GURAME KUAH PUCUNG (GURAME WITH PUCUNG THIN SAUCE)

Gurame Kuah Pucung is special dishes from Betawi/Jakarta. Freshwater fish, Gurame, cooked with special flavor, kluwek (kepayang fruit). How to make it ? Here you are.

INGREDIENTS :
• 500 gram Gurame
• Cooking oil

Marinade :
• 3 gloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
• 1 tsp coriander, fried without cooking oil
• 1 jeruk nipis (calamondin fruit)
• 1 tsp sea salt (season to taste)
• 100 ml fresh water

Thin sauce :
• 2 stalks lemongrass, bruised
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 jeruk purut leaves (small fragrant lime leaves)
• 2 cm lengkuas/laos (galangale root), peeled and bruised
• 400 ml freshwater
• 1 tsp sea salt (season to taste)
• 1 tsp gula pasir (granulated sugar) (season to taste)
• 1 stalks bawang daun (welsh’ onion), sliced about 1 cm long pieces
• 1 ripe tomato fruit, cut into 4 pieces
• 2 tbsp fried (fine sliced) red onion
• 3 tbsp cooking oil for saute

Ground seasoning :
• 3 kluwek/keluak (kepayang fruits), steamed or boiled and shelled, take its inner
• 6 cloves of garlic
• 6 cabai merah kriting (red curly chillies)Betawi (Jakarta) food / Gurame kuah pucung

• 4 cabai rawit (bird’s eye chilies)
• 8 cloves of red onion

Use a mortal and pestle or food prosessor, grind or blend all ground flavor ingredients finely.

METHOD :
1. Remove gurame scales, open the fish’s abdomen with a 3 inch incision remove the innards, cleaning well, cut the fish becames 2 or 3 pieces and then smear them with squeeze calamondin juice. Set aside.
2. Combine all marinade ingredients, except calamondin fruit, place in a mortal and pestle or food prosessor and grind or blend to form a fine paste. Set aside.
3. Smear and stuff the fish (point 1) with marinade, let them until about 20 minutes so that the marinade absorbed well.
4. After about 20 minutes, drained the fish from marinade and fry them with heat cooking oil until crisp. Set aside.
5. Pre heat cooking oil, saute’ the ground flavor add in bruised lemongrass, bay leaves, jeruk purut leaves and bruised galingale root, stir frequently until the mixture becames very fragrant.
6. To make a thin sauce, add in 400 ml freshwater to sauté, sea salt and granulated sugar (season to taste) stir frequently until they are boiling, reduce heat, add tomato and welsh’onion. And now, put the fried gurame (point 4) into thin sauce, simmer over medium heat until left a half of the thin sauce. Remove, gurame kuah pucung ready to serve.
7. To serve, sprinkle over with fried red onion before.

Ok, happy trying. Thank you.