Sousi Pa

Ingredients

 * 500 g (1 lb) fish fillets
 * 2 large dried chillies 1
 * 5 cloves garlic
 * 3 tender lemon leaves
 * 1 slice fresh laos or l teaspoon laos powder ***
 * 2 stalks lemon grass, finely sliced,
 * or 2 strips lemon rind
 * 1 cup thick coconut milk
 * 3 cups thin coconut milk
 * 1 tablespoon fish sauce
 * 2 tablespoons chopped roasted peanuts
 * springs of fresh basil
 * 5 or 6 small dried chillies
 * oil for frying

Directions

 * 1) Wash fillets and cut into serving pieces. Remove stalks and seeds from large dried chilies and soak in hot water for 10 minutes. With mortar and pestle poundthe chilies garlic, lemon leaves, laos, lemon grass or lemon rind to a paste. (An electric blender can be used, but it may be necessary to add a tablespoon or so of thick coconut milk to facilitate blending to a paste.)
 * 2) Heat the thick coconut milk in a saucepan until you see the oil floating on top.This takes about 10.15 minutes on low heat. Add pounded or blended mixture and fry until cooked, stirring constantly. Add pieces of fish and turn them in themixture, then add thin coconut milk and fish sauce and simmer for 10 minutes. Add peanuts just before end of cooking. Serve garnished with basil and small whole dried chilies that have been fried for a few seconds in hot oil.
 * 3) Laos is a form of ginger. Other names for it are galangal, Java root, galingale, or lengkuas. If you can't find it, use 5 ml of powdered ginger mixed with 1 ml of powdered cin- namon.