History of Curry Fish Head in Singapore. An Indian - Chinese Fusion?

Kam Long curry fish head, Johor Bahru, MalaysiaCreated in 1949, curry fish head is a relatively new dish but it is deeply entrenched in Singapore food culture and its place in Singapore's culinary pantheon is undisputed (along with chicken rice, bak kut teh, Katong laksa, chili crab etc). Many forms of curry fish dishes exist in Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia and India long before there was curry fish head. Malays have gulai ikan. To make the curry, there's ginger, shallot, garlic, chili pepper, tomatoes, lemon, coconut milk, Kunyit (turmeric) leaf, etc. The fish of choice is usually small and cooked with head intact such as golden pomfret (in above video). Malays also have asam pedas fish. The curry is made with daum kesum (Vietnamese cilantro), tamarind juice, tamarind paste, shallot, garlic, lemongrass, calamansi, lady's finger, tomato, dried chili pepper, turmeric powder, dried shrimp, etc. Fish of choice is cincaru (torpedo scad) etc., and cooked with head intact. So, eating fish with head isn't so alien in southeast Asia before the appearance of curry fish head. Peranakans have their own version of asam fish which is cooked with shallot, tomato, lady's finger, torch ginger flower, lemongrass, belacan, chili pepper, tamarind juice, etc. Fish of choice is mackerel cut in steaks. Before there was curry fish head there was Kerala curry fish from the coast of southwestern India. Kerala curry is made with shallot, garlic, ginger, coconut oil, green chilies, curry leaf, turmeric powder, Kashmiri chili powder, coriander powder, tomato, coconut milk, cokum petals, pepper powder, etc. The fish of choice is king fish or Indo-Pacific king mackerel cut in steaks.

Kerala Restaurant Johor BahruMarian Jacob Gomez, a Malayalee from Kerala who came to Singapore in 1928, ran a Kerala restaurant shed named Gomez Curry at Sophia Street in the 1940s. Gomez Curry was a typical banana leaf restaurant which served Kerala style curry dishes with plain white rice on banana leaf. The utensils were the customers' fingers 👐 Gomez Curry was famous for their curry chicken before curry fish head came on the scene. Conventional Traditional Kerala curry fish (with mackerel steaks) was on Gomez's menu right from the beginning.

Kam Long fish head curry, Johor Bahru, MalaysiaAt that time, ikan merah (red snapper) wasn't a popular fish among locals. The fish was considered too big for Malay, Nyonya, or Indian dishes. Its bony head was oversized. At that time, its white meat was also deemed lacking in flavour (too subtle).

Fishmonger in Singapore, 1952. Note the fish heads at lower left. Image credit: National Archives SingaporeBut, ikan merah was popular with Europeans as their white flesh is closer in texture and flavour to familiar fishes like cod, haddock, halibut etc. However, Europeans fillet their fish and discard the head. So, ikan merah fish heads became available at markets for mere pennies or even as discards. It was uncertain how Marian Jacob Gomez hit upon the idea of swopping the usual mackerel steaks with ikan merah fish heads in his Kerala curry fish dish. Perhaps, it was a suggestion from his customers. The fish heads went perfectly with Gomez's curry of grated coconut flesh, coconut milk, fresh red chilies, tamarind juice, ginger, onion, garlic, turmeric powder, fennel, curry leaves, tomatoes, eggplants, etc.

Fish head yam soupIt might be one of Gomez's Chinese customers as eating big fish heads such as the Song fish (bighead carp) has long been a Chinese tradition. There are many ways Chinese use big fish heads - they are usually stewed, steamed, made into soup etc. [One of the most fascinating ways is in Yangzhou, where they debone the carp fish head and serve it boneless in a soupy sauce.] Gomez's curry fish head caught on quickly, especially with Gomez's Chinese customers. Gomez Curry prospered and later moved to larger premises at Selegie Road.

Image credit: National Archives of SingaporeAccording to M.J. Gomez's son's account, Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew came to Gomez Curry one day. His face "turned red" on his first mouthful of Gomez's curry fish head. Perhaps, it was because he found the curry overly spicy. Image credit: Singapore Graphic ArchivesThey say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. Gomez's curry fish head was widely emulated. Among his early imitators was Hoong Ah Kong of Chin Wah Heng restaurant also at Selegie Road which launched their curry fish head in 1951 (hot on Gomez's heels). One of Hoong Ah Kong's tweaks was to cook the fish by steaming first before boiling in curry. This kept the fish meat supple and juicy, and also ridded it of any unwanted odour as run off water from steaming was discarded. Curry fish head lovers covet the gelatinous soft tissue between the crevices, in the eye sockets, cavities, lips, mouth and throat linings, membrane, cheeks, a bit of flesh here and there in the large bony red snapper head. Another early imitator was Soon Heng Curry Restaurant at 39, Kinta Road. Chef Lim Ngee Ah blanched the red snapper fish heads before cooking them in curry. The idea is the same as Chef Hoong Ah Kong's steaming method - better control of texture, and getting rid of any unwanted odour from blood, body fluids etc.

Restoran Asam Pedas in Kluang Malaysia Asam Pedas Mak Limah in Batu Pahat, Malaysia Mui Seng Nyonya curry fish head Asam pedas fish head Mak Pon Parit Jawa, Muar, MalaysiaSimilar curry fish head dishes appeared in Malaysia. There were many versions such as gulai (Malay), asam (Nyonya), and asam pedas (Malay) fish head.It is not clear whether these appeared independently / spontaneously in response to availability of unwanted ikan merah fish heads throughout British Malaya where colonial officers were stationed or they were all inspired by M. J. Gomez's Kerala curry fish head. There are no records on the Malaysian side.Whatever it was, curry, asam pedas, gulai, and Nyonya fish head all become mainstream dishes ubiquitous throughout Singapore and Malaysia. (Some restaurants use other fish such as grouper and even farmed sea bass but personally, ikan merah is the best for curry fish head.)

Gomez Curry no longer exists - M. J. Gomez returned to Kerala in 1961 and settled in the seaside town of Kollam where he lived till he passed away in 1974. With Gomez, Kerala curry fish made a round trip from Singapore back to India but returned as curry fish head. Apparently, curry fish head is now quite popular in Kerala - Anthony Bourdain tasted it there in 2010, sixty years after Gomez returned to India (at 12:12 minutes in video). However, M.J. Gomez's son Dr John Gomez said his father did not start any restaurants in Kerala, so it is unclear how fish head curry caught on there. When Gomez left Singapore, he handed Gomez Curry to KT his trishaw man friend, Sebastian DeCruz the cook and Rocky the waiter but the restaurant did not last long. It closed in the early 1980s. "Standard dropped" Gomez's regulars said.Nevertheless, Gomez's legacy lives on in the curry fish head dish. Here are some household names in Singapore curry fish head today.

There's Samy's at the old Civil Service Club at Dempsey Road which is in the third generation now. It started as a street side stall at Tank Road in the 1960s. The famous Muthu's founded in 1969 at Race Course Road.

Banana Leaf Apollo Restaurant. Kam Long curry fish head is the most famous in Johor Bahru.

References: The Straits Times New York Times ISEAS Interview with Vincent Gabriel (National Archives of Singapore) Date: 25 May 2020