Gulai Pakis (Fiddlehead Ferns in Coconut Milk)

In Indonesia we call this kind of cooking as Gulai/Gule, which almost similar to curry in flavor, and soup/stew in appearance.

There are many kinds of gulai in Indonesia, from all veggies, with tofu, tempeh, beef, chicken and mutton, to these fiddlehead ferns.

Ingredients

325 g fiddle-head ferns

400 ml canned coconut milk

1 1/2 can of water (using the can from coconut milk)

1/4 c dried small shrimps (available at Asian stores), soak in lukewarm water until “blooming”

fried cow rind (you can use pork rind. Available at Asian stores, for pork rind)

1 tsp curry powder (recipe follows)

Curry Powder, homemade:

• 2 tablespoons whole cumin seeds + 2 tablespoons whole coriander seeds, toasted, toasted
• 2 tablespoons cardamom powder (ground cardamom), toasted
• 1/4 cup turmeric powder
• 1 tablespoon mustard powder
• 1 teaspoon chili powder (cayenne)

• Using your coffee/spices grinder, ground finely toasted cumin and coriander
• In a jar, mix in whole ingredients, cover the lid, shake
• Use as required in recipes

Spice Paste

1/2 of a medium size onion

7 candlenuts (available at Asian stores or online)

2 tsp ready to use fried garlic

2 tsp cayenne powder

2 daun salam (Indonesian bay leaves, available at Asian stores or online)

1 piece dried galangal (available at Asian stores or online)

1 tsp lemon grass powder (available at Asian stores or online)

1 tsp coriander seeds, ground

1/4 tsp ginger powder

Hungarian Vegeta seasoning or something similar such as Royco or Masako (available at major grocery stores, Asian stores, or online. If not, just sugar, salt to taste)

Grind onion, candlenuts, garlic, cayenne, lemon grass, and ginger powders into paste along with the curry powder, either using mortar and pestle or electric food processor

Cooking The Fiddlhead Ferns

Heat 1-2 tbsp oil and stir fry paste until fragrant

Add in ground coriander, daun salam and dried galangal, stir

Add in 3 tbsp water, stir

Add in fiddle head ferns, stir and cook for 5-8 mins then pour in coconut milk and water, bring to boil

Lower heat to medium, keep stirring, and bring back to boil

Adjust flavor with Vegeta seaoning (or salt and sugar) and cook until fiddle head ferns are softening (I like it still a little bit firm tho)

Once flavor is perfect to your liking, add in fried cow rind and cook til soften

Turn off heat and your dish is ready to serve 🙂

Serve with warm rice!

Enjoy 🙂

1 kotak fiddlehead ferns (pakis/paku), 325 g
1 kaleng santan 400 ml
1 1/2 kaleng air (pakai kaleng santan untuk ukuran)
1/2 dari 1 bawang bombay ukuran sedang
1/4 cup ebi (udang kering), rendam dalam air hangat hingga mekar, tiriskan
krecek yang sudah digoreng, secukupnya
7 butir kemiri
1 sdt bubuk kare/bubuk kari, homemade gampang, liat sini
2 sdt bawang putih goreng siap pakai
2 sdt cabai bubuk
2 lembar daun salam
1 iris laos/lengkuas kering
1 sdt serai bubuk
1 sdt ketumbar, haluskan
1/4 sdt jahe bubuk
Hungarian Vegeta seasoning secukupnya (atau Royco atau yang super sederhana sekalian seperti garam, gula, vetsin bisa juga)

Cara Membuat

Haluskan kemiri bersamaan bahan bubuk lainnya serta bawang-bawangan.
Panaskan sedikit minyak, tumis bumbu halus, masukkan ketumbar halus, daun salam, serta laos, aduk rata, beri air sedikit (3 sdm), aduk
Masukkan ebi yang sudah ditiriskan, aduk
Masukkan pakis, aduk dan masak sebentar, masukkan santan serta air, didihkan
Kecilkan panas api hingga sedang, aduk, biarkan mendidih kembali
Beri bumbu penyedap sesuai selera, aduk, masak hingga pakis agak lunak (kelunakannya terserah Anda yah, ada yang kadang suka masih kres-kres, ada yang lebih seneng lunak)
Kalau rasa sudah sreg dihati, masukkan krecek goreng, biarkan melunak
Matikan kompor dan siap dihidangkan.