NIRIN at Home: Baked Rainbow Trout with Dumplings, Yams and Greens

This recipe is a taste from my mother's homeland in Papua New Guinea (PNG). She has adapted it from using traditional foods sourced and harvested locally like fish, yams and coconut, to create her own little signature dish by using ingredients she can find in Australia.

Growing up in Australia, I have been introduced to my cultural roots through song, traditional dancing and food. I have very fond memories of get-togethers with my aunties where we would have dance practice learning traditional dance from different parts of PNG and the songs that accompany them. They would teach it to one another and to us children. The sound of all the aunties’ voices was always loud, but always in harmony. Beautiful fragrant smells of sweet coconut rice, yams, sago, and strong pungent smells of fish would fill the air as we worked up an appetite practising over and over. Each aunty brought food to share and while we danced the food was warming up for us to feast on afterwards.

This dish is one of my favourites that my mother Haiveta would make for special occasions like dance practice.

Ingredients:
Rainbow Trout
1 whole rainbow trout, gutted and cleaned, head and tail still on
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon curry powder
2 small sweet potato (or 1 large), cut into 1 cm chips
3 Desiree potatoes, cut into 1 cm chips
1 tablespoon fresh ginger, thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon turmeric
Half a bunch coriander, roughly chopped
4-5 sprigs dill
4-5 kaffir lime leaves
1 stalk lemongrass
1 large chilli
½ cup coconut milk
400 ml can coconut milk

Dumplings with yams and greens
2 cans 400 ml coconut milk
1 teaspoon salt
3-4 yams (whichever ones you like), peeled and diced
2 cups plain flour
1 bunch kale, roughly chopped
1 bunch silverbeet, roughly chopped

Rice for serving - steamed or coconut

Baked Rainbow Trout
1. Pre-heat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.
2. Place the fish in a large baking tray.
3. Season the fish by rubbing salt and pepper into the skin and sprinkle with curry powder.
4. Place potatoes and sweet potatoes in the tray around the fish.
5. Layer the slices of garlic and ginger over the fish. Add sprigs of dill, coriander and the lemongrass and kaffir lime leaves around the tray and sprinkle the turmeric over the fish.
6. Add fresh chilli to taste.
7. Drizzle coconut milk over the dish.
8. Cover with foil and bake in oven for 35-40 minutes

Dumplings
1. Place the two cans of coconut milk into a pot and add a cup of water. Bring to simmer and add a teaspoon of salt.
2. Add diced yams to the pot of coconut broth.
3. Place 2 cups plain flour in a bowl (reserve a little to roll dough in) and create a well.
4. Pour half cup of water slowly into bowl. Gently mix the water and flour together until a soft dough forms.
5. Pinch a small handful of dough and roll into a finger-shaped dumpling using the reserved flour to bind the dough and water together.
6. Gently place the dumpling into the coconut broth and repeat until all the dough has been used.
7. Cook for about 10-15 minutes on low heat.
8. Add kale and silverbeet to the broth and cook for 2-3 minutes. Turn off the heat and place a lid in the pot. Leave for 3 minutes before serving.

Serve with steamed or coconut rice.

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