Sunday, January 9, 2011

Otah: 2nd Attempt

My first attempt in making otah was not a successful as the fish paste turned out rather tough. I guessed it was because I blended the fish meat using a blender which caused it to toughen. Also the taste was lacking in coconut milk.

This is the second attempt and I have sought help from a colleague's wife. She shared with me her Thai otah recipe.

This time round I used a fork to scrap off the meat from the mackerel. It was very easy to do that. With this method, I could feel the texture of the meat.

My hubby and I made this moulds out from pandan leaves so I can steam the otah with the fragrance of pandan leaves.


Recipe for 25 moulds
  • 300g of Batang fish meat (scrap using a fork)
  • 1 egg
  • 1.5 cups of coconut milk
  • 1 tsp of palm sugar / Gula Malacca
  • 3 tbsp of Fish sauce
  • 1 tbsp of curry chilli
  • Shredded chili and kaffir leaves
Steps:
  1. Mix coconut milk, sugar, fish sauce and chilli together in a big bowl.
  2. Add in egg and fish meat.
  3. Stir for 2 minutes.
  4. Let it rest in the refrigerator for 15 mins
  5. Fill the moulds or banana leaves and topped with chili and kaffir leaves (optional).
  6. Steam for 3 minutes.
  7. Enjoy!






New Year Dinner for Friends

We hosted our friends for dinner on New Year's Day.
We cooked up a decent french fare which I could happily say that everyone was impressed and satisfied. We were rather busy hence did not take much pictures.

The Menu

Brioche with herb butter
Prawn Bisque
Watermelon Granita
Cod Fish Fillet in Bochot Mussel Jus with Braised Cabbage
Mi Cuit Au Chocolate with Vanilla Ice-cream

Julia Child's Prawn Bisque

For those who read about Julia Child or watch "Julie and Julia" knows that Julia Child is infamous for bringing French cooking into the homes of the Americans. I bought her two recipe books and I find them very interesting to read. It is like she is speaking to you and sharing with you her passion in cooking. However, I like to say that the format of her recipes is extremely different to follow and unfriendly.

For my dear readers, I will post up the recipe of the delicious Prawn Bisque after I have tidy the recipe up. The soup if a must try. My guests had two servings each!