Lime and Coconut Curd

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 Multicultural Inspiration from... Fiji

Fresh off the success of Sous-Jeff's Chilli Jam (which I can't try because it's too spicy!), I decide that it's time for me to try a condiment of my own. Not to be outdone, I decide to try not one, but two preserves - a lime and coconut curd (again, coming from the love of lime and coconut I developed over my many visits to Fiji), and strawberry jam. First up is my curd.

I have very fond childhood memories of lemon curd used as butter, coated on my toast, cake, biscuits, and whatever else I could get my little hands on. I absolutely loooooved the citrusy punch of the lemon combined with the secondary, super sweet sugar hit.

After a bit of googling and a bit of imagination, I've looked at around 5 or 6 different recipes, and decide to take elements of all of them, and a lot of my own imagination. And I'm glad I did, because it came out absolutely AMAZING!!!!

Here's what I did to get it right...

First, I passed 3 lightly whisked eggs through a strainer, to make sure the curd is super smooth.

Then, I grated the zest of one lime, and squeezed the juice of 2 limes.

I added the lime juice and zest, along with 100g of butter and 200g of sugar to a pot...

... and stirred and melted it all together, until the sugar had dissolved and the butter had melted, and it looked...

... like this!

I removed it from the heat and added to the melted mixture the strained eggs, and stirred with a wooden spoon to combine it.

Then, I put it back onto a low heat for about 10 minutes, constantly stirring, until it was thick and coated the wooden spoon...

...like this!

I added in 50g of dessicated coconut next...

... gently stirring it to combine.

And that's it! Finished! That simple! Into the jar it went, and I left it to cool slightly for about 15 minutes before putting the lid on.

It is absolutely delicious, and I can't tell you how in love with this curd I am!! I loooove tropical flavours, none more so than coconut and lime; I just find the flavours so refreshing, yet it really packs a punch.

It's just the right balance of sweet and tangy, and goes absolutely perfectly with buckwheat pancakes :)

I was surprised at how easy it was to make, and Would like to try a passion fruit and coconut combination too.

Over to you, lovely readers - what combinations have you, or would you like to try?! 

Lime and Coconut Poached Fish

This blog has moved to http://multiculturalmelbourne.com/

Multicultural Inspiration from Asia

Upon hearing of my blogging venture, mum recently gave me a dvd that she believed I had to watch: Julie and Julia. For those of you who haven't seen it, it follows the story of Julie, a young lady sick of her job who finds an escape in food and food blogging She decides that she'll cook her way through the cook book of Julia Child's, "Mastering The Art of French Cooking" in 365 days. I didn't think I'd really like the movie - as much as I love my mum, we very rarely enjoy the same movies. But I watched it with a bottle of wine, and I loved it! There was so much (too much?) I could relate to!

I found myself wondering what book I'd be happy to cook my way through, when suddenly I realised, I have been cooking my way through a book! And not only cooking my way through, but watching it page by page on TV as well! For Easter, mum bought me Donna Hay's Fast, Fresh & Simple. Over the last few weeks, I'd been watching Donna bring this book to life on the TV show of the same name. And since I got the book, I've book marked a whole lot of pages, and have bee steadily cooking my way through them ever since!

Though neither Sous-Jeff or I are really seafood loving folk, I decided that with Donna's guidance and naturally my own little adjustments, I can't go wrong! So, with fresh fish purchased and tummies rumbling, I whip out my trusty new cook book and flip it open to page 46, and here's what happened...




You'll need:

• 1 cup of coconut milk (in the interest of keep us semi-healthy, I use light coconut milk and find the flavour really isn't compromised providing you still use good quality stuff)
•  1/4 cup fresh lime juice
• 1 tablespoon of fish sauce
• finely grated zest of 1 lime (or with the actual recipe, 6 finely shredded kaffir lime leaves - i used zest coz I had no leaves!)
• 400g fresh, firm, white fish fillets (I prefer Rockling)
• Steamed jasmine rice and veggies, to serve.

First things first - I get all my ingredients ready to go, and a big fry pan to cook everything in. Also, to make cooking easier, if you get one super big piece of fish, slice in in half.

Combine the coconut milk, lime juice, lime zest/leaves and fish sauce in a large fry pan over medium-low heat.

Don't freak out like I did when I saw the fish sauce curdle with the coconut milk, and the not-so-delicious initial smell of the fish sauce - it's alllll normal and will taste delicious eventually! Brig to the boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 4 - 5 minutes.

Next up, add the fish into the pan and cook for a few minutes on each side, until they're tender and white inside.

Serve it up on a bed of rice and some steamed veggies, dividing the coconut sauce over the dishes (this recipe is enough for two people).

Tender, white and soft inside, swimming in yummy coconut and lime sauce (one of my absolute favourite flavour combinations), the rice to soak it all up, and the little bit of crunch from the veggies = yuuuuummm! Enjoy :)