Pla Tod Khamin (Turmeric Fried Fish)

Ahh, poor bonito; fish never look quite so pretty when they've been deep fried whole- I'm not one for removing heads though, I'd much rather keep them whole- plus you'd miss out on the cheeks!

Saturday just gone I did one of my favourite things to do in my free time, wandering round food markets, picking up random things to take home and make things with. I went to Bolton market; I've been there once before and remembered it was a great place to pick up every kind of fish, cut of meat, exotic vegetables and great for local northern produce. It also has a great fresh Thai fruit and vegetable stall, easily on par with any of my usual favourites in Leeds, Manchester and Birkenhead- very reasonable prices too. 

Along with my bonito fish (£5 for a huge fish), some acacia (cha om), fresh green peppercorns (just because I struggle to get them) I also picked up some bitter gourds for a recipe which will follow soon.

There is nothing fancy about the fish- I wanted to cook it in a way that would do it justice, quickly and simply and served it with nam prik seafood (seafood sauce) and some rice. We ate it as you see it here, sharing it between us.

For two people use:

• a large meaty fish, gutted, scaled and deep slashed cut into both sides
• several knobbly pieces of fresh turmeric, chopped
• half a bulb of garlic, peeled and chopped
• a lot of vegetable oil for deep frying

and if you fancy making the 'sauce seafood' to go with it- here's the link within another of my earlier recipes... 

Heat a large, deep wok full of vegetable oil until hot. Very, VERY carefully slowly slide the fish in and allow it to develop a deep golden crispiness- it will need to be carefully turned over half way through the cooking. It will depend on size but mine took about 10 minutes.

Gently lift out, use two spatulas (an extra pair of hands helps) and drain on kitchen paper.

Still in the hot oil, drop in all the chopped turmeric and garlic and deep fry for around 2 minutes- stirring regularly until you can see the garlic is a light golden brown and everything is slightly crispy. Scoop out with a sifter and sprinkle over the fish.