← Nouns Cooking · Malaysian & Singaporean

Ingredients

• 1 large fish head (red snapper or grouper, about 1 kg), halved, scaled and cleaned
• 1 tsp ground turmeric, for rubbing
• 1 tsp salt, for rubbing
• 4 tbsp fish curry powder
• 1 tbsp Chilli powder
• 4 tbsp Vegetable oil
• 1 tsp Mustard seeds
• ½ tsp fenugreek seeds
• ½ tsp Fennel seeds
• 3 sprigs Curry leaves
• 2 Onion, thinly sliced
• 4 cloves Garlic, finely chopped
• 3 cm piece Ginger, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp tamarind pulp, mixed with 250 ml warm water, strained
• 600 ml Water
• 200 ml Coconut milk
• 8 okra (ladies' fingers), tops trimmed
• 1 long aubergine, cut into 5 cm batons
• 2 Tomato, quartered
• 3 Green chilli, slit lengthways
• 1 tsp Sugar

Method

1. Rub the fish head all over with the turmeric and salt and set aside while you prepare everything else. Mix the curry powder and chilli powder with 4 tbsp water into a thick paste.
2. Heat the oil in a wide pot over medium heat. Add the mustard, fenugreek and fennel seeds and the curry leaves and fry for 30 seconds, until the mustard seeds pop.
3. Add the onion, garlic and ginger and fry for 5–6 min until soft and golden. Stir in the curry paste and fry for 4–5 min, stirring often, until it darkens and the oil separates.
4. Pour in the tamarind water and the 600 ml water, add the aubergine and bring to the boil. Simmer for 5 min.
5. Slide in the fish head, okra, tomatoes and green chillies, spooning curry over the fish. Cover and simmer gently for 12–15 min, until the flesh by the gills flakes away from the bone.
6. Stir in the coconut milk and sugar and heat for 2 min without boiling hard. Taste and balance with salt or a little more tamarind; it should be sour, spicy and rich.
7. Serve the whole pot at the table with plenty of white rice, pulling the meat off the cheeks and collar as you go.

Tips

• Ask the fishmonger to halve and clean the head and remove the gills. Snapper is classic; salmon heads are cheaper and work well.
• Watch for small bones around the head, especially with children. Check that your curry powder has no wheat-based filler if you need it strictly gluten-free.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

The Meatmen Rasa Malaysia