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Fried Fish in Peanut Sauce

A fried fish served in a sauce of peanut butter, spices, and broth, garnished with dried shrimp.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 13 ingredients
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Why it works: Peanut oil and peanut match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and 125 recipes mention both. Both carry 3-ethyl-2,5-dimethylpyrazine, which smells roasted, nutty. The science ↓

The recipe

Ingredients

Contains: peanut, fish, shellfish (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)

Directions

Prepare the fish

  1. Heat a few spoonfuls of palm oil in a skillet.

  2. Fry the fish and half of the garlic on both sides until done.

  3. Set aside on absorbent paper.

Make the broth

  1. Grind together the coriander, ginger, nutmeg, salt, black pepper, and half the dried shrimp (or fish).

  2. In a saucepan, bring four cups of water to a boil.

  3. Add the fish head and the spices and ground dried shrimp (or fish).

  4. Reduce heat and let simmer.

  5. Remove fish head from broth.

  6. Strain broth if desired.

Make the peanut sauce

  1. Heat a few spoonfuls of peanut oil in a clean skillet.

  2. Fry onion and remaining garlic until browned.

  3. Add chile pepper.

  4. Reduce heat.

  5. Add the fried fish to the onion-garlic mixture.

  6. Add peanut butter and stir until smooth.

  7. Simmer over low heat until it is thickened into a sauce.

  8. Pour the thickened sauce into the skillet over the fish and onions.

  9. Add remaining dried shrimp (of fish) and simmer together for a few minutes.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

This recipe comes from the Recipes Wiki on Fandom and is licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Our formatting and summaries are shared under the same licence.

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.

  1. Peanut oil + peanuttop 4% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together125 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-ethyl-2,5-dimethylpyrazine (roasted, nutty).

  2. Coriander + gingertop 2% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together3,504 recipes

    Shared aroma: trans-2-decenal (waxy, orange).

  3. Garlic + coriandertop 3% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapmoderate
    Mentioned together6,477 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  4. Ginger + nutmegtop 3% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together3,324 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  5. Coriander + peppertop 3% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together5,948 recipes

    Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Fish
Forms the main body of the dish and absorbs the flavors of the sauce.
Peanut butter
Thickens the sauce and adds rich, nutty body and flavor.
Onion
Browns in the oil to add sweetness and savory depth to the sauce.
Garlic
Browns in the oil to add pungent aroma and savory flavor.
Smoked or dried shrimp
Adds a concentrated smoky, savory flavor to the broth and sauce.

The step that matters

Simmer the peanut butter sauce until thickened. Peanut butter can scorch on direct heat and turn bitter, and it thickens gradually as water evaporates. Keeping the heat low and stirring helps it become smooth and cohesive rather than grainy or burnt.

Flavor stand-ins for the nutmeg

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (fish, garlic, coriander, ginger, pepper, shrimp, peanut oil):

  1. Cuminbetter flavor fit
  2. Turmericbetter flavor fit
  3. Cardamombetter flavor fit
  4. Nutmegthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against fish, garlic, coriander, ginger, pepper, shrimp, peanut oil. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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