Name: Fish Grilled in Banana Leaves with Tamarind Chili Sauce
Yield: Makes 4 to 6 servings as part of a multi-dish meal
Cuisine: Malaysian
Ingredients: 4 piece Banana leaves, 12 inches (5 cm.) by 2 feet long (about 1 package of frozen leaves); 1 Tbsp. Malaysian shrimp paste (belacan), toasted; ¼ cup (¼ oz. / 7 g.) Dried red chilies, stems and seeds removed; ¼ tsp. Ground turmeric; 3 cloves Garlic, roughly chopped; 5 (about ¼ lb) Long red chilies or other hot red chilies, roughly chopped; 6 med Shallots, roughly chopped; 8 to 12 Kaffir lime leaves, bruised; 1 lb. (454 g. Firm fish (four 4 oz. / 113 g. portions) such as tilapia, sea bass, or skate (no thicker than 1 inch (2.5 cm.); 5 Candlenuts or macadamias; ¼ tsp. Kosher salt; ¼ cup Vegetable oil; 2 to 3 medium Limes (Calamansi or Key if available), cut into Southeast Asian style wedges (pg. 108); ½ cup Sliced onions, about ⅛ inch (0.3 cm.) thick; ¼ tsp. Granulated sugar

Preparation info

Makes
4 to 6
servings as part of a multi-dish meal

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

Southeast Asian Flavors

By Robert Danhi

Published 2008

About

My friend Lui brought her sister Veronica Ang Liew Kee, a seasoned Singaporean cook, over to teach show us the fine points of some of her best dishes. This recipe, and the Chicken rice, owe a debt of gratitude to Lui and Veronica’s tutelage.

The juicy skate (called stingray in Asia) holds up well to intense flavors of the spice paste. Its sometimes-sharp flavor is calmed by the sweet, spicy, sour chili paste used here. Although it’