Reef fish and bug tails in spiced coconut milk with fried shallots and coriander pesto

Name: Reef fish and bug tails in spiced coconut milk with fried shallots and coriander pesto
Cuisine: Australian
Ingredients: 600 g red emperor or coral trout fillets; 12 baby bok choy, blanched; 300 g green Moreton Bay bug tails; 3 kaffir lime leaves, shredded; 6 teaspoons Coriander Peanut Pesto; ¼ cup coriander leaves; 3 large red chillies, finely sliced; 1 tablespoon minced galangal; 2 teaspoons minced ginger; 3 teaspoons Fried Shallots; 1 litre coconut milk; 6 red shallots, sliced lengthwise; 6 kaffir lime leaves, shredded; 3 red bird’s-eye chillies, minced; 3 coriander roots, minced; 500 ml Prawn Stock; 100 ml fish sauce; 2 stalks lemongrass, minced; zest of 1 kaffir lime, minced; 75 ml strained lime juice

Preparation info

Difficulty
Medium

Appears in

Spice

By Christine Manfield

Published 1999

About

A tropical fish stew full of fragrant flavours and beautifully soft textures. Choose the best variety available — rouget, wrasse, hake, sea bass or halibut can be used in place of the red emperor or coral trout.

Ingredients

600 g red emperor or coral trout fillets
300 g green Moreton Bay bug tails

Oceania
Australia
Fish course
Pescatarian

Method

To make the spiced coconut milk, bring coconut milk to a boil, uncovered, in a wide, heavy-based saucepan for a few minutes. Add aromatics and simmer for a few minutes, then stir in stock and fish sauce and cook gently for 15 minutes. Strain through a fine-meshed sieve and add lime juice. Taste and adjust if necessary.
Bring spiced coconut milk to a boil in rin