33. - Cambodia - Fish Amok and UFO's

amok  (əˈmʌk, əˈmɒk, əˈmʌk)

— n

1.                  a state of murderous frenzy

— adv

2.                  run amok  to run about with or as if with a frenzied desire to kill

                                                                                                                                      Collins Dictionary

While shopping for the ingredients for this, I was swiftly reminded that I stick out like a blonde in an Asian food store. Too often I don’t know how to find the food on the shelves, what it should look, taste or smells like. Sometimes I can’t even pronounce it.

During my recent re-encounter/reunion with the ethnic food store I was looking for ‘galangal’. Google tells me that it’s a member of the ginger family. I could see nothing that looked like a relative but took a guess and picked up two UFO’s  (Unidentified Food Objects). Below are both specimens, neither of which I actually believe is galangal, both of which I put into the curry paste. I’m just that bad ass.  

I had trouble getting the banana leaves too and found the last (gone off) ones in Dublin. I am not a talented Cambodian banana bowl maker. My banana bowls were bowls in spirit but not in function.

Fish Amok                                                                                                                             Rating: 7/10

Like being hit between the eyes with lemongrass, being kicked in the teeth with ginger and slapped in the face with a great big lime leaf. Curry paste so intensely flavoured it made my eyes water. Next time I’d lay off the lemongrass a bit. I can still taste it.

Serves 2

Curry Paste or Kroeung

­2 fresh chillies, seeds left in

8 cloves of garlic

1 red onion

1 tsp tumeric powder

4 sticks of lemongrass

Chunk of UFO specimen A

Chunk of UFO specimen B

Chunk of ginger

6 lime leaves

(1 tbsp shrimp paste, I couldn’t find this anywhere and left it out)

A few glugs of oil

The Rest (Amok)

2 fillets of hake, skin removed

can of coconut milk

tbsp sugar

1 tbsp fish sauce

2 eggs

Banana Bowl

2 banana leaves

cocktail sticks

fresh red chilli and lime leaves to garnish

Roughly chop and blend all the curry paste ingredients in a blender. Fry the curry paste in a little oil for about five minutes. Add the coconut oil, sugar, fish paste and simmer for a further ten minutes or so (it tastes better than it looks). Leave to chill.  

While this is chillin you can make the banana bowls. (Or not. You can screw the banana bowls and just use a normal bowls). Make them anyway you can. I cannot give advice on this beyond fold up the corners, thread with cocktail sticks and keep your fingers crossed. I made an external tinfoil bowl as backup. I advise you do the same.

Dice the fish into bite sized pieces. Once the coconut mixture is cool beat in the eggs and mix in the fish. Divide into the banana bowls (or normal bowls), and steam for 20-25 minutes until the amok has just set. Coat the fish skin in some seasoned flour and fry in some oil until crispy. Chop and scatter on the amok with some sliced fresh red chilli and lime leaves. Serve with steamed rice and eat with chopsticks (even if the Cambodians don’t.) 

No. 22 - Could Have Benin Another Country!

My ever-supportive boyfriend groaned (again), when he learned that we were having stew (again). When he heard coconut, he winced, then at the mention of peanut butter, he had a good rummage through the fridge. He was thinking more along the lines of steak with a mushroom and red wine sauce and a few spuds - his supposed specialty. Steak however, is a distant memory from the days before Culinisation ruled our culinary world. (Instead we’re spending four euro on a yucca, but that’s tomorrows story.) So yes, in name, it was a boring Beninese beef stew. In reality it was a whole lot different. A creamy coconut, peanut and spicy beef tagine slash curry, if you don’t mind. The best way to describe it? A cross between beef satay and Thai curry. In central Africa? Am I missing something here?

Oh. But. It. Was. Yum.

Creamy, peanuty, spicy and oh so filling - this was one of the better, more indulgent Culinisations, and it definitely won Luke over. Not that I ever had any doubts. Nor did he have a choice. For all intents and purposes, however, I have renamed this dish, because whoever translated from Benin French to English did a woeful job. I call it, Creamy Coconut, Peanut and Beef Benin Curry Tagine. It just sort of rolls off the tongue.

Note: I left my camera charger in Sligo (I hope), so I have been very stingy on the photos because I need the battery to last all week. 

Creamy Coconut, Peanut and Beef Benin Curry Tagine.

So it’s a bit Chinese, a bit Thai, a bit Indian and a bit African I guess (although call me ignorant, but African least I would say). Benin, it seems, is having a major identity crisis and to top it all off, I decided to serve this Benin dish with a side of broccoli. Not meaning to bring another country into it, but when in Rome.

Serves 2 with leftovers

1 potato, peeled and cut into cubes

400g beef, cut into chunks

a little oil for frying

2 onions, chopped

3-4 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 tbsp of curry powder (African if you can get it, I couldn’t)

cayenne pepper to taste, a tsp or so

1 tbsp flour

salt to taste

3 tbsp crunchy peanut butter

half a tin of coconut milk

splash of water, to loosen

1 red chilli, whole

Rice and/or naan to serve

Heat up the oil in any pan, pot or tagine that has a tight fitting lid. Brown off the meat and set aside. In the remaining juices, fry the onions and garlic until softened. Add the flour, cayenne, curry powder, peanut butter and salt. Heat for a minute and then pour in the coconut milk. Loosen with half a cup or so of water and return the meat to the pan along with a whole red chilli. Simmer until the beef is tender. This may take up to 2 hours depending on the cut of beef. Stir regularly to ensure that it doesn’t stick.

While the “stew” is simmering away, cook the potatoes in some salted water and allow to cool. Once cooled, fry on all sides in a little olive oil until crispy. Stir the potatoes into the “stew” twenty minutes before end of cooking time.

Serve with rice and/or bread (and some broccoli, if like us (me), you want your five a day).

No. 18 - Holy Mackerel it's Barbados!

 “Thou shall have a fishy, on a little dishy,

Thou shall have a fishy, when the boat comes in.” 

I’m not the keenest of fishermen, but as I have never been a keen hunter either (I’m more gatherer, if that), fishing is the only way I can catch dinner that has a head and a heartbeat. I don’t consider mussels and razor clams etc. to have neither head nor heartbeat. But what better way to capture the sun, shores and seafood of Barbados, than by trawling off the west coast of Ireland in search of some fresh, flapping fish of our own. Ok, so it’s not exactly comparable, but we do our best.  And sure enough, four hours later we returned with fifteen once lively mackerel, and one whopper fellow (caught by Luke) big enough to make a trout blush. 

Lazing about on a boat all day, wiggling a bit of line and eating a cheese and tomato sandwich also makes fishing a close contender for my favorite sport. The only sport that unfortunately leads to weight gain as opposed to weight loss. Also I hear that it is a sport where women hold a lot of the world records, so we were optimistic that I’d be the star fisherman and catch at least a couple - and that I did. Although I caught two or three mackerel (here fishy fishy fishy fishy didn't seem to work), my finest catch was Luke and Leo (whose line got tangled up with mine numerous times). Two very fine specimens, even if I do say so myself! However don’t worry ladies, there’s plenty more fish in the sea.

Grilled Mackerel

Needless to say the mackerel needs little to nothing done to it. Get your friends and loved ones to gut as many mackerel as you can catch, heads on. About two per person should do it depending on there size. Do nothing else but throw them on the barbeque until nice and blackened. Squirt with lemon juice, salt and pepper. Don’t forget to taste the eyes, although they taste like fish they break apart like dust in your mouth, not too appetizing.

Barbados Curried Sweet Potatoes                 

This is just a little something to accompany the mackerel. This also delivered my ever-increasing desire for a hit of heat (extra hot sauce included), whilst the sweetness of the potatoes goes well with the oily fish. I did a simple green bean and potato salad too. The recipe’s doesn’t feature hear because its just potatoes and beans dressed in lemon, vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper and mustard, lots of mustard.

Serves 6

5 sweet potatoes

the juice of 1 large orange

2 tbsp brown sugar

2 tbsp ginger powder

2 tbsp curry powder

1 tsp chili powder

Wrap the potatoes in foil and bake for 30 minutes at 180 degrees. While they’re baking combine all of the other ingredients in a bowl.

Cut the potatoes into thick rounds and line an oiled baking dish. Pour over the sauce, cover in foil and bake for a further 20 minutes. Remove the foil continue baking until the top is nice and browned and the flesh of the potato is squidgy.

No. 17 - Bangladesh - Vinda-moo!

I’ll keep this one short and spicy today. I thought that a curry made with beef was a complete food faux pas – two foods that should never share a pot, just don’t belong, like, I don’t know, spag spud. I can knock it because I’ve tried it and truth be told, no, it’s not bad, (I accept bolognese on a baked potato) but come on? Spag spud? It’s just plain wrong. Oh, here we go, even worse! Spag rice. Please. I take this type of thing very seriously and that is saying something because there are very (very) few things that I won’t eat together. Icecream and chips anyone? Oh and curry, cheese, coleslaw and chips is a solid classic.

However I can sleep sound tonight knowing that, beef and curry not only, no longer belong in the category “food not eaten together” but that they are a match made in curry heaven. Bangladesh (why didn’t I think of that). Beef curry, cow and curry, finally in the same sentence! Kosher beef mind, but you can’t have everything.

This is your basic vindaloo, Bangladesh stylee. I couldn’t resist the temptation of adding a tin of tomatoes though, but I think that tomato makes all the difference to any curry. This vindaloo gets your taste buds running riot, like that fig roll ad in reverse; as hot as you like and perfect extinguished with a beer so cold it hurts. Perfect for these hot summer nights.

Beef Vindaloo

The only problem with beef in a curry is how long it needs to be stewed before it becomes meltingly tender. I bought really cheap tough meat (nothing wrong with that) and it took three hours and plenty of patience to get it where I wanted it.  The smell that this vindaloo wafts, is a mouth-watering force to be reckoned with, so be prepared to suffer the wait. You know it’s worth it.

Feeling hot, hot, hot.

Serves 2 greedy people

400g beef, cubed

I small onion, finely chopped

3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

oil, for frying

a knob of ginger, finely chopped

1 tsp cumin

1 ½ tsp coriander

1 tsp tumeric

a heaped tsp wholegrain mustard

2 tsp cayenne pepper, add less if you require less heat

½ tsp  black pepper

1 tsp salt

2 tbsp white vinegar

2 chili’s, cut in half lengthways, seeds in of course

1 tin of chopped tomatoes

½ tin of water

Fry the onion, garlic, ginger, and chili in a pan until the onions are soft. Line up your spices and start bunging them in. Let them fry for a couple of minutes and then add the beef, tomatoes and water. Cover and simmer until the meat is completely tender. Serve with the usual, rice, naan and garlicky yogurt and an ice cold beer.

No. 16 - Bahrain and the Night of the Chicken Machboos!

Another home-house rendition of Culinisation. This time Bahrain brought together my family and the so-called WAG’s, who made the journey to Sligo last weekend for Buckfest 2011. On the night of the Chicken Machboos, the wine was certainly flowing. There was wine, emergency wine and then, emergency wine and beer for the emergency wine. Somewhere into the emergency wine for the emergency wine, as we sat huddled under blankets outside my house, we spotted a UFO (an unidentified fixed object). It was down by the water and it glowed with a grey/whitish light that suddenly went out. After some squeals and hand grasping, we noticed that the silhouette could still be seen, jutting up into the horizon. It’s difficult to say how much time passed before we plucked up the courage to, armed with our t-light lanterns, take a closer look.

I managed, against the girl’s better judgment, to wade through the sand, sludge and stones to discover what was, of course, a tree. This still doesn’t explain the light though. Da troot is still out there.

Chicken Machboos

Chicken Machboos (chicken and rice) has all the ingredients of a curry (every spice under the sun and some), yet its flavors are far more subtle. You can taste all of the spices because there is little or no heat to overpower them. I shouldn’t even call it a curry of course. If it’s a curry that you want, this is not it. If you crave fire, extinguished with an ice-cold beer, wait couple of days until Bangladesh. If you are sick of ordering curry’s that make you sweat buckets, eyes water and you can’t understand why anyone would ever endure such a burning pain for every mouthful, go with the Machboos.

Machboos is really simple to make and is essentially a heatless curry that has rice cooked in it, kind of like a biryani. Like with all of these eastern countries, you need a stocked spice rack, but if you don’t already have one, I would recommend going out and buy one of everything. You may think, what is the point in buying a certain spice when a recipe only requires a tiny amount? Trust me, if you buy them, you’ll use them for everything. Another perk is you’ll be able to make a variety of dishes in the future without having to buy many ingredients. All I needed to buy for this was chicken and some coriander. Not bad. You’ve got to love a one pot wonder too.

Another ingredient this recipe requires is buharat spice mix, which is unique to Bahrain. Turns out I went through the mix, and the ingredients in a buharat spice mix are spice for spice the exact same as your good old curry powder. This is one spice I wouldn’t bother buying especially for this dish.

Serves 5

5 chicken legs, cut into drumsticks and thighs

3 onions, finely chopped

enough curry powder to marinade the chicken

1 chilli, deseeded and chopped

a chunk of ginger, chopped

1 tsp. cumin

½ tsp. cinnamon

2 cardamon pods, whole

1 ½ tsp. turmeric

2 ½  cups of long grain rice

1 tin of chopped tomatoes

salt

5 cups of water or chicken stock. (I just threw in a stock cube)

juice of ½ lemon

oil for frying

lemon wedges to serve

coriander leaves to serve

In a large bowl, cover the chicken pieces with curry powder. Fry the chicken in a deep saucepan until browned on all sides and set aside. Fry the onion, ginger and chili in the remaining oil with all of the additional spices for a couple of minutes. Return the chicken to the pan with a tin of chopped tomatoes and a cup of the chicken stock or water. Simmer for 45 minutes over a low heat until the chicken is cooked.

Add the rice and remaining chicken stock or water to the pan and simmer until the rice is cooked. Stir in the juice of half a lemon. Serve with coriander, lemon wedges and chutney. Yum.

No. 11 - Arubaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

I’m going to keep this short and sweet today. I’m still recovering from Skippy’s Aussie Barbecue last night (I did this recipe last week by the way), so thinking about food, talking about food, writing about food, just about anything but actually eating food is the last thing on my mind. Skippy didn’t quite make it in time but you’ll hear all about it in due course. By the way I am particularly proud of the title of this blog entry!

Upon researching the cuisine of Aruba I was faced with the prospect of yet another stew (its all these Caribbean islands), so you can imagine my excitement. What I fancied was a proper curry, and with India still a long way away, I managed to find one on the website, visitarbuba.com (you can check if you don't believe me). A proper curry, maybe not, but at least it gave me the excuse to make one. The recipe called for goat, water, curry powder, an onion and little else. For fear of ending up with a chip shop curry with some goat floating in it (although not a stew, it wasn’t exactly what I had in mind), I added a couple extra spices and a tin of tomatoes to boot. The result was a tasty curry that hit the spot but I couldn’t claim that it’s an authentic Aruban dish and to be honest, I don’t really care. Sometimes you just need a curry.

Now back to my hangover.

Goat Curry

10 goat chops

1 clove of garlic, minced 


2 tomatoes, quartered 


2 onions, chopped 


1 tin of chopped tomatoes

3 scallions, chopped 


1 chili, chopped


3 tbsp curry powder.

1 tbsp cumin

1 tbsp ground coriander

1 tbsp turmeric

Throw everything except the tinned tomatoes in a bowl and marinade for a half hour. Take out the meat and fry it in a couple tablespoons of oil until browned. Then add the rest of the marinade ingredients, the tin of tomatoes. Fill up the empty tin with water and bung that in too. Bring to the boil and simmer for 2 hours. Serve with yogurt, rice and naan bread. Perfectly Aruban.