Natinombur

Natinombur is one of the typical dishes of the Batak people which is made from grilled or fried fish and served with special Batak spices. Fish commonly used to make Natinombur include carp, mujahir fish, tilapia, or catfish.

The seasoning used to make Natinombur consists of several spices such as red chili, candlenut, ginger, cayenne pepper, kecombrang, shallots, garlic, tomatoes, lime and andaliman. These spices are ground and mixed with hot water and lime juice to make a thick gravy that will be poured over fish that has been grilled or fried.

Natinombur is a very delicious and unique dish with a rich taste. The taste is spicy, sour and savory with an appetizing aroma of spices.

Ingredients and Method of Cooking

Natinombur is one of the typical dishes of the Batak people which is made from grilled or fried fish and served with Batak spices. Fish commonly used to make Natinombur include carp, mujahir fish, tilapia, or catfish.

The following are the ingredients needed to make Natinombur:

1 kg of tilapia fish
100 grams of red chili
7 hazelnut seeds
2 knuckles of ginger
13-15 bird’s eye chilies or according to taste
2 kecombrang / kecombrang sticks
5 shallots
4 cloves garlic
2 large tomatoes
2 limes (1 for fish, 1 for seasoning)
Salt to taste
A handful of Andalimans

The following is how to cook Natinombur:

Clean tilapia/catfish/tilapia or carp. Cut in half with grilled cuts so that the meat can be cooked perfectly.
Marinate the fish with lime juice and salt until evenly distributed. Leave it for about 15 minutes.
Then grill the fish with hot coals or with non-stick Teflon. Baked in teflon reduces the smoke that gets into the meat, so it’s healthier. This is the easiest way to grill fish. If in doubt that the fish sticks to the Teflon, you can brush it with a little butter.
Roast or fry all the other spices so that the spices smell good. Grind all the spices in the pestle. Mix all the spices including andaliman. You can also use a blender to make it smooth.
If the spices are smooth, add salt according to taste. Mix with a little hot water. Then add a little lime juice to the seasoning.
Smear the fish that has been baked into the spices that have been mixed.