Haw mok pla

Adapted from Marion’s Thailand

A Thai dish of fish in red curry sauce steamed in banana leaf. The mother-in-law should be impressed.

Difficulty

moderate

Special requirements

Banana leaves

Yield

1000 g (servings 4 )

Ingredients

Weight

Volume

Procedure

Banana leaves; wiped with a damp cloth, pat dry and cut into 8 x 20 cm rounds

Toothpicks, broken in half to make little skewers

To assemble cups, stack 2 rounds together. Make a small pleat in the round and secure the pleat with a skewer. Make 3 more pleats to form a square cup. Repeat to make 4 cups. Set aside.

Thai red curry paste for fish and shellfish

½ cup

Rice flour

9 g

1 tbsp

Salt

4 g

¾ tsp

Sugar

4.2 g

1 tsp

Eggs, fresh

100 g

2 large

Coconut milk

160 g

¾ cup

Fish sauce

60 g

¼ cup

Whisk to combine.

Firm white fish, such as snapper or ling

400 g

1 fillet

Add to curry paste mixture B and use a wooden spoon to stir vigorously until thickened, about 4 minutes. Set aside.

Coconut milk

80 g

⅓ cup

Rice flour

3 g

1 tsp

Salt

0.8 g

⅛ tsp

Combine in a small saucepan over low heat and whisk to thicken, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and set aside.

Cabbage, thinly sliced

100 g

1½ cup

Divide evenly in the base of each banana leaf cup A.

Add an equal amount of fish mixture C to each cup.

Spoon an equal amount of coconut milk mixture D into each cup.

Place cups in a steamer and cover. Cook until the fish is completely opaque, about 15 minutes.

Basil, thai, leaves only, sliced

6 g

8 leaves

Coriander, fresh, leaves only

4 g

¼ cup

Kaffir lime leaves, thinly sliced

Chilli, red, long; deseeded and thinly sliced

6 g

2 medium

Garnish.

Original: 2013. Adapted: 2014.

Notes

Buy fresh or preserved banana leaves at Thai and Asian grocers.

Fresh banana leaves can be stiff. If leaves crack when pleated, the leaves need to be softened. To soften, briefly wave sections of the leaves over the flame of a gas burner or heat quickly on a barbecue. Banana leaves preserved in vacuum-sealed packs will already be soft. If you can’t find banana leaves, use small ramekins to hold the fish mixture instead.

Making ahead

Prepare the red curry paste.

Fold the banana leaves to shape.

Food pairings

Serve with steamed rice.

Nutrition

Serving size 250 g; calories 391.4 kcal, kilojoules 1636.8 kJ, protein 12 g, carbohydrates 16 g, sugar 9.8 g, fat 31.6 g, saturated fat 25.3 g, unsaturated fat 5.8 g, trans fat 0 g, fiber 3.9 g, cholesterol 174.2 mg,

Type curry

Author bhsimon

Yield

Servings

Serving size 250 g

Serve	Per serve
Energy (kcal)	391.4
Energy (kJ)	1636.8
Protein (g)	12
Fat (g)	31.6
Carbs (g)	16
Sugars (g)	9.8
Fiber (g)	3.9
Sodium (mg)	3355.8
Cholesterol (mg)	174.2

Full details