Grilled Fish in Banana Leaf (Ikan Bakar)

Name: Grilled Fish in Banana Leaf (Ikan Bakar)
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Malaysian
Ingredients: 6 oz fresh red chilies, seeded and cut; 4 oz shallots; 2 stalk lemongrass, white part thinly sliced; 1 tbsp toasted belacan (shrimp paste); 2 tsp fish sauce; 0.5 piece lime, juiced; 0.25 tsp salt; 2 tsp sugar; 1 lb red or white snapper, cleaned and scaled; 4 piece banana leaf sheets; 4 tbsp oil; 1 piece tamarind pulp (ping-pong-ball size, for the dip); 0.5 cup water (for the dip); 3 piece fresh red chilies, seeded (for the dip); 2 piece bird's eye chilies, seeded (optional, for the dip); 1 tsp toasted belacan (for the dip); 0.25 tsp sugar (for the dip); 0.25 tsp salt (for the dip); 2 piece shallots, thinly sliced (for the dip)

Malaysian ikan bakar: whole snapper smothered in fragrant sambal, wrapped in banana leaf and grilled until moist and smoky, served with a tangy tamarind-chili dipping sauce.

40 min 4 servingsRasa Malaysia Source

Extracted by chinwei271Extracted 1 Jul 2026

Nutrition· per serving · estimated

325

Calories

29g

Protein

17g

Carbs

16g

Fat

Scale recipe

4 servings

Original recipe

Ingredients19 items

Produce

🌶️fresh red chilies, seeded and cut6 oz

🧅shallots4 oz

🌿lemongrass, white part thinly sliced2 stalk

🍋lime, juiced½ piece

🍃banana leaf sheets4 piece

🌶️fresh red chilies, seeded (for the dip)3 piece

🌶️bird's eye chilies, seeded (optional, for the dip)2 piece

🧅shallots, thinly sliced (for the dip)2 piece

Seafood

🐟red or white snapper, cleaned and scaled1 lb

Pantry

🦐toasted belacan (shrimp paste)1 tbsp

🐟fish sauce2 tsp

🍬sugar2 tsp

🛢️oil4 tbsp

🟤tamarind pulp (ping-pong-ball size, for the dip)1 piece

🦐toasted belacan (for the dip)1 tsp

🍬sugar (for the dip)¼ tsp

Spices

🧂salt¼ tsp

🧂salt (for the dip)¼ tsp

Other

💧water (for the dip)½ cup

Instructions

1
Make the sambal: grind the 6 oz chilies, shallots, lemongrass and belacan in a food processor until smooth.
2
Heat a wok and stir-fry the sambal paste until aromatic and the oil separates.
3
Season the sambal with the salt, sugar, fish sauce and lime juice; give a quick stir, then dish out and set aside.
4
Grease a pan and line it with a few sheets of banana leaf; drizzle 1 tablespoon of oil over the leaves and spread it evenly.
5
Place the fish on top of the banana leaves and spread 3 tablespoons of sambal over it.
6
Heat the pan over medium heat, cover with a lid and cook for about 8 minutes.
8:00 timer
7
Flip the fish, spread 3 more tablespoons of sambal on the other side and cook for another 8 minutes.
8:00 timer
8
The fish is done when you smell the sweet aroma of the scorched banana leaves; dish out.
9
Make the dipping sauce: soak the tamarind pulp in ½ cup water for 15 minutes, then extract the juice and discard the pulp.
15:00 timer
10
Pound the fresh chilies, bird's eye chilies and belacan into a paste.
11
Combine the tamarind juice, sugar, salt and sliced shallots with the chili paste and stir well.
12
Serve the grilled fish immediately with the dipping sauce.

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CuisineMalaysian