Nyonya Fish Head Curry is from the Malaysian Chinese community who had adopted the Malay culture. In this version, typical Nyonya herbs like daun kesum or laksa leaves (Vietnamese coriander) and bunga kantan (torch ginger flower) are used to create a spice paste.

These two tropical herbs are hard to get out of Malaysia and Singapore. Growing them in my garden made me understand why – they need a lot of sun and water. And laksa leaves propagates through stems. Maybe that’s why it’s hard to export.

If you love curry laksa, you will love this dish. They are made from similar spices. In a Malaysian restaurant, it’s normally served in a claypot and served bubbling hot!

TOOLS

• Blender
• Knife + chopping board
• Pot/ Wok/ Pan + Lid
• Cooking spatula

RECIPE CARD

SHORT RECIPE

Blend spice paste: 4 tbsp fish curry powder + 10 shallots + 3 cloves Garlic + 1 cm ginger + 2 thumbsize galangal + 2 stalks of lemongrass + 5 fresh red chili + 1 1/2 tbsp shrimp paste + 2 tbsp oil. Cook spice paste in 1/2 cup oil + curry leaves. Add 3 cups of water + 1/2 tbsp tamarind paste + 2 stalks of laksa leaves. Bring to a boil. Add 1 brinjal + long beans. Simmer until veg soften (~5 min) Add 200 ml coconut milk+ 3 ladies fingers + 2 quartered tomato + 1 kg fish head. Simmer until fish softens (~5 min). Season with sugar (~1 tbsp) + salt (~2 tsp) + fish sauce. Garnish with torch ginger flower.

 

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KITCHEN HACKS

1. Blend spice paste with boil There’s a lot of spices to blend so putting oil in it will make blending much easier. If you were to put in water, the oil in the pan will splatter once you put the spice paste into the oiled wok!
2. Leftover soup can be made into curry laksa If you have leftover curry, remove the vegetables, and save the soup for the next day. Put in some chicken, egg noodles, and long beans and you’ll have a quick curry laksa!

See more hacks in my Youtube video!

This dish may be a little overwhelming as compared to my other recipes which focus on simpler, faster food.

But the bright side is this is all you need to make for a meal! While cooking this, cook your rice in a rice cooker

I taught The Food Ranger how to make a big pot of it. As I have leftover, the next day I have it with noodles.

But I love it best when it’s served bubbling hot and eaten with rice!

Enjoy!

The post Nyonya Fish Head Curry appeared first on New Malaysian Kitchen.

One of the most popular dishes in the Nyonya and Malay community is Okra with Sambal Belacan. It is incredibly easy to make and surprisingly appetising. Be warned though – it will make you eat more rice than usual.

My family normally likes to fry sambal belacan in oil. However, I prefer the convenience and the lighter taste of this recipe which I’ve learned from Pearly, a Nyonya cook in Penang.

If you’re trying to eat more vegetables but hate the bland taste of salad or/and have no time to cook, this recipe might be the solution. Make sambal belacan ahead of time to freeze. When you need some quick vegetables, simply blanch (or even microwave the beans). The sambal dressing can be prepared in just a few minutes.

The post Okra / Ladies Finger with Sambal Belacan appeared first on New Malaysian Kitchen.

The post Authentic Penang Asam Laksa appeared first on New Malaysian Kitchen.

I’m glad to find that this hot condiment easy to make. Even if you rarely go into the kitchen, you can nail it, I promise! It requires no other skills than blending fresh ingredients in a food processor and then heat up on the stove. Don’t worry, it’s not cooked with oil so chances of ruining it is almost zero!

TOOLS

• Blender
• Stove + spatula
• Air-tight container
• Knife + chopping board

RECIPE CARD

SHORT RECIPE

Blend 450 g of red chili + 5 pcs of cili padi + 1 tomato + 4 tbsp of belacan until fine. Cook on stove with 1/4 cup lime juice (10 min). Season with sugar. Transfer to bottle.

COOKING TIPS

1. As the degree of spicy heat in chili and sweetness in tomato differs, the above measurement is only a guideline. If it lack fragrance, add more belacan. If it’s too spicy, balanced the taste with lime juice and sugar.
2. Cooking the paste allows you to keep in the fridge for a longer time. So does keeping it in a clean container.
3. To save time and reduce washing, I like to deseed chili directly into a plastic bag and use a pair of scissors to cut chilis directly into the food processor.
4. This recipe makes two small containers.

Enjoy this dip (with almost everything)!

The post Sambal Belacan Chili Dip – 6 ingredients appeared first on New Malaysian Kitchen.

Naturally, I prefer Chinese and Malaysian desserts which feature natural ingredients like pomelo, sago, tapioca, coconut milk, and black glutinous rice. Think of mango and pomelo sago, kuih bingka and bubur pulut hitam (黑糯米). I think they are equally, if not more, delicious than cakes and pastries.

Find out more about the health benefits of black glutinous rice 

This nutritious dessert is a rich source of antioxidants – much more than blueberries! The only caveat that it normally takes a long time to make and need constant monitoring. The best way is to toss all ingredients into your slow cooker before you sleep at night. Leave it to cook overnight and enjoy a delicious pot of bubur pulut hitam the very next day!

TOOLS

• Slow cooker
• OR Pressure Cooker (Soak grains for 12 hours or overnight. Pressure cook for 30 minutes)

RECIPE CARD

SHORT RECIPE

Toss 1/2 cup glutinous rice + 2 pandan leaves + 3.5 – 4 cups water into the slower cooker. Cook on high for 6 hrs. Remove pandan leaves. Add 80 – 100 g gula melaka. Mix well to dissolve. Serve with coconut milk + a pinch of salt.

COOKING TIPS

• I usually dry roast the glutinous rice before adding water. This extra step would release more of its good aroma. However, most people are not sensitive enough to notice the subtle difference so you can skip this step.
• I have an Instapot (the Philips All-in-one Cooker) and I normally cook mine with that. It allows me to dry roast the rice before slow cooking it.
• The consistency for this recipe is more thick than watery. I’ve tried cooking it many times for this consistency which to me is just right. If you prefer your bubur lighter, do add more water; use 1000 ml (or another 1/2 cup) instead of 875 ml.
• Tear the pandan leaves to release more of its fragrant aroma into the dessert
• I normally make it right before I sleep and have a bowl for my breakfast. It’s very filling!
• If I have extra, I’ll pack it into small containers to freeze.
• I normally only use 80 g of gula melaka. I think the sweetness is just right. For my own consumption, I put even less. If you like it to be sweeter, you can add more. Perhaps another 20 g of gula melaka.
• After reading the book Salt, I’ve become a salt snob…I like my bubur served with generous amount of coconut milk and a pinch of fleur de sel sea salt to tantalize the tastebud.

What is the difference between sea salt and regular table salt?

Enjoy!

The post Bubur Pulut Hitam in Slow-cooker (Black Glutinous Rice Dessert Soup) appeared first on New Malaysian Kitchen.

When I no longer live with my mother, she occasionally sends over a container of fresh dried shrimp belacan. It would made my day. With this bottle of condiment, I would make petai sambal and kangkung belacan in a matter of minutes.

As I have learned to love and eat all kinds of vegetables, and they are faster when stir-fry with garlic, I only make it occasionally. When I do, it will be in a huge batch, stored it in a container and treated like gold. Do try this savoury recipe, it’s slightly spicy and has some crunch from the dried shrimps. The burst of flavour is out of the world!

TOOL

• Blender/ pestle & mortar
• Wok + spatula
• Air-tight container

RECIPE CARD

SHORT RECIPE

Blend 150 g shallots + 100 g red chillies + 1 bulb garlic + 40 g belacan into a paste. Stir-fry sambal until fragrant (10 min). Add 200 g blended dried shrimps. Fry for a while. Cool & store.

COOKING TIPS

• Make a big batch to keep in the refrigerator. It can last for weeks.
• This condiment is delicious with rice or cucumber. It can also be used to stir-fry vegetables like sambal petai.

Enjoy!

The post Dried Shrimps Sambal appeared first on New Malaysian Kitchen.