Fish Curry - Tamil style

Saturday, January 27th, 2007

Filed Under India - Tamil Nadu, Mains, Recipes, Seafood 

Growing up in Kerala, fish was the staple of our diet. I don’t think we had gone two days in a row without some kind of fish. Sometimes we would even have fish for breakfast! Fish curry with Dosa, Idly, Chapatti, Appam, you name a dish, we can have it with fish! Being a working mother, my mom didn’t have time to cook three different dishes for three different meals, I guess that was one of the main reasons for us to have fish for breakfast!

My mom used to make this red fish curry when we were young, the gravy was so spicy, it was almost like acid! I used to love that curry so much, but these days even though she has reduced the spice level considerably, it is still a little too hot for me, my eyes get watery, my nose keeps running, but still I will sit and polish off my plate…

Anyway, that used to be my favorite fish curry, till Siv came into my life. He makes the most amazing fish curry, which he says is his mother’s recipe! (It is really not, since when my mother in law visited us, she made the same dish, and it was nowhere close!). Siv’s fish curry has become my new favorite; in my house, I don’t ever make a fish curry, since I can’t compete with his curry in taste, (and since it is a lot of work, cleaning the fish and all ;) . That is his signature dish…

Here is the recipe for this masterpiece. He makes it with any kind of fish we get here, sometimes even salmon or prawns! The gravy is so good, I think you can put potatoes in it, instead of fish, and it will still come out good. My favorite however is fresh rainbow trout.

Fish Curry Recipe

Ingredients

To Grind

Directions


Clean and cut the fish into 1/4 ” steak pieces. Marinate with a 1/4 tsp red chili powder and salt. Heat oil in a pan and flash fry the fish pieces and keep aside.
Grind all the ingredients in the second set to a smooth paste and keep aside.

Heat oil and fry fenugreek seeds, mustard seeds and cumin. When the mustard seeds start to splutter, add split green chilies and fry. Add tomatoes cut into small
pieces and fry , mash the tomatoes while frying. Add the ground masala paste, curry leaves and turmeric powder to the pan and fry till the masala is cooked .
Add enough water and tamarind paste to the pan and bring to a boil. Add fish pieces and cook for 10 minutes till the desired thickness.


Comments

5 Responses to “Fish Curry - Tamil style”

  1. TinkerBell on June 16th, 2007 7:52 am

    I tried this recipe for lunch today using fish fillets. Turned out real spicy tangy yummy, just the way I like. Thanks a ton for the recipe. :)

  2. Anonymous on June 29th, 2007 4:33 pm

    Hi, Sounds good. I m goin to try this today. Can u post your mom’s recipe for fish kolambu?

  3. anu on February 6th, 2008 9:34 pm

    :(Yes): i madefish curry 1st time in my life and my husband loved me for this

    Thanks Anu… glad to know you liked it…

  4. Mutton Biryani - Kerala Style : Live To Eat on February 27th, 2008 12:27 am

    […] dishes - when I say few, I mean single digits - that Siv is better at. For example he makes the best fish curry in the world, and I am not exaggerating. He also makes some mean crab dishes too. With chicken, […]

  5. Veda on May 11th, 2008 9:53 pm

    Hi sig,

    Although I m a vegetarian you have given me an option of trying this recipe with potatoes….which is lovely! i will surely try this n let u know!!!!

    good day!
    Veda :(coffee):

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