Recently I tried out a fish curry recipe using coconut. Yes, I managed to make a note of the exact amount of all the spices and other ingredients. Since I didn’t have any fresh fish in stock or fresh grated coconut, I was a little doubtful (I was a bit depressed after my ‘batura’ stunt!). It will taste a lot more “yummy-licious” if we can use fresh fish with proper ‘fish’ smell (I know it sounds weird, but the fish fillets we get in grocery stores here(US) doesn’t have any smell…no vikaaram!!!), fresh grated coconut and last but not the least “man-chatti”(earthern ware). I don’t have man-chatti also, but inspite of all the shortcomings, this dish was good enough for a satisfying meal. So here goes the recipe…



Ingredients

Fish (I used tilapia fillets) – approx. 1 lb
Shallots (Kunjulli) – 5 small ones (cut into two)
Ginger - 1" piece (thin slices)
Garlic Clove - 4 (use whole ones and slit it)
Green Chilly – 3 (adjust according to spice level)
Curry leaves
Salt to taste
Water
Kokum (kudampuli) – 2 or 3 small pieces (too much will spoil the curry)
Coriander leaves (Cilantro)

Grinding

Coconut – 6 Tbsps ( I used dry coconut , but if you have fresh ones that’s the best)
Turmeric Powder – ½ tsp
Chilli Powder – 21/2 tsps (I used kashmiri chilli, it brings out a nice rich red colour and wont be too spicy. Use less if adding regular chilli powder)
Coriander Powder – 21/2 tbsps (If you have coriander seeds, substitute half the amount with seeds.)
Dry Red Chilly – 5 (adjust according to spice level)

Seasoning

Coconut oil – 2 tbsps
Shallots – 4 (depending on size)
Curry leaves
Fenugreek (uluva) – 1 tsp

Method

• Soak Kokum in ¼ cup water for 10 minutes.
• Grind the ingredients mentioned in the Grinding section with some water to a very smooth paste.
• Heat the pan or man-chatti and add the ground coconut paste and some water to dilute it (You can adjust water level according to how thick you want it, but we need some water here as it will come down later).
• Now add shallots, green chilly, ginger, garlic, curry leaves, salt and the soaked kudampuli along with its water and give it a stir. Once this comes to a boil on medium flame, add the fish pieces and gently coat it with the gravy and cook covered for another 5 minutes.
• Fish doesn’t take much time to cook, so keep it on low-med flame and keep covered. After 5 -6 minutes, remove the lid, give it a swirl (handle with care - breakable!). Give a taste test now and add some salt if not enough. Cook for a few more minutes uncovered until the gravy becomes a little thick. Add some coriander leaves and give it a swirl and switch off the stove.
• Heat some coconut oil , add fenugreek (don’t add too much, curry will become bitter) and once it becomes golden brown color , add curry leaves and the sliced shallots and sauté till the shallots are light brown in color. Pour this over the curry and keep the lid closed for another 1 hr( Do not disturb ;D..it tastes good when it sits for some time and all the flavors combine well).

Note: As you know this tastes even better the next day, so spare some for the next day also :). Do not use big onions instead of shallots, it will spoil the taste of this curry. Use coconut oil for seasoning for that added flavor. I haven’t tried this with tamarind, hence I am not sure of the taste with the same. Instead of this seasoning you can use just coconut oil and curry leaves also to temper the gravy. If you have faith in me after my Batura disaster: D, be brave… go ahead, try it out and let me know……


~Luv
Resh