Arsik — North Sumatra, Indonesia

Arsik is an Indonesian spicy fish dish most often made with common carp, known locally as ikan mas, and associated with the Batak Toba and Mandailing peoples of North Sumatra. This entry reports the version tied to North Tapanuli and Samosir, in the Batak highlands, where andaliman pepper and torch ginger fruit, asam cikala, grow and are gathered fresh for the dish; the same preparation travels with Batak communities living elsewhere. A paste of shallots, garlic, ginger, fresh turmeric and chili is ground and mixed with andaliman, pounded coarsely for its citrusy heat, and with torch ginger fruit for sourness. The whole cleaned and scored fish is layered with lemongrass and bay leaf, coated in the paste, and simmered slowly with little or no added oil until the sauce reduces and clings to the flesh. What distinguishes this version is its closeness to andaliman and torch ginger, two ingredients reported to grow specifically in the Batak highlands, giving the dish a citrusy, tingling heat that sets it apart from Indonesian fish preparations built on coconut milk or deep frying. Some households round it out with green beans or cassava leaf simmered alongside the fish.