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1
Rinse the catfish fillets and pat dry with paper towels.
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2
Cut each fillet into index fingersized pieces about 3 inches long and 3/4 inch thick.
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3
(To arrive at pieces that are long enough, you may need to angle the knife so that you cut on the diagonal.)
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4
To make the marinade, in a shallow bowl large enough to accommodate the catfish, combine the sour cream, turmeric, galangal juice, and shrimp sauce and mix well.
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5
Add the catfish and use a rubber spatula to coat the fish evenly.
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6
Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours or up to overnight.
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7
Thirty minutes before broiling, remove the catfish from the refrigerator.
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8
To prepare the accompaniments, arrange the noodles on 2 plates in 2-inch mounds for easy serving.
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9
Place the noodles, vegetable garnish plate, peanuts, dipping sauce, and rice crackers on the table.
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10
Position a rack about 3 inches from the heat source and preheat the broiler for 20 minutes to get it nice and hot.
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11
Arrange the catfish pieces on an aluminum foillined baking sheet, spreading them out flat like a jigsaw puzzle.
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12
Broil for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the fish is sizzling and a little brown.
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13
Remove from the broiler, make a spout in one corner of the foil, and pour off the accumulated liquid.
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14
Use chopsticks or a spatula to flip the fish pieces over.
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15
Broil for another 5 to 8 minutes, or until browned on the second side.
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16
Transfer to a serving plate.
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17
To garnish the fish, blanket it with the dill and scallions.
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18
Then, in a small saucepan, heat the oil until faint wisps of smoke start rising.
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19
Pour the hot oil over the scallion and dill to wilt them.
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20
Use 2 spoons to mix the fish and garnishes and then place on the table.
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21
To eat this dish, each diner combines all the various ingredients in a small bowl (such as a rice bowl), tearing the lettuce and herbs into pieces and breaking up the rice cracker.
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22
He or she then drizzles a little sauce on top, mixes the contents of the bowl, and eats.
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23
To extract galangal juice, first reduce the knobby rhizome to a fine texture by either grating it with a Microplane or Japanese grater, or by thinly slicing it and then pounding the slices in a mortar to a mush.
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24
Press the solids through a fine-mesh sieve to obtain the milky liquid.
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25
For 1 tablespoon juice, you will need a 1 1/2-inch chunk of galangal.
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26
Some people dont care for the taste of Tangy-Sweet Shrimp Sauce, finding it too strongly flavored.
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27
Include an alternative of Basic Dipping Sauce (page 308), made without garlic, on the table.
