Easy Laksa Paste And Snapper Laksa

Last Updated on March 14, 2024 by Sabrina Currie

This easy and authentic laksa paste recipe starts with a versatile and easy homemade curry paste and is finished with coconut milk, stock and fish sauce for authentic south Asian flavour. The snapper is added minutes before serving and poured over a bowl of rice noodles and vegetable garnishes. Let's take a trip to South East Asia, come on and I'll show you how easy it is!

Homemade Laksa (Curry) Paste

Laksa is a really delicious version of curry that is popular in Southeast Asia. A mash up of Chinese, Malay and Indonesian influences come together in this fragrant and flavorful paste. Adding soft nuts to the paste adds to the creaminess of the finished curry. I love Asian flavors, travelling throughout South East Asia multiple times in my twenties gave me a deep appreciation for the food there.

Spicy, rich and authentic are the descriptions that come to mind when I recall the flavors I tasted. Some (many) I haven't mastered yet but there are a few that I've recreated to my satisfaction. Have you tried my Chirashai Sushi Bowl or Miso Baked Oysters? If not, these are worth trying too.

Don't be daunted by the ingredient list, it all goes in the blender and is done in minutes and the ingredients are easy to find at most grocery stores. Thick and rich, full of bright spice and herbal aromas, this soup is a comforting and satisfying meal in a bowl.

Why I Made This

Through winter and early spring, there are fewer fresh vegetables grown here in Canada but fresh fish is abundant. In fact many seafoods like this snapper and most shellfish are at their best in the colder months.

To combat the cold, I love to add both kinds of heat. This is a wonderful laksa paste that can be easily made mild to hot and anywhere in between depending on how much heat you like.

Other ingredients like lemongrass and chilis keep well through winter. Sometimes I buy my cilantro but sometimes I grow cilantro as microgreens in the winter. They work awesome in this recipe and if you're curious to try it yourself, read my post on how to grow microgreens in winter.

Why Use BC Snapper

Many types of seafood are in season and even at their best in the cold winter months and one of my favourite fish to buy for weeknight meals is "Snapper". It is certified Ocean Wise. Snapper is fished regularly through the winter making it readily available and much less expensive that halibut. Another seafood in season in cold weather are scallops. If you get some, try my Scallops Vongole , another delicious seafood recipe.

Snapper has nice, firm flesh and a mild flavour similar to ling cod and because it has more natural oil than halibut it won't dry out as easily. I use it frequently in fish tacos, baked fish n' chips and soups.

I hope you give this laksa paste a try and let me know how you like it!

Sabrina

If you have any questions or comments, you can find me on Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook. I try to answer any recipe related questions quickly as I know you might be in the middle of making it.

Also check out my FREE PRINTABLE meal planner to make menu planning and grocery shopping a breeze and my shopping guide. And if you like this recipe, I would love it if you give it a star rating in the recipe card.

Cheers and happy cooking, Friends! Sabrina

📖 Recipe

Easy Laksa Paste and Snapper Laksa

Made from scratch, this laksa paste and soup is quick and delicious and can be made ahead up to 3 days (or even longer if frozen).  

5 from 34 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Dinner, Main Course, Soup

Cuisine: Asian, canadian

Keyword: Easy Laksa, Laksa, Soup

Prep Time: 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes minutes

Servings: 4

Calories: 846kcal

Author: Sabrina Currie

Ingredients

Laksa Paste

• ▢ ½ c Cashews Or other soft nut like macadamias
• ▢ 1 small Shallot About 2-3 tbsp
• ▢ 2 cloves Garlic
• ▢ 1 stalk Lemongrass, white part only sliced into small rounds
• ▢ 1-3 Thai Red Chilis Depending on heat level desired
• ▢ 1 Bunch Cilantro Stems (Save The Leafy Tops For Garnish)
• ▢ 1 1" piece Ginger, Peeled And Grated
• ▢ 1 1" piece Turmeric, Peeled And Grated You can substitute 1 teaspoon dry ground turmeric if desired
• ▢ ½ teaspoon Paprika
• ▢ 2 tablespoon Coconut Sugar Or regular granulated sugar
• ▢ ½ teaspoon Salt
• ▢ 2 tablespoon Vegetable Oil

Soup

• ▢ 1 tablespoon Vegetable Oil
• ▢ 1 can Coconut Milk Regular, 400 ml
• ▢ 2 c Chicken Stock
• ▢ 1 c Water
• ▢ 1 tablespoon Fish Sauce
• ▢ 1 lb Fresh Snapper, Cut Into 2" Pieces, Any Bones Removed Or other firm fleshed Oceanwise cod
• ▢ 2 Baby Bok Choy, Cut In Half Lengthwise Or other asian green

Garnishes to serve

• ▢ 300 grams Rice Noodles, Prepared According To Package
• ▢ 1 c Bean Sprouts
• ▢ Leftover Cilantro Leaves
• ▢ 1 Lime, Cut Into 4 Wedges

Instructions

Laksa Paste

• For the paste, first process the cashews very finely in a food processor (or high powered blender).  The smaller they are the better as this will help add "thickness" or body to the soup.  Once chopped, add garlic, lemongrass, shallot, chilis, and cilantro stalks and process until they are a coarse paste then add remaining ingredients and process again until smoothly combined. (It should be a rough paste)

Soup

• Heat a soup pot on medium-low heat, add oil and then saute laksa paste (reserve 1 tablespoon to stir in at end) until it turns slightly darker and cooks through.  Stir frequently to prevent burning.
• Add coconut milk and stir until well combined, add stock, water, fish sauce and remaining tablespoon of Laksa paste and bring to a simmer.  Taste and season with salt or fish sauce as desired. 

   Meanwhile fill 4 large soup bowls about ½ full with prepared rice noodles and set aside.
  
• Add fish and simmer until just cooked, approximately 3-5 minutes.  1 minute before it is finished, add in the bok choy and let cook just until wilted.
• Spoon fish, broth and bok choy over noodles in bowls and garnish with bean sprouts, cilantro and lime wedges.  Bring a jar of sambal oelek to the table so everyone can season to taste and enjoy 🙂

Notes

Get creative with the garnishes!  Almost any vegetables sliced thin are great-julienned cucumber or carrot, mint or basil leaves, crushed peanuts or cashews, broccoli, purple cabbage or precooked squash. 

Nutrition

Calories: 846kcal | Carbohydrates: 85g | Protein: 36g | Fat: 41g | Saturated Fat: 22g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 8g | Monounsaturated Fat: 8g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 46mg | Sodium: 1095mg | Potassium: 1059mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 2808IU | Vitamin C: 36mg | Calcium: 155mg | Iron: 6mg

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