South Indian Fish Curry Recipes

FISH CURRY | INDIAN FISH MASALA

Steps:

• Marinate fish with ½ tbsp ginger garlic paste, ⅛ tsp turmeric, ¼ tsp red chilli powder & ¼ tsp salt.
• On a flat fry pan, heat 1 tsp oil. Fry fish pieces slightly until the raw smell goes away just for 2 to 3 mins on both sides. You can also sear the fish. Keep this aside. (refer picture below)
• Heat 1 tbsp oil in a pot and add cumin. When they sputter, add onions and saute until lightly golden.
• Next add ginger garlic paste and saute for 30 seconds. Add tomatoes & ½ tsp salt. Saute until tomatoes turn soft and mushy.
• Next add coconut, fennel seeds (optional), red chili powder & turmeric. Fry until the mixture turns fragrant & raw smell has gone away.
• Cool this & add to a blender jar along with 2 to 4 tbsps water. Blend to a smooth or coarse paste to suit your liking. (refer notes). You can also use a immersion blender. Keep this aside.
• Add 1 tbsp more oil to the same pot used earlier. Heat up on a low flame.
• When the oil turns slightly hot, add curry leaves & green chilies.
• When they splutter, add the ground onion tomato paste and garam masala. Fry until the mixture smells good. If you feel it is not hot enough for your taste, then add more chilli powder at this stage & saute.
• Pour 1 ¼ to 1½ cup water. Mix and bring it to a boil. Cook until you see traces of oil on the surface and the gravy thickens a bit.
• Gently slide the fish pieces and cook covered on a medium heat.
• Carefully flip or turn the pieces to the other side after 3 to 4 mins.
• Cook until the fish pieces bulge a bit. This is the indication they are cooked completely. Taste the curry and add more salt if needed.
• Optionally garnish fish curry with coriander leaves if desired.

SOUTH INDIAN STYLE FISH CURRY RECIPE

Steps:

• To begin making the South Indian Style Fish Curry Recipe, marinate the fish with turmeric powder and little salt and keep it aside for 20 minutes.
• Make a puree of tomatoes, cloves, ginger, garlic, chilies and coriander leaves in a mixer grinder. Keep It aside.
• Heat oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds.
• Once the mustard seeds crackle, add chopped onion and fry till they become soft and translucent.
• Once the onions are soft, add in the curry leaves and fry for about 10 seconds. After 10 seconds, add the prepared puree and let it cook for about 5 minutes.
• After 5 minutes, add coriander powder and cumin powder. Mix well and cook for a minute.
• After a minute, add the marinated fish and mix gently. Cover and cook on low heat for about 10 minutes.
• Open the cover and check whether fish is cooked. Sprinkle some salt and serve hot.
• Serve South Indian Style Fish Curry along with Steamed Rice. You can also serve Rava Fried Prawns as a side dish along with it to complete the meal.

GOAN FISH CURRY

Steps:

• Place Curry Paste ingredients in a tall jug or milkshake container (something that fits the head of a blender stick) then blitz on high for 5 to 10 seconds until the onion is pureed. Add more water if needed to make it puree.
• Sizzle black mustard seeds: Heat oil over medium heat in a large pot. Add black mustard seeds and let them sizzle for 30 seconds - careful, they might pop!
• Saute onion: Add red onion and cook for 3 minutes until edges start to tinge with gold.
• Cook off curry paste: Add curry paste and cook for 3 minutes - to evaporate water, make spices bloom and cook garlic & ginger.
• Cook off tomato: Turn heat up to medium high. Add tomato paste and tomato pulp, cook for 2 minutes.
• Coconut milk: Add water, coconut milk, sugar, salt and chilli powder if using. Stir, then bring to simmer, low heat so it's bubbling gently.
• Simmer 2 minutes, add tomato & green chilli: Simmer for 2 minutes, add tomato and green chilli.
• Simmer 3 minutes: Simmer for another 3 minutes, stirring every now and then - sauce should be thickened (not watery), it gets looser again when fish is added (because fish will drop some juices = even more flavour!).
• Add fish: Add fish, stir, cook for 3 to 4 minutes until fish easily flakes.
• Garnish & serve: Remove from stove and transfer to serving bowl. Garnish with coriander/cilantro and fresh green chillies if desired. Serve with basmati rice!

SOUTH INDIAN FISH CURRY WITH CHICKPEAS

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a wide, non-stick covered pan. Add the onion, put on the lid and cook for 5 mins, stirring occasionally, until golden. Add the whole and ground spices, the ginger and garlic, stir for about 30 secs to release their flavours, then pour in the tomatoes and a can of water, the chickpeas and stock cube. Cover and leave to cook for 20 mins.
• Stir in the tamarind (if using), add the mackerel, then cover and cook for 8 mins more. Meanwhile, heat the rice following pack instructions, then tip into a bowl and toss with the almonds and coriander. Serve with the curry.

LIGHTER SOUTH INDIAN FISH CURRY

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large non-stick frying or sauté pan. Add the cumin seeds and fry for 1 min, then tip in the onion, garlic and ginger, and fry for 1 min more. Stir in the curry leaves and mustard seeds, and fry about 3-4 mins on a medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the onions are turning brown. Stir in the chillies, coriander, garam masala and turmeric, and fry for 30 secs.
• Stir the coconut milk in the can, then pour half into the pan. It should start to bubble and thicken, so let it simmer until quite thick, about 3 mins, stirring occasionally. Pour in the rest of the coconut milk, add the pepper and a pinch of salt, and lower the heat.
• Sit the fish in the coconut milk and press it down to half submerge it. Cover the pan and simmer gently for 4-5 mins (depending on the thickness of your fillets) until the fish is almost cooked. Do not stir or the fish will break up - just spoon some of the sauce over the top of the fish halfway through, then remove the pan from the heat and let the fish sit for another 3-4 mins to finish cooking slowly. When done, it should feel firm and no longer be opaque. If you want a thinner sauce, pour in a spoonful or two of water.
• Meanwhile, steam the green beans for about 4 mins until just tender. De-stone the mango and slice the flesh into thin wedges (see tip below left), then scatter over the fish to warm through.
• To serve, break the fish into big chunks by removing it to serving bowls with a slotted spoon, then pour the sauce over and around it. Serve with the beans, a scattering of coriander and the rice, with lime wedges on the side to squeeze over.