Xiangmaocao Kaoyu

the Dai grilled fish of Xishuangbanna: a whole river fish stuffed with chilli, garlic, coriander, and chopped lemongrass, bound in lemongrass stalks, and grilled over charcoal

Origin: Xishuangbanna & the Dai Country

From the journey of Lemongrass.

Xiangmaocao kaoyu, lemongrass grilled fish, is the best-known dish of the Dai, the Tai-speaking people of Xishuangbanna in the far south of Yunnan, whose cooking has more in common with Laos and northern Thailand across the border than with the rest of China. A river fish, often tilapia or carp, is slashed and stuffed with a mixture of chopped lemongrass, fresh chilli, garlic, ginger, and coriander, then folded and bound tightly with whole lemongrass stalks and grilled slowly over charcoal, traditionally clamped between split green bamboo. In the night markets of Jinghong the lemongrass-grilled fish, the lemongrass-grilled chicken, and the pounded chicken feet are sold together as the three essentials of the Dai grill. The lemongrass is both the seasoning and the string.

Ingredients

Fish

  • 1 whole tilapia or small carp, about 800 g, scaled and gutted
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1 tbsp Shaoxing wine or rice wine

Stuffing

  • 3 stalks of lemongrass, finely chopped
  • 4 fresh red chillies, chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 2 cm ginger, chopped
  • 1 handful coriander, chopped
  • 1 tbsp lime juice

To Bind

  • 4 whole stalks of lemongrass, bruised, for tying
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil

Method

  1. Slash the fish three times on each side. Rub it inside and out with the salt and wine and leave for 30 minutes.
  2. Mix the chopped lemongrass, chillies, garlic, ginger, coriander, and lime juice, and stuff it into the cavity and the slashes.
  3. Fold the fish closed and bind it tightly with the whole lemongrass stalks, tying their tops round the body; secure with string if needed.
  4. Brush with oil and grill over medium charcoal, or in a fish-grilling basket, for 12 to 15 minutes a side, until the skin is charred and the flesh flakes at the bone.
  5. Serve on the lemongrass, with sticky rice.

Notes

Any firm whole fish works. Under an oven grill, give it 10 to 12 minutes a side on a rack.

The Gastrographer

The Gastrographer

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Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control
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