Chinchards in Paprik Sauce

Instead of black tilapia we used fried chinchards (chencaru) instead, as my husband does not take fresh water fish. We fried the chinchards without removing its thick layer of outer skin. My niece Shazana helped prepare the Paprik Sauce, as normally found in Thai restaurants.

Method:

2 onions, 5 cloves garlic, 2.5 cm ginger, 2.5 cm galangal, 2.5 cm fresh turmeric root were pounded.
All pounded ingredients were lightly fried in a saucepan. When fragrant, 3 tabsp of chilli paste was added and the frying continued. A stalk of lemon grass was crushed and added with 5 sprigs of kaffir lime leaves. 700 ml water and 3 tabsp of Thai fish sauce were added. The juice of two big limes (limau nipis) was squeezed into the pan. 2 tabsp sugar was added. If the sauce is not thick enough you can a little chilli sauce to thicken it. Add more lime if the sauce is not sour enough.

Two tomatoes cut into 8, 1 sliced fresh chilli, half green capsicum sliced, were added to the sauce.
You may also add sprigs of Chinese celery (daun Sup) to add flavour to the sauce.

The cooked sauce is then poured over the fish and eaten with hot white rice.

Tonight, my brother from Alor Star and his family visited us.

We had the above, plus fried black tilapia in plum sauce as done in an earlier dinner with red tilapia. I think red tilapia tastes better. We also has grilled chicken and a kerabu of long beans and cucumber for dinner.

Only the rice remains as a leftover. It will be made into fried rice for breakfast.

Earlier today we all congregated at my cousin's house in Sunway Damansara. Efi had just moved into the townhouse and we had a little housewarming and "doa selamat"(prayer for safe passage ). Her parents and several aunts, uncles, greataunts and great uncle, cousins, and a nephew ( all from my side of the family from Alor Star) were there. Later some of Efi's friends turn up.

The menu for the housewarming was scrumptuous tomato rice with fried chicken, beef and mixed vegetable curry, chicken in tomato curry and mixed fruit rojak.