WHB #114: Assam Pedas Ikan - Sour Spicy Fish

Daun Kesom (Vietnamese Coriander, Polygonum odoratum)

Today Mom made Assam Pedas Ikan, a Malay dish directly translated as “Sour Spicy Fish”. Every respectable Malay kitchen would have their own version of assam pedas. My mom’s version has the perfect balance of spicy and sour. Daun kesom is an essential ingredient for my mom’s assam pedas.

Daun Kesom, or Vietnamese Coriander, has a coriander-like smell with a clear lemony note. Although it is closely related to water pepper there is hardly any pungency present. In Singapore and Malaysia, the shredded leaf is an essential garnish for laksa, and so, the herb is also commonly referred to in Malay as daun laksa (aksa leaf). More information on this herb here and here.

Mom always uses fish for her assam pedas - usually fish steaks since fish fillet would be too fragile after being cooked in the spicy broth. Today, she used a medium sized snapper head. Yes, you read that correctly. I apologise if this may be hard for many of you to stomach. Some of you know that Singapore is known for our famous Chilli Crab. Well, another dish that is also very popular with locals and some daring tourists is the Fish Head Curry. Fish head dishes are not considered exotic or a novelty. It is easily found in most neighbourhood eateries. When I was in my early 20’s I stopped eating fish head because I was put off by it. But in recent years, I am back to fish head lovin’.

Assam Pedas Ikan
- Sour Spicy Fish

Fish head or fish steaks (e.g. Red Snapper)
2 heaped tspn of powdered tumeric
chilli paste
tamarind juice
4 slices of tamarid pieces
2 medium red onion, peeled and chopped into 6-8 wedges
okra
young eggplant (cut into small wedges)
3-4 stalks of daun kesom
salt
vegetable oil
hot water

Chilli Paste:
4 clove garlic
15 shallots
30 dried chillies (yes, that is not a typo)
1 tbspn of belacan (prawn paste)
1-2 cm of fresh ginger root
water

Tamarid Juice:
2 heaped tbspn of tamarind pulp
1-1.5 cups of hot water

Prepare chilli paste – You will notice that this paste is similar to the one used for sambal prawns, but with the addition of ginger. Roughly cut dried chillies with a kitchen scissors and pour enough hot water to cover the chillies. Leave for 10 mins and drain. Blend the chillies finely with 1 cup of fresh water, and all other ingredients.

Prepare tamarind juice - Soak pulp in hot water, squeeze out the juice and strain.

Now you are ready to cook the dish:
In a large saucepan, heat some oil and over medium heat, stir fry the onion wedges till fragrant. Add the chilli paste and stir fry till fragrant (about 20 minutes). Add tamarid juice, tamarid pieces and tumeric. Add fish and enough hot water to almost cover the fish. When the fish is almost cooked, add the okra, eggplants, daun kesom and salt (to taste). Serve hot with steamed jasmin rice.

This will be my contribution to the first Weekend Herb Blogging for 2008. WHB is a food blogging event sponsored by Kalyn's Kitchen where each week food bloggers around the world photograph and write about herbs, plants, veggies, or flowers, and on the weekend, a Recap with links to all the posts is published by the host for that week. This week’s host (WHB #114) is the founder of WHB, Kaylyn. Do drop by her blog to check out the Recap.

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More Singaporean foods:
Sambal Prawns
Black Glutinous Rice Porridge

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Back to Basics #1: Shepherd's Pie

More comfort food. This time, it's back to basics. A friend requested that I post some simple, classic and healthy recipes that she can easily do at home. She is also interested in meals that can be frozen. So here is the first "Back to Basic" recipe: Shepherd's Pie, sometimes referred to as Cottage Pie or Potato Pie, a traditional British dish made of a bottom layer of cooked mince meat and covered with mashed potato (with an optional top layer of cheese). Traditionally, lamb mince is used, but I prefer beef. If fish is used, it is called a Fisherman's Pie. In American, a varient of this pie is called a Cowboy Pie, also referred to as pâté chinois by the French Canadians. A vegetarian version is sometimes called a Shepherdess Pie.

This week's herb blogging is about yet another humble herb that we have in our garden - Thyme (Origin: Southern Europe).

Thyme is a aromatic herb which is part of the mint family. It is a herb that can be used with other herbs because it blends and enhances many other herbs without overpowering them. There are over a 100 varieties available, including lemon thyme, which combines the aroma of thyme with lemons. The one pictured here is the common or garden thyme which has a subtle woody aroma. Thyme is probably best known as one of the primary components (together with sprigs of parsley and bay leaf) of the classic bouquet garni.

Back to the pie: There are many recipes out there and many of you probably have you own family recipes that have been passed down through generations. The first time Ihad Shepherd's Pie was when my sister moved to England more than a decade ago. I couldn't get a hold of her recipe when I made this because she was on vacation so I used this recipe instead, which is a slight variation of a true classic Shepherd's Pie.

My adjustments to the recipe:

I used the leanest minced beef I could find, I added 2 cloves of mince garlic, 2 tbsp of Worcheshire sauce and about a cup of frozen peas to the meat and did not use any butter for the mash potato. We were also too impatient to wait for it to be baked so I put the pies under the grill instead of baking them. That's why the tops of the pies in the photo turned dark brown.

Verdict:

We both really enjoyed this. The meat layer was very flavoursome and a nice contrast to the fluffy mash potato topping. I also liked the cripsy bits of the potato. Quikong even said that I should make this more often. The addition of parsnips and horseradish in the mash potato really lifts up the dish.

For freezing:

Make more of the meat sauce and freeze for use at a later time. The mash potato topping can be easily whipped up when you are ready to make more pie.

This will be my submission to this week's WHB hosted by The Chocolate Lady from In Mol Araan.

Hot Stuff - Chickpea and Spinach Curry

Brrr..... it's such a cold, wet and windy day in Sydney. Fortunately, I am able to work from home today. Funny thing about winter is that I don't feel like exercising as much but I feel hungry all the time. Not such a good combination for the waistline....That's when a recipe like this comes in handy because it can satisfy my craving for wholesome food without the guilt and it's perfect for a cold day like today. Plus, since Quikong is not home for lunch, I can make it EXTRA spicy. This will also be my first submission for the Weekend Herb Blogging which was created by Kalyn, and hosted by Ulrike this week. Susan reminded me of how lucky I am that Quikong has planted a herb garden for me. So I have decided to blog about each herb from the garden, one at a time. I think that Quikong will actually appreciate this because it means that I will stop hassling him about "which one is the oregano again?". My excuse for not recognising the herbs is that I've only used dried forms of some herbs (e.g. thyme). Plus, I am used to calling herbs by their local names back in Singapore.

To me, curry is not complete without some coriander (or cilantro) thrown. My grandmother and mom used to add in extra coriander in their curries just for me. We don't tend to chop the leaves but throw them in stalks and all (with roots removed). All parts of the coriander is edible (including the roots). However, the fresh leaves and dried seeds are the most commonly used parts for cooking. You can learn more about coriander here.

(Hot) Chickpea and Spinach Curry

1 tspn oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 heaped tbspn of "special" curry powder*
1 tspn brown sugar
1 can chickpea, drained
1 can diced tomatoes
1 large carrot, diced
1 stalk of celery, diced
250g frozen spinach
as many chopped dried or fresh chillies as you like :-)
Salt flakes
Some hot water or vegetable stock
A bunch of coriander, roots removed

Over medium heat, fry the garlic and onion in the oil in a non-stick pot till soft and slightly golden. Add curry powder and continue to stir everything around till the spices have released their fragrance (about 5 minutes). Add all other ingredients and bring to a boil. Simmer till carrots are tender. Add enough hot water/stock for the desired consistency. Season with salt. Throw in the coriander at the very last, just before serving.

Serve with:
- Brown rice, basmati rice or naan.
- Pappadams (pictured in the background of the photo)
- Yougurt

* Try to use better quality curry powder from a specialty shop(not commercial brands). My mom sent me a packet of curry powder from Singapore and it is a blend of the following ingredients: Coriander seeds, cumin, tumeric, fennel seeds, chilli, cinnamon, cardamom, star anise and cloves.

Orechiette With Grilled Vegetables, Feta and Roasted Garlic Pesto

Believe it or not, I don't just eat desserts and cakes. But I do seem to blog much more about desserts and cakes so I thought I should balance things out a bit. This is a pasta dish that is simple to throw together because the oven does most of the work. I served the pasta with Janet's soft breadsticks, which were so quick and easy to make (thanks, Janet!).

Making your own pesto is worth the time because the freshness of the basil comes through. Fortunately, Quikong started a herb garden for me. This way, we always have a fresh supply of basil, which we use quite often in our cooking. I've used walnuts instead of pinenuts in the pesto for a change, and I was pleased with the result.

I enjoyed this so much that I will submit it to Ruth at Once Upon a Feast, who started the weekly food blogging event, Presto Pasta Nights.

Orechiette With Grilled Vegetables, Feta and Roasted Garlic Pesto

Fresh Orechiette

Vegetables suitable for grilling/roasting (e.g. pumpkin, eggplant, zucchini, bell peppers)

Roasted garlic pesto (recipe below)

Feta Cheese, cubed

To serve:

Roasted balsamic red onion (recipe below)

Feta Cheese, crumbled

Walnuts, chopped

1

Brush/spray sliced vegetables with a little olive oil to prevent them from drying out. Grill or roast vegetables till they are tender.

2

When the vegetables are almost ready, cook the pasta until it is al dente.

3

To assemble: Firstly, toss the drained pasta with the feta and pesto. Secondly, add the vegetables and take care not to stir too much because the pumpkin might get mushy.

4

Serve pasta topped with the quartered balsamic red onion, chopped walnuts, extra crumbed feta cheese and a few basil leaves.

Roasted Garlic Pesto
(Serves 4)

2 cups fresh basil

¼ cup walnuts, lightly toasted

½ cup freshly grated parmesan

1 head of roasted garlic

Place all ingredients, except oil, in a mortar and pound it till it forms a smooth paste. You can use a food processor of course but be careful not to overprocess (the basil will get bruised). Slowly add the oil until it is well combined. This can be stored up to a week in the fridge. You can replace walnuts with toasted pine nuts and omit the garlic for a more traditional pesto.

Balsamic-Roasted Red Onions

From Donna Hay's "Off the shelf: Cooking from the pantry

4 red onions

Balsamic vinegar

Sugar

Olive oil

Place 4 halved red onions, cut side up, on a lined baking tray. Loosen the onion layers with your fingers. Sprinkle with balsamic vinegar so that it gets between the onion layers. Sprinkle with sugar (I used brown sugar) and a little olive oil. Cover and bake in a preheated oven at 160 degrees C for 30 minutes. Remove the cover and bake a further 20 minutes or until slightly caramelised & golden. (these are yummy as a pizza topping).