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Otak-otak, essentially a spicy fish custard, was an occasional dish in my household because of the coconut milk it contains. But no longer.
"Picture provided by SPH"
I now substitute the coconut milk in the recipe with soya milk and found that it makes no substantial difference to the taste but a world of difference to the fat intake. There is less than a gram of saturated fat in one cup of soy milk compared with 50g of fat found in a cup of coconut milk.
This is good news, if like me, you are constantly searching for new and healthful ways to cook old favourites.
I made several ramekins of the baked custard using soy milk recently and handed them out to various friends. They did not detect the difference.
The secret likes in the herbs used. As in regular otak, a scattering of aromatic shredded kaffir lime leaves at the end makes all the difference. Also a generous addition of spices, which in this case, comes from a bottle!
I now make otak otak in five minutes flat ever since I discovered that bottled nonya sambal chilli delivers the right flavours to the quiche, which traditionally demanded quite a few painstaking steps.
Now I buy fish fillets, rely on a bottled spice paste and whiz the lot in a blender to produce that smooth paste which is the basis for this aromatic custard.
Neither do I bother with a banana leaf wrap as I find it is easier and more convenient to bake the lot in individual ramekins, taking just 10 minutes in the oven.
The result? A truly healthful otak that takes just 15 minutes to turn out.
Ingredients:
Healthy Otak Otak (For 8-10)
- 250 g fresh snapper fillets
- 300 ml unsweetened soya milk
- 2 Tbs. nonya sambal chilli paste (Glory is good)
- 1 Tbs. coriander powder
- 1 tsp. turmeric powder
- 3 medium-sized eggs
- Dash of white pepper
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. sugar
- Shredded kaffir lime leaves
Method:
- Heat oven to 160C.
- Cut fish fillets into smaller pieces. Place in a blender.
Add soya milk, chilli paste, coriander and turmeric powders, pepper, salt and sugar to the blender bowl. Break the eggs into a basin (to ensure that they are fresh before adding to the mix) and pour the eggs into the bowl.
- Blend till all is amalgamated. Taste and adjust seasonings, if needed.
Pour spicy custard into individual ramekins. Place on a baking tray and pour enough water into the tray to reach about halfway of the ramekins. Carefully place tray into oven on the middle rack and bake for 10 minutes or till custard sets.
- If you like a browned crust, just before serving, place ramekins on the topmost rung under the grill or else use a kitchen blow torch to scorch the tops of the mini-otaks.
- Garnish with a sprinkling of shredded fresh kaffir lime leaves.
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