One of the commonest fish found at wet markets in Malaysia has got to be the black pomfret (the cheaper cousin of the usual silver pomfret). The black pomfret, however, usually has a slightly more “fishy” taste / smell and therefore, it is not usually steamed compared to its more expensive cousin. At home, our usual way of cooking the black pomfret is to fry it after marinating it with a little salt. In case you are wondering whether I eat fish, yes I do. Just that I usually have them fried with simple salt marinade and I thought it is TOO SIMPLE a dish and that’s why I don’t post them up on this blog.
Anyway, with black pomfret, some cook it with assam-based gravy and some with tau-cheo based gravy. Mine here is more a simple chilli sambal which is “pasted” on top of the fish. The chilli sambal can also be considered a dip and you can serve it using another sauce plate in case you don’t want to spice up the fish (if you have little kids around) by smearing it with the chilli sambal.
Oh, the picture looks kinda pathetic without garnishing or “restaurant” look. After all, this is supposed to be home-cooked food. No time for all that. I just wanted a quick meal and this is what was served on the table 
Sprinkle some coriander leaves or julienned carrots / chilli or whatever you fancy to make it look more presentable
This is my recipe for Black Pomfret with Chilli Sambal Paste
Ingredients
Chilli Sambal
Method
Blend chilli sambal ingredients (except cooking oil) together till it becomes a paste.
Heat 2 tablespoons cooking oil on medium heat and lightly saute chilli sambal paste till fragrant (about 3 minutes or more) taking care not to burn the paste. Add salt and / or sugar to taste. Set aside.
Fry the pomfret in a clean wok till golden brown.
Place fried pomfret on serving plate and “paste” the chilli sambal over it.