Pla Tod Gratiem & Nam Jim Seafood

This has been my attempt to re create a dish I first had in Thailand 10 years ago. I can’t even remember exactly where I was when I ate it- I remember sitting nearby a river, it may have been Kanchanaburi. Anyway, it was a deep fried fish with a solid crust of minced garlic- way more garlic than I’ve used in my recipe and the crust of garlic had to be hacked away to reveal the fish inside. When we asked what kind of fish had been used we got a simple answer- river fish, perhaps it had been some sort of catfish. In my recipe I’ve used farmed bream. The sauce is another classic Thai dipping sauce (nam jim just means dipping sauce) and bizarrely, Thai’s do actually called it ‘Nam Jim Seafood’ or Sauce Seafood’!! This dish doesn’t require anything obscure, everything is easily found at a regular supermarket.


For 2 you’ll need:

• 2 meaty firm fish, sea bream worked very well


• 2-3 BULBS of garlic- minced


• a beaten egg


• a big pinch of salt and pepper


• vegetable oil for deep frying


• juice of 1 lime


• a big splash of fish sauce (nam pla) all supermarkets sell it


• 3 more garlic cloves, peeled


• 3 or 4 green Thai chillies


• a small handful of coriander, finely chopped


• a pinch of sugar

Start by making the Nam Jim Seafood. In a pestle and mortar, bash up the 3 garlic cloves and green chillies for a moment till you have a rough paste. Add in the chopped coriander, pinch of sugar, fish sauce and lime juice. Stir it well and pour out in a small bowl for later on.


Next get the fried garlic prepared. Heat enough oil to cover the bottom of a frying pan. It doesn’t want to be too hot or the garlic will burn, keep the heat quite low. Add the garlic so it just gently sizzles and keep stirring regularly until the garlic lightly browns, may take up to 10 minutes. Once browned, scoop out (reserve flavoured oil) and drain on kitchen paper before transferring to a flat plate. On another plate, pour the beaten egg.


Now get the fish ready. Using sharp scissors, trim off all the fins but leave the head and tail. Most fish will already come gutted but will probably require scaling- don’t miss this, it’ll be horrible otherwise- use a sharp knife to scrape off all the scales under cold running water. Pat dry and cut a few deep slits on each side of the fish. Add more oil to the garlickly oil from just before and heat high. When it’s hot add your fish and cook on high for about 5 minutes either side, use a spatula and a plate to very gently turn them over. When the fish is fully cooked through, lift them out very gently and carefully dip the fish into the beaten egg- on both sides, before transferring it into the plate of crispy garlic, and coat both sides. Transfer the fish back to the hot oil, for just a minute on each side until the crust has formed.


Serve with rice, fresh coriander, a lime for squeezing over and the Nam Jim Seafood.