Stuffed Fish Recipe

(Ca Rut Xuong Dut Lo)

This tasty and impressive dish makes an ideal centerpiece. The Vietnamese do not use much chili but this recipe, which is much hotter and spicier, may be cooked to your liking

Ingredients : Serves 4 - 5

700 g (1 1/2 lb)

3

2 stalks

1 clove

2

100 g (3 1/2 oz)

1 tablespoon

1 teaspoon

1/2 teaspoon

Garnishing

2

2

1

1 sprigs

Whole grouper/bream

Red chilies, seeded if a less spicy flavor is preferred

Lemon grass

Garlic

Shallots

Minced pork

Fish sauce (nuoc nam)

Sherry

Groundnut Oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Hardboiled eggs

Limes

Carrot

Coriander leaves

• Clean and gut fish. Cut a slit from heat to tail and carefully remove main bone without cutting off head or tail. Remove eyes. Make cuts on both sides of the fish.

• Blend or pound chilies, lemon grass, garlic and shallots, adding salt and pepper to taste. Mix with minced pork, fish sauce and sugar.

• Rub a little salt and pepper into cut slits on fish. Cover tail with foil (do not allow foil to touch sides of oven). Stuff fish with pounded mixture and pork. Sprinkle fish with sherry to moisten it.

• Grease a baking dish with 1/2 teaspoon groundnut oil. Place fish carefully on the dish and steam, covered plastic wrap, setting the Microwave oven for 8 minutes on High (100%). Turn fish carefully and cook for another 4 minutes on High (100%).

• Serve garnished with hardboiled eggs, lime slices and a carrot. Peel carrot and slice a piece to cover eye socket. Cut thin strips from the rest. Halve eggs and limes. Use carrot strips as basket handled for the egg baskets, and fill them with coriander sprigs.