Fish curry
Serves 2-4
Ingredients
two medium sized fresh fish – gutted, whole (heads on)
a large onion
1/3 tspn of Thai green curry paste
1 large lemongrass (chopped in large pieces)
6 kaffir lime leaves or lime zest from one lime
2 400ml tins of coconut milk
3 tbsps Thai fish sauce
juice of one lime
a knob of ginger
a handful of fresh coriander leaves
Method
Chop the onion and pop it in the pan with some vegetable oil. When the onion is softened, add the ginger and cook for 30 seconds then add the coconut milk, curry paste, lemongrass, lime leaves and fish sauce. When the sauce has come back to the boil add the fish and simmer gently for about 15 minutes until the fish is cooked but succulent. Add the lime juice and coriander at the end.
Commentary
Variations
For this dish a wide range of fish will do, as long as it is fresh and sustainable. To this end, mackerel is particularly good. Similarly come fun can be had with the herbs. Thai basil, mint and peppermint are all refreshing leafy herbs that will serve to offset the spice If you are particularly keen on having it super spicy, add fresh chilli and garlic.
This is a wonderfully fresh dish as we are essentially poaching the fish in the coconut milk, a process that takes very little cooking. It is also highly nutritious as all of the goodness of the fish is captured in the broth.
Thai curries are nearly always made too spicy; they aggravate the gut rather than stimulating it. That is why the amount of curry paste in our recipe is relatively small. Instead, the aromatic component of the dish is gently enhanced by the onion, lemongrass, lime leaves and ginger.
This spicy component is nicely balanced by two refreshing ingredients, sour lime juice and aromatic fresh coriander leaf. Cool and sour compensate for spice to enhance the digestibility of the rich coconut broth.