Ikan Percik Merah

When I saw Cik Manggis' Ikan Bakar  it made me very hungry especially the sight of the saucer of budu with lime, chillies and tempoyak. Do you know that I haven't had budu for the longest time? For a Terengganu girl, it is rather curious that I don't have any budu in my pantry.

Budu......You can all it Voodoo for all I care.

Budu (fermented fish sauce) is a  favourite condiment in Kelantan and Terengganu and it is available here at Tesco and 99 Speedmart. I have never bought any because I was quite wary of the quality and hygiene standards of the manufacturer. Somehow I only trust the one that my family consumes in Terengganu. Next time I must ask my Mum to bring me a bottle or two :)

I did take a chance by buying a bottle from 99 Speedmart, the original intention is to make Nasi Kerabu. However, Nasi Kerabu is rather time consuming and I haven't found the time to get started. Besides, it is a very busy time at work for me and I try to take it easy during the weekends. 

Although I come from neighbouring Terengganu, I am not familiar with Kelantan food. I have been referring to Azie Kitchen for guidance on Kelantan Cooking and this recipe for Ikan Kembung Percik Merah looked rather interesting.

Served with budu and ulam (raw vegetables).

I am familiar with Ayam Percik but did not realise that there is percik for fish as well. So it would be good to cook this dish and contribute to MFF Kelantan and to satisfy my craving for fish and budu. I couldn't get Ikan Kembung so I had to make do with Ikan Selar.

The percik spice paste is quite easy to make. Basically we just blend the ingredients with coconut milk and the saute it until the spice paste is aromatic and thick. The fish is first marinated in salt and turmeric and then grilled. Every now and then, just baste the fish with the percik spice paste until fish is cooked and the spice paste in slightly browned.

I wish I had a charcoal grill as there is a difference in the aroma of the fish that is grilled on a charcoal grill and the oven. You cannot get the same effect in the oven. I was not very happy with my grilled fish even though the percik spice was very tasty. But first let me tell you about the budu....

With a dollop of homemade tempoyak. I say, cakap pun tak guna!

After taking my snapshots and calling it a wrap, I sat down for my lunch. I took a bit of fish, some ulam and drizzled budu and tempoyak together with chillies on my rice. My first mouthful, and I felt like crying. My God! It was so goooood........Given that my tempoyak was too salty but still, the flavors of the budu was explosive! I must have this stuff in my pantry now at all costs. But I know that it should not be consumed too often due to the high salt content. Besides food fermented in lots of salt have a potential carcinogenic effect.

Oh sorry, Ikan Percik, this post is supposed to be about you. OK, coming back to my fish, I will say that it was good as the percik spice paste was delicious. I recommend making extra spice paste as it goes well with plain white rice. Though the percik was very aromatic, had the fish been cooked with a charcoal grill, it would have been perfect. But still, I was happy....I was on a budu high.......

Ikan Kembung Percik Merah
Recipe source : Adapted from Azie Kitchen

- 4 fish (I used Ikan Selar instead of Ikan Kembung)
- 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1 teaspoon salt

For Percik Spice Paste :
- 7 dried chillies, soaked to soften
- 2 fresh red chillies
- 10 shallots
- 1 inch fresh turmeric
- 1 inch ginger
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 small piece asam keping/asam gelugur
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 cup thick santan
- Salt to taste

Method :
1. Rub fish with turmeric powder and salt.
2. Blend dried chillies, shallots, fresh turmeric, ginger and garlic together with santan.
3. Heat oil in a frying pan and saute the blended spice paste until aromatic and thick.
4. Add salt and sugar to taste together with asam keping.
5. Preheat oven at 180C and grill the fish for 10 minutes and baste with the sauteed spice paste every ten minutes until fish is well coated and cooked.

I am submitting this post to Malaysian Food Fest Kelantan Month hosted by Gertrude of My Kitchen Snippets.