Fish Curry with Coconut Sambal: Flying Fish, Sydney

Ingredients

• 2 tbsp ghee
• 6 baby snapper fillets (about 200gm each)
• To serve: basmati rice and lime wedges
• Curry sauce
• 1 tbsp ghee
• 10 fresh curry leaves
• 5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 4 golden shallots, thinly sliced
• 6 cardamom pods, cracked
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 1 tsp fenugreek
• ¼ tsp chilli powder
• 1 cinnamon quill
• 2½ tbsp Sri Lankan curry powder (see note)
• 1 tbsp ground turmeric
• 1 1/4 litres fish stock (5 cups)
• 500 ml coconut cream (2 cups)
• Juice of 1 lime
• Coconut sambal
• 1 small dry coconut
• 1 tbsp Maldive fish (optional; see note)
• 3 tsp chilli powder
• 1 small Spanish onion, very finely chopped
• 1 tsp black peppercorns, crushed