Sambal Stingray

叁峇魔鬼鱼

Ingredients

1 slice of stingray (550g)

A few pieces of banana leaves ( blanched in hot water for a minute)

A few pieces of tumeric leaves (blanched in hot water forca minute)

140g shallots

5 cloves garlic

40g dried shrimps (chopped into small pieces, then soaked for 30minutes)

Dried chilli (around 10 pieces, increase/reduce quantity depending on the spiciness you want, de-seed and rehydrate for 30minutes)

Fresh chilli (around 5 pieces, increase/reduce quantity depending on the spiciness you want, de-seed)

3 stalks of lemongrass (white/tender part only, about 5-6 cm from the base/roots, cut into small pieces)

3g belachan (toasted in wok until dried and crumbly)

5g galangal (blue ginger)

10g tumeric (yellow ginger)

6 candlenuts

2 tablespoon brown sugar

Juice from 6 limes

Method

1. Use mortar and pestle to pound shallots and garlic until they are broken and fine. Transfer the meshed shallots and garlic to the wok.

2. Place the rest of the spices (chilli, candlenut, lemongrass, toasted belachan, galangal, tumeric) into the mortar and pound until you get a paste.

3. Add one tablespoon of oil into wok. Stir fry shallots and garlic mix until fragrant.

4. Add the paste from step 2 into wok. Stir fry for 5 minutes or until the oil is released from the lemongrass and chilli. If you are using a lot of chilli, stir fry until the paste turn dark red. Turn off heat.

5. In a separate wok/pan, add 2 tablespoon oil and stir fry the shrimps until frangrant. Then add the shrimps (including the oil) to the wok with the spice paste (also called "rempah"). Turn on heat to medium and mix until well combined. 

6. Add lime juice to the rempah and mix in. Add brown sugar and mix in. Do a taste test and adjust seasoning (e.g. salt, lime juice). Turn off heat.

7. Lay the banana leaf in the wok/pan, and place the tumeric leaf on the banana leaf. Spread 1/3 of the rempah on the tumeric leaf. Place the stingray on the rempah. Cover the wok and grilled for 5 to 8 minutes under medium heat. 

8. Prepare another banana leaf and place tumeric leaf on top. Spread 1/3 of the rempah on the leaf. Once step 7 is done, transfer the stingray to this set of banana and tumeric leaves. Flip the stingray so that the side that was cooked with the rempah in step 7 is facing up. Coat the remaining 1/3 rempah on the stingray. Cover the wok and turn on heat to medium. Grill for 5 to 8 minutes. Insert a chopstick/skewer into the thickest part of the stingray flesh to check that the meat is cooked (if your stingray is thick, you need to increase the cooking time).

7. Transfer the stingray (including banana/tumeric leaves to serving plate and serve hot.