Fish Head Curry [咖喱鱼头]

Both T and I love fish-head curry served at Kampar Club so much. Simply love the strong aroma released from fried curry leaves, I am determined to recreate its aroma and taste. It tasted similar to fish head curry I had in Singapore (Jurong West area) but with extra hint of Malay ingredients.

Saw fresh curry leaves at Tesco yesterday, bought some straight away. Could not find fish head at Tesco, so went to wet market this morning to buy fresh fish head. Yes, I would never forget to ask fish monger to chop it into small pieces. I prefer serving size fish head instead of the halved fish head.

I cooked for two persons, but have some leftover in the pot. T is a small eater, so I supposed this recipe is just enough for two persons. I used blended curry spices from Indian spices stall, I can guess by the colour and aroma that there are chili, curry and turmeric. Oh well, they mixed in front of me ya. There was another spice, yellow-brownish in colour I think it was cumin but not very sure. Perhaps next time I should ask the lady boss. Hope she will let me know? So, for this recipe I left out that spice, no cumin in the pantry.

Ingredients (2 servings)

::Blend together::

1 cm Galangal (can be substituted with Ginger)

2 cm fresh turmeric*

2 bulbs shallot

3-4 cloves Garlic

5 Dried Chillies# (seeded, soaked and drained)

= = = = =

3 tbsp Cooking Oil

1 tbsp Belacan Kampung (shrimp paste)

10-15 Curry Leaves

2-3 tbsp Curry Powder

½ tbsp Chili powder# (omit this if using dried chillies)

1 tsp Turmeric Powder* (omit this if using fresh turmeric)

1 stalk Lemongrass, bruised

300gm Fish Head, chopped into serving size

100gm Okra, chopped

100gm Eggplant, chopped

100gm Long Bean, chopped

1 big Tomato, chopped

1 Onion, wedges

3-4 Tofu Puff, halved (optional)

1 red chilli (optional)

1 cup Coconut Milk

2 cups Water

Salt to taste Coriander for garnish

Method:

1. Heat oil in wok on low heat, fry eggplant till lightly browned. Set aside for later use.
2. In the same wok, stir in belacan and fried till aroma is released. Stir in blended ingredients and sauté till it turned light brown.
3. Bring together curry powder, chili powder and turmeric powder in a small bowl, and then add a bit of water to make smooth paste.
4. Add in curry paste into wok and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes, or until the oil is separated from the paste.
5. Add in curry leaves and lemongrass. Stir for another 1 minute or so. Add in water and bring to boil on medium heat.
6. Add in fish head, all vegetables and tofu puff. Once the fish is cooked, add salt to taste and the rest of coconut milk. Bring to boil then remove from heat, garnish and serve hot with steamed rice.