Lara Lee’s recipe for ikan bakar, or Balinese-style baked fish | Indonesian food and drink

hOh I love this dish, inspired by wood-fired grilled and marinated fish off the coast of Bali. In this version, the fish is oven-baked, garnished with crispy, chewy bits of garlic and ginger, and served swimming in a pool of salty-sweet kekep manis. Eating a whole fish from head to tail ensures a good start and end to the Lunar New Year, and represents abundance, wealth and prosperity. Enjoy as part of a larger feast, or with vegetables and rice.

Akan Bakr

Prep 15 minutes
cooking 40 minutes
Serves 2

800 grams of whole fishsuch as sea bream or similar firm filleted white fish, cleaned and gutted
80 ml of neutral oil (eg, vegetable, sunflower or peanut), plus extra for fat
5 Garlic clovespeeled and finely minced
50 grams of peeled gingerminced or grated
bs spoon ground turmeric
1 tsp fine salt
1 lemonly sliced thinly, the rest cut into wedges,
1 tablespoon Cape Manis

Take the fish out of the fridge 15 minutes before cooking, so it comes to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 220C (200C fan)/425F/Gas 7, then line a baking tray with foil and brush lightly with oil.

For the paste, combine the oil, garlic, ginger, turmeric, and salt in a small bowl, and microwave in 10-second bursts, until fragrant.

Score the fish four or five times on both sides, making cuts about ½ cm to 1 cm deep. Coat the fish cavity with about a quarter of the paste, then use the rest to coat both sides of the skin, making sure the paste fills the score.

Try this recipe and many other fish dishes on the new Dawat app: scan or click here for your free trial. — Try this recipe and many other fish dishes on the new Dawat app: scan or click Here For your free trial.

Arrange the lemon wedges in the middle of the foil, place the fish on top, and bake on the middle shelf of the oven for 15 minutes. Lift the tray, drizzle the Kecap Manse all over the fish, then return to the oven for another five minutes to finish cooking. To check this, insert a thin-bladed knife or metal skewer into the body for 10 seconds, then press on your bottom lip and press: if the blade or skewer is hot, the fish is cooked. If cold, return the fish to the oven and retest every few minutes.

Once the fish is ready, transfer it to a serving plate and serve with lemon wedges.