BUTTERED SEAFOOD RICE PILAF

If you are a fan of Butter Prawns and/or Salted Egg yolks Crab, try this recipe for a change. It is a fusion of the two dishes with the Spanish Paella. The result: a complete, beautiful, crowd-pleasing one-meal dish with Malaysian flavours! Cook it in a wok or a fairly deep frying pan with lid.

BUTTERED SEAFOOD RICE PILAF

12 mussels or 200 g clams, parboiled and drained

1/4 cup ghee or clarified butter

2 tbsp minced frsh garlic

2 sprigs fresh curry leaves

10 bird chillies, chopped

1 chicken whole leg, deboned and cubed

300 g raw medium prawns/shrimps, shelled and deveined

2 medium cuttlefish/calamari, cut into rings

200 g any white boneless fish meat, cubed

1 small red capsicum/bell pepper, chopped

1 small green capsicum/bell pepper

1 cup Basmati or long-grain rice, washed and drained

1/4 tsp turmeric powder

2.5 cups chicken or prawn stock*

2 salted duck egg yolks, steamed and mashed

salt and pepper to taste

2 tbsp freshly chopped curry leaves extra for garnishing

Method:

1 Heat 2 tbsp ghee and fry chicken cubes until brown. Drain and set aside.

2 Reheat oil and fry mussels/clams, prawns, cuttlefish and fish with 1 tablespoon garlic and curry leaves until just cooked. Drain and set aside.

3 In the same pan, reheat and add in remaining ghee and fry remaining garlic with bird chillies until fragrant. Add in rice and turmeric powder and fry for another 2 minutes.

4 Stir in chicken/prawn stock, salt and pepper to taste. Bring to boil, covered.

5 When boiling, reduce heat to low and simmer until all liquid has almost been absorbed. Stir in the two types of capsicum, mashed egg yolks, all the seafood and chicken cubes.

6 Cook further, covered, until all the liquid has been absorbed and off fire. Let it stand, covered, for about 5-10 minutes before serving.

7 Before serving, sprinkle rice with freshly chopped curry leaves and fluff-up rice with a pair of chopsticks or a large wooden fork.

How to make your own prawn/chicken stock: Fry prawn shells and heads (from 300 g fresh prawns) with 2 tbsp of oil and 2 pips garlic until fragrant and quite dry. Transfer to a pot and add about 2 cups water and 1 chicken carcass. Bring to boil and simmer for about 11/2 hours. Strain before using.