Otak-Otak Terengganu

Otak-otak-so good once you start, its hard to stop

Otak-otak is yet another speciality dish of Terengganu. Made out of fresh fish which is marinated in spices. It is then mixed with coconut and special spicy paste and wrapped up in coconut leaf. Once wrapped up, the otak-otak is line up and cooked over fire, much like how the satay is cooked.

Otak-otak are famous teatime snacks, but don't be surprised if some shops that sells otak-otak finish selling them by 4 p.m. One famous otak-otak shop is Otak-otak Che Wan at Pantai Teluk Mak Nik, Kemaman sells delicious otak-otak. So good that sometimes customers que  from 12 o'clock in the afternoon eventhough the shop opens at 2 p.m. Otak-otak Che Wan cooks about 5,000 pieces of otak-otak daily, yet it is sold out most of the time. So if you're thinking of trying it out, come early.

For those of you who wish to cook it yourself, here is the recipe as described by the Terengganu tourism website :

Ingredients:   400g ikan merah (red snapper) (A):   1/2 tsp salt   1 tsp pounded anchovies (ikan bilis)   A dash of pepper (B) Spice, pounded together:   3 fresh red chillies, seeded   3 cm galagal (lengkuas)   2 cm fresh turmeric root (kunyit)   or replace with 1/2 tsp turmeric powder   5 buah keras (candlenuts)   2 stalks serai (lemon grass), sliced thinly  10 shallots   4 cloves garlic (C):   1 tbsp chilli boh   1 tsp  belacan   1/2 tbsp rice f1our   1 tbsp cornflour Seasoning:   1/2 tsp salt   1 1/2 tsp sugar   Pepper to taste (D):   1/2 cup pati santan   3 eggs, well beaten   5 limau purut leaves, finely sliced   Daun Kadok leaves (aromatic creepers)   Banana leaves, cut into 20 x 18 cm pieces, softened by steaming or scalding in hot water Method: 1. Cut fish fillets into thin slices and season with (A) for 15 minutes. 2. Grind ingredients (B) into a paste. Mix well the ground ingredients with (C). Blend in (D) and seasoning. Add fish slices into the mixture. 3. Take 1 piece of banana leaf, place three to four daun kadok in the centre. Put three slices of fish and 2 tbsp gravy over it. Form a bundle by folding up both the sides to meet in the centre. Fold up both the ends and staple the middle portion to secure. Make as many bundles of otak-otak as possible. 4. Steam the bundles for 10 minutes over rapid boiling water. Serve hot with rice or white bread. Other Places to get Otak-otak :

Kuala Pengadang Baru Weekend Market (Tuesday) Terengganu Panji Alam Weekend Market (Thursday) Batu Burok Hawker Centre (Friday) Pasar Payang Central Market Cabang Tiga Market Marang Kg. Kelulut Weekend Market (Saturday) Dungun Kuala Dungun Weekend Market (Thursday) Kemaman Kerteh (Tuesday), Kemasik (Sunday, Wednesday), s Chukai (Tuesday) Alongside Geliga Beach