Otak-otak

Otak-otak

Otak-otak served in Jakarta
Place of origin	Maritime Southeast Asia
Region or state	Indonesia,Malaysia and Singapore
Main ingredients	Fish meat, spices, leek, wrapped with banana leaf

Otak-otak is a grilled fish cake made of ground fish meat mixed with tapioca starch and spices. It is widely known across Southeast Asia, especially in Indonesia,Malaysia and Singapore, where it is traditionally served fresh, wrapped inside a banana leaf, as well as in many Asian stores internationally — being sold as frozen food. It can be eaten solely as a snack or with steamed rice as part of a meal.

Otak means "brains" in Indonesian and Malay, and the name of the dish is derived from the idea that the dish somewhat resembles brains, being whitish grey, soft and almost squishy. Nevertheless, it was only otak-otak from Indonesia that has whitish color, while the otak-otak from Malaysia and Singapore has reddish-orange or brown coloring acquired from chili, turmeric and curry powder.

Otak-otak is found in certain parts of Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore. In Indonesia, three cities are famous for their otak-otak; Palembang, Jakarta and Makassar, nevertheless most of coastal fishing towns in Indonesia are familiar with this dish. The southern Malaysian town of Muar in Johor is a popular destination for it — people from surrounding states and even Singaporeans often visit to buy the famous otak-otak in bulk. It is commonly known in Singapore as otah.

Otak-otak is made by mixing fish paste with a mixture of spices. The type of fish used to make otak-otak might vary, mackerel is commonly used in Malaysia, while ikan tenggiri (wahoo) is popular ingredient in Indonesia. Other types of fish such as bandeng (milkfish) and the more expensive ikan belida (featherback fish) might be used. The ground fish and starch is seasoned with spices which usually includes garlic, shallot, coconut milk, pepper, salt and sugar.