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The Southeast Asian Table

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Fish Head Curry

Singapore

Step 1 of 9

Fish Head Curry — step 1 of 9

Rub the halved fish head all over with the 1 tsp turmeric and 1 tsp salt and set aside 15 minutes.

15 minutes15:00

Ingredients

4 servings

The fish

1 large fish head, about 2 lb (900 g), from a red snapper or grouper, cleaned and halved
1 tsp (2 g) ground turmeric
1 tsp (6 g) salt

The curry base

3 tbsp (45 ml) neutral oil or coconut oil
1 tsp (3 g) black mustard seeds
1 tsp (2 g) fenugreek seeds
12 fresh curry leaves
2 onions, sliced
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 in (5 cm) fresh ginger, minced
3 tbsp (24 g) fish or meat curry powder
1 tbsp (8 g) chilli powder, or to taste
1 tsp (2 g) ground turmeric
3 ripe tomatoes, quartered
3 tbsp (45 ml) tamarind concentrate, or 1/3 cup (80 ml) thick tamarind water
2 cups (475 ml) water
1 1/2 cups (360 ml) coconut milk
1 1/2 tsp (9 g) salt, or to taste

The vegetables

8 okra, trimmed
1 Asian aubergine, cut into wedges
2 fresh green chillies, slit

To serve

Steamed rice, or roti / French loaf for mopping
Lime wedges

Development draft. This is an untested development recipe from the cookbook project. It has not been kitchen-tested, and the quantities and timings are the author's working draft rather than a verified result.

The Southeast Asian Table

One hundred recipes from eleven Southeast Asian countries, with the sauces and pastes they are built on.

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