Book of Days Tales

The last Friday in September is Manit Day in the Marshall Islands. This day is part of a week-long celebration of Marshallese culture and history known as Lutok Kobban Alele. A good time to cook up some Marshallese dishes. One of the most common is chukuchuk which consists of sticky rice rolled into small balls which are then covered in shredded coconut and served as a side dish.  No need for a detailed recipe. Coconut is a common ingredient in many Marshallese dishes, so here is coconut fish.

Ingredients:

6 white fish fillets
2 cups coconut cream
½ onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 tsp salt
2 fresh chile, thinly sliced in rounds
1 tbsp cornstarch
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tomatoes, sliced
6 tbsp peanut oil
6 tbsp flour
1 tsp salt
¼ tsp ground white pepper

Instructions

Mix the cornstarch to a paste with a little of the cold coconut cream

Combine coconut cream, onion, 1 tsp salt, chile, lemon juice, and the cornstarch paste in a saucepan. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil, stirring all the time. Do not allow sauce to boil hard or it will become lumpy. Simmer for 3 minutes, then remove from the heat.

Heat oven to 160º C/300º F.

Cut the fish into even sized pieces (about 2 cm thick, 3 cm wide & 6 cm long).

Mix the flour, extra salt and white pepper in a container that has a lid that seals well and is big enough for all the fish to fit in (or use a zip top bag). Place the fish in the container of flour and shake well until the fish is evenly coated with the flour mix.

Heat 2 tbs of the peanut oil in a skillet. Brown the fish, in batches rapidly on both sides in the hot oil. Place the fish in an ovenproof dish as it is browned.  Evenly cover the fish with the tomato slices. Evenly pour the coconut sauce over the top. Bake uncovered in the oven for 30 minutes or until the top begins to brown