Name: Fish Stew with Aromatics
Yield: Serves 6 to 8
Cuisine: Myanmar (Burma)
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons chopped or crumbled toasted Soybean Disk (see Cooking with Tua Nao), or substitute 2 teaspoons brown miso paste; 2 tablespoons salt; ½ cup coarsely chopped shallots; 3 to 3½ pounds cleaned whole fish (see the headnote), cut into steaks about ¾ inch thick and rinsed; 2 cups loosely packed Thai basil leaves, or a mix of basil and coriander leaves; Scant 2 tablespoons minced scallions; ¼ cup thinly sliced lemongrass; 2 tablespoons sliced turmeric root, or substitute 1 tablespoon ground turmeric; 1 cup tomato wedges; ½ cup sliced green cayenne chiles; 8 cups water; ¼ cup sliced ginger; ¼ cup coarsely chopped garlic; 2 tablespoons minced coriander roots, or roots and stems

Preparation info

Serves
6 to 8

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

Burma

By Naomi Duguid

Published 2012

About

This cross between a stew and a soup, called gaeng pla by the Shan, has a layered depth of flavor that makes it a real keeper. Starting with a paste of ginger, lemongrass, garlic, and shallots that perfumes the water the fish cooks in, the stew gets a balancing acid note from fresh tomato and a little heat from green chiles.

Use whatever fish you prefer, from freshwater options such as trout, tilapia, or pickerel to barramundi, snapper, haddock, or even salmon.

Serve