Gabus pucung is a popular Betawi descent dish that consedered as a herritage dish from Jakarta. Gabus Pucung derived from the word gabus or common snakehead and pucung or kluwak or Pangium Edule.Gabus pucung is rich in flavour since it contains so many ingredient like chillies, corriander, turmeric, ginger, garlic, ginger and a candle nut. The black color may not looks appetizing, but the broth taste very rich, nutty and savoury. Gabus pucung is not commonly seen in a daily menu this days but served during a festive ceremonial like wedding or Jakarta Fair. Gabus pucung can be made with sliced fish instead of whole fish like mine. Gabus pucung is usually paired with Sayur Besan, Jakarta’s Herritage Sugar Cane Blossom Curry
Pucung or black nut, kepayang, kluwek, keluwek, keluak, kluak is a wild mangrove tree. The fresh fruit and seeds contain hydrogen cyanide and are deadly poisonous if consumed without prior preparation. The seeds are first boiled and then buried in ash, banana leaves and earth for forty days, during which time, they turn from a creamy white colour to dark brown or black. The method relies on the fact that the hydrogen cyanide released by the boiling and fermentation is water soluble and easily washed out. Keluak seed had a hard, pale brown shell with black and soft innard. Choose the keluak with black innard and i suggest you to taste it one by one since sometimes it had a bitter taste that can ruined the whole dish.
In Singapore and Malaysia, the seeds are best known as an essential ingredient in ayam (chicken) or babi (pork) buah keluak,a mainstay of Peranakan cuisine. Alternatively, the kernels may be ground up to form a thick black gravy called rawon (or rawan in parts of Indonesia): popular dishes include nasi rawonand sambal rawon. A stew made with beef or chicken also exists in East Java. The Toraja dish pammarrasan (black spice with fish or meat, also sometimes with vegetables) uses the black keluak powder.
Resep Gabus Pucung Khas Jakarta
Ingredients:
- 700 gr snakehead fish, gutted, cleaned
- ½ lemon, juiced
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 3 cloves garlic (bawang putih), thinly slice
- 2 L water
- 2 lemongrass (sereh), bruised
- 2 kaffir lime leaves (daun jeruk purut)
- 2 Indonesian bay leaves (daun salam)
- 3 cm galagal (laos) , bruised
- ½ tea spoon sugar
- 2 tbsp oil
- 2 small tomato,quartered
- 6 red chillies, crosswisely sliced
- 1 tablespoon deep fried shallots for garnish
Gabus Pucung Spices Paste:
- 12 shallots (bawang merah)
- 8 cloves garlic(bawang putih)
- 1 tsp corriander seed (ketumbar), toasted
- 4 candle nuts (kemiri), toasted
- 10 kluwak, spooned the black innard, soaked in warm water
- 3 cm ginger (jahe)
- 3 cm turmeric (kunyit)
- 6 or more red chillies (cabe merah)
Instruction:
- Season the snakehed fish fish salt and lemon juice, marinade about 30 minutes, deep fried until golden brown, set aside
- Process the fish paste until smooth consistency, set aside.
- Heat up 2 tbsp oil in a wok, stir fry the sliced garlic, sliced red chillies, galagal and lemongrass until fragrant and slightly browned
- Put the spice paste and continue to saute another 2 minutes, add the kaffir lime and bay leaves.
- Pour the water and bring to boil, season with alt and sugar, adjust the taste
- Add the deep fried snakehead fish, simmer for about 20 minutes
- Nearly done, add the tomato and serve with deep fried shallot
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