Ingredients
- Lemongrass paste
- 200g young lemongrass, sliced
- 1 tbsp galangal, peeled and chopped
- 2 tbsp fresh turmeric, peeled and chopped
- 4 kaffir lime leaves, thinly sliced
- 4 garlic cloves, halved
- Peel of half kaffir lime, chopped
- 1 tbsp peeled and chopped rhizome*
- Chilli paste
- 200g dried large chillies, seeded
- 500ml warm water
- 1 tbsp sunflower oil
- Fish amok in banana leaf
- 5 tbsp lemongrass paste
- 2 tbsp chilli paste
- 250ml coconut cream
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- 8 kaffir lime leaves, thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp palm sugar
- Salt to taste
- 600g fish fillets, cut into large cubes
- 8 banana leaves, for baskets
- 1 handful roughly chopped silverbeet or Chinese broccoli leaves
- 4 tbsp coconut cream, for garnish
- Julienned red chillies, for garnish
Method
Lemongrass paste
In a mortar, pound lemongrass into a paste. Add remaining ingredients and pound until mixed.
Makes about 250g
*Peeled rhizome and prahok are available at most good Asian grocers.
Chilli paste
Soak chillies in water for five minutes. Drain and squeeze out excess water.
Chop chillies finely. In a wok, heat oil, add chillies and fry on medium heat for two to three minutes until fragrant. Cool and store in jar.
Makes about 250g
Fish amok in banana leaf
In a bowl, mix lemongrass and chilli pastes together. Add coconut cream, fish sauce, half the lime leaves, palm sugar and salt.
Mix well. Add fish and marinate for at least one hour.
Shape banana leaves into baskets (see below) using two for each. Place silverbeet leaves in the bottom of baskets. Add fish mixture. Steam for 10 minutes.
Garnish with coconut cream, lime leaves and chillies.
To make the baskets Cut the corners off a banana leaf to form an oval. On one end, fold both "corners" in to make a triangle. Fold the tip in towards the centre of the leaf and fasten with two cocktail sticks. Repeat at other end.
