Try this tasty Monkfish prawn laksa with egg noodles, inspired by my travels around Malaysia. Perfect for dinner parties!

 

INGREDIENTS

Laksa Paste Ingredients

15 dried red chilli (soak in warm water for 10 mins)

3 fresh red chilli

10 shallots

6 cloves garlic

10cm fresh galangal

8 Kaffir lime leaf

1 tsp fresh turmeric

4 stalks lemongrass (bottom half)

2 tbsp shrimp paste

 

Ground Spice Mix

4 tsp coriander seeds

2 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp black peppercorns

 

Ingredients for Curry Laksa Soup

30 large raw king prawns (shell & head on)

4 chicken thighs on bone

2 large monkfish tails

8 large yellow egg noodle cakes

30 pieces deep fried tofu balls

3 cans coconut milk

750g bean sprouts

15 baby corn

1 small bunch coriander (garnish)

4 large red chilli (garnish)

200ml vegetable oil

5 fresh limes

20ml fish sauce

sugar to taste

METHOD

1. Put all the laksa paste ingredients into a blender and blend until pureed
2. Heat a frying pan and toast the spices on a medium heat for 1 minute, cool and grind in a spice grinder until fine
3. Add both the laksa paste and ground spices together, heat a large saucepan, add oil and cook the paste over medium heat for a minimum of 10 minutes and is fragrant
4. Boil water and add to a large mixing bowl, put the egg noodles in to rehydrate, cover for 10 minutes, remove from water and rinse under cold water, put in colander and set aside for later
5. Prepare the fish / meat: remove heads and shells from prawns, de-bone chicken thighs, de-bone monkfish tails.
6. Boil 4 litres water and boil all the above shells, heads, bones and tails, boil gently for at least 30 minutes to create a stock.
7. Slice and de-vein prawns, cut chicken thighs into thin strips and slice monkfish into bite size pieces.
8. Chop baby corn into bite size pieces, chop coriander, slice red chilli’s diagonally
9. Blanch bean sprouts in boiled water
10. Sieve the soup base to remove all the bones and shells, return to a large saucepan
11. Add coconut milk, fried tofu balls, baby corn, chicken for 5 minutes, remove these and put aside ready for assembly of the bowls
12. Monkfish, prawns to be added to boiling soup base and cooked for 1 minute, prawns turned pink, monkfish is white. Do not overcook, otherwise the texture will chewy and hard. Take out from soup base
13. Taste soup base, squeeze lime juice, fish sauce and sugar if required

 

SERVING

1. Large serving bowls, put egg noodles in, beansprouts
2. Carefully arrange the chicken, fried tofu pieces, baby corn around the bowl
3. Add 3 large prawns and 3 pieces of monkfish to each bowl, arrange in the middle of the bowl
4. Pour the boiling soup base into the bowl
5. Garnish with coriander, chopped red chillis
6. Serve with chopsticks and soup ladle