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    Home » Recipes » Main Dish

    East Timor Ikan Pepes (Fish in Curry Sauce)

    May 7, 2015 By Darlene at International Cuisine

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    A whole fish in a curry and tamarind sauce from East Timor

    This East Timor Ikan Pepes is a whole fish cooked in a spicy curry and tamarind sauce.  The fish is first steamed in a banana leaf and then grilled for that wonderful smoky flavor that only a grill can provide. Cooking  a whole fish with the head on can be a little intimidating at first, but once over it, you can savor it, as it is mighty tasty!.  Serve with some white rice for a lovely East Timorese meal.

    East timor Ikan pepes

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    4 from 2 votes

    East Timor Ikan Pepes (Fish in Curry Sauce)

    Course Main Dish
    Cuisine East Timor
    Prep Time 15 minutes
    Cook Time 26 minutes
    Total Time 41 minutes
    Servings 4
    Author International Cuisine

    Ingredients

    • 2 lb whole fresh Red Snapper or similar fish
    • Banana leaves
    • For Curry paste
    • 1 Tablespoon tamarind pulp soaked 5 minutes.
    • 2 Tablespoons warm water
    • 6-10 large chili’s chopped (use whatever chili you like, I used fresno’s and it was quite spicy but delicious)
    • 1 stem lemongrass only the inner part of the bottom 10 cm, thinly sliced
    • 5 candlenuts macadamia nuts can be substituted
    • 1 small ripe tomato
    • 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
    • 1/2 teaspoon dried shrimp paste
    • 1 Tablespoon finely chopped palm sugar brown sugar can be substituted
    • 1/2 cup loosely packed basil leaves
    • For fish pre marinade:
    • 1 lime sliced in half
    • 1 teaspoon salt

    Instructions

    • Score the fish several times and marinate it with salt and lime rubbed into the surface.
    • Grind all of the curry ingredients in a processor till they are smooth (about 2 minutes)
    • Rinse the banana leaves and place about 1/3 of the curry in the bottom of the sheet of banana leaf.
    • Rub about 1/3 of the curry into the belly of the fish.
    • Ladle the remaining 1/3 of the curry over the fish and seal up the “packet”.
    • Use soaked string as necessary to seal the packet.
    • Steam for 20 minutes in a bamboo steamer
    • I would highly recommend using a fish grill plate as the fish will be tender and fall apart easily
    • Grill for an additional 6 minutes
    • Unwrap the packet and serve over rice with chopped basil.

     

    More East Timor

    • East Timor Appetizer
    • East Timor Batar Da'an (Pumpkin and Corn Dish)
    • East Timor Rujak (Fruit Salad)
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    Filed Under: East Timor, Main Dish, Recipes

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