Burmese Fish and Tomato Curry

Method9 steps · about 50 min

1. 1

   Step 1: Toss fish with ½ tsp turmeric and 3/4 tsp salt. Let it sit while you prepare the rest of the curry.

   Uses 500 g white fish fillet · ¾ tsp salt for fish · ½ tsp turmeric for fish

2. 2

   Step 2: Make the herb paste: If using a food processor, blend lemongrass (1 stalk), garlic (6 cloves), ginger (1 piece) and chilies until it resembles a rough paste. Add the shallots (¾ cup) and process briefly just to break down the shallots, and you should end up with a rough herb mix. If using a mortar and pestle, first pound the lemongrass and chilies until the lemongrass is broken apart into small pieces (it's important that you slice the lemongrass thinly first or you'll have a hard time breaking it down in the mortar). Add garlic and ginger, and pound into a rough paste. Add shallots and just crush them to break apart all the layers and bruise them.

   Uses ¾ cup shallots, chopped · 6 cloves garlic, chopped · 1 piece ginger · 1 stalk lemongrass · Thai chilies, to taste

3. 3

   Step 3: In a heavy-bottomed pot, add enough oil to cover the bottom and add the herb mix. Add 1/8 tsp salt and saute for a few minutes until the shallots are soft and translucent.

   Uses enough neutral oil to cover pot bottom · ⅛ tsp salt for aromatics · shallots garlic ginger lemongrass and chilli processed or pounded coarsely

4. 4

   Step 4: Add shrimp paste and mush it to mix well with the herbs and let it fry in the oil for a minute.

   Fry shrimp paste · 1 minUses 1 tsp fermented shrimp paste or gapi (if you like strong shrimp paste flavour you can add more, if you don’t have it, just add more fish sauce) · herb mix sauteed in neutral oil with one-eighth teaspoon salt until shallot translucent

5. 5

   Step 5: Add paprika (1 ½ tsp) and the other ½ tsp turmeric and saute for 15 seconds.

   Fry powdered spices · 1 minUses 1 ½ tsp paprika · remaining ½ tsp turmeric · shrimp paste fried one minute with softened herbs

6. 6

   Step 6: Add the tomatoes, fish sauce (1 Tbsp), tamarind, and stir to mix with the herbs. Cover and let it simmer over low heat for about 15 minutes or until the tomatoes break down into a soupy curry sauce.

   Simmer tomatoes · 15 minUses 4 cups diced roma tomatoes (about 8 tomatoes) · 1 Tbsp fish sauce (adjust this amount depending on how much shrimp paste you add) · 2 tbsp tamarind juice · herbs shrimp paste paprika and remaining half teaspoon turmeric briefly fried

7. 7

   Step 7: Taste the sauce for balance of flavours, and if you feel it needs a little sweetness to balance, adding the sugar (1 tsp). (I find you usually need the sugar for most standard grocery store tomatoes, but if you have really ripe, sweet, in-season tomatoes, you may not need the sugar.)

   Uses 1 tsp of sugar, or as needed · tomatoes simmered fifteen minutes with fish sauce tamarind and spices until soupy

8. 8

   Step 8: Bring the sauce to a full boil, add the marinated fish and stir so it is completely submerged. Cover and simmer on medium-low heat for 3 minutes, then turn off the heat and keep the lid on.

   Simmer fish covered · 3 minUses 500 g fish with three-quarter teaspoon salt and half teaspoon turmeric · cooked tomato curry tasted and optionally balanced with sugar

9. 9

   Step 9: Leave the fish covered in the residual heat for 7 minutes, then check that it is cooked through. If needed, return to gentle heat until done. Taste and adjust seasoning, garnish with chopped cilantro and serve with cooked rice.

   Finish fish in residual heat · 7 minUses Chopped cilantro for garnish · ready cooked rice for serving · fish submerged in boiling sauce and simmered covered three minutes before heat turned off