Bass with Yellow Curry and Crab

Bass with Yellow Curry and Crab

All recipes featured in this episode of Bring on the Karbs! were improvised by Josh and Erica Karbelnik. Please note that the following recipes are approximations of what unfolded during the episode. We encourage you to embrace the spirit of experimentation when recreating these dishes and share your results with us. Individual results may vary.

Ingredients:

• 2 branzino (European seabass) fillets
• 100 g picked crab
• 1 shallot, sliced
• 5 g galangal
• 3 g garlic
• 3 red Thai chilies
• 3 stalks lemongrass
• 2 lime leaves
• 2 tbsp (29.6 ml) ground coriander seed
• 1 tsp (14.8 ml) ground fennel
• 2 tbsp (29.6 ml) yellow curry powder
• 1 (13.5 oz) can coconut milk
• 1 tbsp (14.8 ml) fish sauce
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1/4 (60 ml) cup Shaoxing cooking wine
• Cilantro leaves for garnish
• 2 tbsp (29.6 ml) canola oil
• Kosher salt

Method:

Add galangal, garlic, ground coriander, fennel, curry, and chili to a food processor and blend until combined into a curry paste.

Heat canola oil in a saucepan over medium heat and add shallots, stirring and cooking until they sweat. Add curry paste and stir. Deglaze the pan with Shaoxing wine, scraping up any browned bits from the bottom. Break lemongrass by whacking with the back of a knife and add to the pan along with the lime leaves. Add coconut milk to the pan and cook until it has reduced by one third.  Finish the curry with lime juice and fish sauce. Warm crab meat in curry.

Heat a pan over medium high heat until hot. Cook the fish skin side down until crispy.

Serve the crab curry with crispy fish skin-side-up on top, garnished with cilantro leaves and a few slices of red Thai chilies.