Top End laksa

Ingredients

• 80 ml (⅓ cup) vegetable oil
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1.5 litres chicken stock
• 800 ml coconut cream
• 2 tbsp lemon myrtle powder, plus extra to serve
• 1 tbsp wattleseed
• 2 tbsp tamarind puree
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 500 g skinless barramundi fillets
• 250 g fried tofu puffs, halved
• 1 kg fresh Hokkien noodles
• 200 g dried rice vermicelli noodles
• 300 g beansprouts
• 1 cup loosely packed Vietnamese mint leaves
• 1 cup loosely packed coriander leaves
• finger limes or sunrise limes, to serve

Laksa rempah (makes double)

• 6 large red chillies, deseeded
• 6 dried red chillies, soaked in hot water
• 15 g belacan (shrimp paste)
• 2 brown onions, chopped
• 5 garlic cloves
• 5 cm piece ginger, peeled and thickly sliced
• 6 macadamia nuts

Easy sambal belacan (optional)

• 1 tsp toasted belacan
• 2 tbsp sambal oelek

Instructions

1. For the laksa rempah (laksa paste), place all the ingredients in a food processor and process into a smooth paste. You can add a bit of the chilli soaking water if you need to help it catch the blades.
2. If making the sambal belacan, crumble the toasted belacan into a bowl, add the sambal oelek and stir to combine.
3. Heat a large pot over low-medium heat and add the oil. Add half the laksa rempah (freeze the rest for up to 3 months) and fry in the oil, stirring frequently for about 15 minutes or until the oil separates from the paste. Add the turmeric and fry for a further minute, then add the stock, coconut cream, lemon myrtle, wattleseed and tamarind puree and stir to combine well. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for 30 minutes.
4. Stir in the sugar and fish sauce and taste to adjust the seasoning. Add the barramundi fillets and tofu puffs simmer for a further 10 minutes or until the fish is just cooked. Carefully break the fish into chunks in the soup.
5. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the noodles according to the packet directions. While different brands will vary, generally Hokkien noodles will just need to be blanched for a few seconds and drained. Pour boiling water over the rice vermicelli and stand for 5 minutes, then drain. Blanch the bean sprouts in the boiling water for 30 seconds.
6. To assemble, warm the noodle bowls (you can do this by pouring a bit of the laksa soup into the bowls and then returning the soup to the pot). Divide the Hokkien noodles, rice noodles, tofu puffs and bean sprouts between the bowls. Cover with the soup, then garnish with Vietnamese mint, coriander and a sprinkle of lemon myrtle powder. Serve with a little finger lime or sunrise lime.

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