Julie Le Clerc: Seafood Laska

If you enjoy the clean flavours of Asian cooking as much as I do, then it's a good idea to stock your pantry with some basic ingredients so that tasty dishes like these will be easy to prepare without needing to do a special shopping trip.

All you'll need then is some fresh seafood and vegetables and dinner is ready.

Here are my essential Asian store-cupboard suggestions.

First, sauces. Soy, Thai sweet chilli, fish, black bean, hoisin, plum and oyster sauces are the best basic collection with which to start experimenting.

Dried spices such as Chinese five-spice mix, cinnamon, star anise, sesame seeds, and curry spices such as coriander, cumin, chilli and turmeric are fundamental.

These dried flavourings can be supplemented with fresh herbs and spices such as root ginger, lemon grass, coriander, kaffir lime leaves and chillies to add invigorating flavour and freshness.

Peanut oil and sesame oil add appropriate flavours to Asian food but sunflower or canola oil can be used in place of these aromatic oils if you prefer them.

Keep on hand canned coconut milk, rice vinegar, fragrant jasmine and basmati rice and a selection of dried noodles.

For an easy Asian-inspired menu, I recommend starting with store-bought dumplings, pot-stickers or wontons served with sweet chilli sauce.

Follow that with any of these main dishes and some steamed Asian greens. Then finish with a refreshing fresh fruit salad or a jelly made with natural fruit juice - apple juice jelly is delicious.


CHEF'S TIP

Drink jasmine or green tea, or lager, with Asian dishes. If you prefer wine, opt for aromatic wines such as dry riesling, gewurztraminer or pinot gris. Shaoxing rice wine, a Chinese wine made from rice, millet and yeast, is available in Asian grocery stores and some supermarkets. You can substitute dry sherry.




Seafood Laksa

Serves 4

3 cloves garlic, chopped

3cm piece fresh ginger, peeled and chopped

1 small red chilli, deseeded and chopped

1 Tbs palm sugar or brown sugar

1 tsp ground turmeric

1/4 cup roasted cashew nuts

juice of 2 limes

3 Tbs peanut or sunflower oil

2 cups quality fish, vegetable or chicken stock

400ml can coconut milk

12 peeled green prawns

400g white fish, cubed

100g rice vermicelli noodles, soaked for 10 minutes in boiling water

2-4 Tbs Thai fish sauce to taste

2 spring onions, finely sliced

extra finely sliced red chilli to serve

1. Grind the first seven ingredients in a mortar and pestle or in a food processor to form a spice paste. Heat a large heavy-based saucepan, add oil and spice paste and cook over a medium heat for 1-2 minutes so that flavours are released.

2. Add stock and bring to the boil, then simmer for 10 minutes. Add coconut milk and simmer for a further five minutes. Add seafood and simmer for five minutes to cook.

3. Drain noodles and add, then simmer for two minutes to heat through. Season with fish sauce to taste. Ladle into bowls and garnish with spring onions and extra chilli if desired.

* More of Julie Le Clerc's recipes are available in viva, part of your Herald print edition every Wednesday.

* Email Julie Le Clerc