About a decade ago, on a trip to Dhanushkodi, our car got stuck on the beach sand. I drove the car and I bumped it onto a pole and the car slid onto the sand (yeah! I can do things like that). We were stranded in the middle of nowhere for about 3-4 hours. We ended up reaching a fishing village nearby who helped us to get the car back on road. It was an unforgettable trip! Here is a picture of the children from the village.
On our way back we had stopped for a very late lunch at a small shop that cured dry fishes and also served simple meals and tea. We had fish curry with rice. The fish curry was made fresh to order with a home ground masala and was ready in minutes. The curry was simple and delicious. I got the recipe for the masala that day. I kept it inside my journal and forgot about it. After many years, I found it. Here is my adaptation of Fisherman’s Fish Curry. The original Fisherman’s Fish Curry recipe did not have coconut milk as far as I can remember. I add it as it creates a creamy curry. So its totally up to you to add the coconut milk or to skip it.
Here is how to do the Fisherman’s Fish Curry. Grind the masala ingredients with water to a fine paste. Set aside.
Take a pan and add in the sesame oil (gingely). Add in the mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds. Let it pop. Add in the ground masala and saute for five minutes.
Add in a cup of water and tamarind paste. Let it simmer for 5 minutes.
Having home made tamarind paste can be such a time saver in our busy schedules. I make it once a month and store it in my refrigerator. It makes life easier to have tamarind puree at moments notice. Here is the recipe for tamarind paste.
Add in the fish pieces and cover the pan with a lid and allow it to simmer for another 6-7 minutes. Tear the curry leaves roughly and add it to the pan. Add in the thick coconut milk and let it simmer for a minute more.
Do not allow the curry to simmer for a long time after adding coconut milk.
Remove from heat and serve Fisherman’s Fish Curry hot with rice.
For the masala
- 1 Onion
- 1 Tomato
- 6 cloves Garlic
- 5 Dried Red Chillies
- 1 teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Coriander Seeds
- 2 tablespoon Fresh Shredded Coconut
Other Ingredients
- 3 teaspoon sesame (gingely) oil
- 1/4 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1/4 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
- 4 tablespoon tamarind paste
- 3 sprigs curry leaves
- 1/2 cup thick coconut milk
- 500 grams fish steaks
- Grind the masala ingredients with water to a fine paste. Set aside.
- Take a pan and add in the sesame oil (gingely). Add in the mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds. Let it pop. Add in the ground masala and saute for five minutes.
- Add in a cup of water and tamarind paste. Let it simmer for 5 minutes.
- Add in the fish pieces and cover the pan with a lid and allow it to simmer for another 6-7 minutes. Tear the curry leaves roughly and add it to the pan.
- Add in the thick coconut milk and let it simmer for a minute more. Do not allow the curry to simmer for a long time after adding coconut milk.
- Remove from heat and serve hot with rice.
- Author: Kannamma - Suguna Vinodh
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Side Dish
- Cuisine: Tamilnadu
For the masala
- 1 Onion
- 1 Tomato
- 6 cloves Garlic
- 5 Dried Red Chillies
- 1 teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Coriander Seeds
- 2 tablespoon Fresh Shredded Coconut
Other Ingredients
- 3 teaspoon sesame (gingely) oil
- 1/4 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 1/4 teaspoon fenugreek seeds
- 4 tablespoon tamarind paste
- 3 sprigs curry leaves
- 1/2 cup thick coconut milk
- 500 grams fish steaks
- Grind the masala ingredients with water to a fine paste. Set aside.
- Take a pan and add in the sesame oil (gingely). Add in the mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds. Let it pop. Add in the ground masala and saute for five minutes.
- Add in a cup of water and tamarind paste. Let it simmer for 5 minutes.
- Add in the fish pieces and cover the pan with a lid and allow it to simmer for another 6-7 minutes. Tear the curry leaves roughly and add it to the pan.
- Add in the thick coconut milk and let it simmer for a minute more. Do not allow the curry to simmer for a long time after adding coconut milk.
- Remove from heat and serve hot with rice.
- Author: Kannamma - Suguna Vinodh
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Side Dish
- Cuisine: Tamilnadu
Find it online : https://www.kannammacooks.com/fishermans-fish-curry-meen-kuzhambu/
We love dishes that are creamy and rich with coconut at home. After all I am from Kongunad. My father in law has a coconut farm. Lot of my relatives have coconut farm. Many people in this region have a coconut farm as the belt from Pollachi to Udumalpet is known for its coconut farming. So there is this thing that people make fun about whenever there is a function / party at home in the farm. “உங்களுக்கென்ன நாயக்கரே, தோட்டத்துல தொப்புனு சத்தம் கேட்டுச்சுன்னா காசு. தொப்புனு விழுந்தா காசு, குடுத்து வெச்சவுரு சாமி நீங்க” – You are blessed sir. If you hear a thud sound in the farm, its money. If something falls in the farm, its money. You are blessed. “Every coconut that falls is money!”. Sadly, we lost half of our farm due to extreme drought a couple of years ago. We could save only half of the trees. This is the case with many farms in the region. A lot of them lost their trees that are 50-60 years old. This year has been better and hope the new trees survive! Back to the recipe. This avial does not have curd that is traditionally added in most parts of South India. The sourness comes from the raw mango. Here is the recipe for our style of avial.
Prep Work Fresh Shredded coconut is very essential for this recipe. It creates a rich texture that dried or desiccated coconut will not produce.
Grind the coconut, green chillies and cumin with half a cup of water to a smooth paste. Set aside.
Next is the veggies. Purists would say only country veggies need to be used for avial. But really, use whatever veggies you can find in your fridge. It works well. Cut the veggies into fingers – 1.5 inches long. I used carrots, beans, potatoes, drumstick, raw mango and raw banana and cucumber. I peeled the skin of all the veggies. The raw mango gives a slight sourness to the dish. Take a bowl add in the veggies. Add in the salt and turmeric. Mix well to coat the veggies evenly.
I like to cook the veggies in a pressure cooker using pot in pot method. The veggies stays intact. Add half a cup of water to the pressure cooker. Place the bowl of veggies inside the cooker. Cook for 3 whistles on medium flame. Remove from heat and wait for the pressure to release naturally. The veggies cooked for 3 whistles are firm. If you want a soft veggie, then cook for 4 whistles. We need to cook for 3 or 4 whistles as the size of the cut veggies is big and we are using the pot in pot method. If, after opening, you feel the veggie is al-dente or not to your liking, then cook for another whistle more. Set aside.
Tempering Take a pan and add in coconut oil. When the oil is hot, add in the mustard seeds, curry leaves and green chillies. Let the mustard seeds splutter. Add in the steamed veggies and saute for a minute so the oil coats evenly.
Add in the coconut paste and toss well to coat. Cook for a minute. Remove from heat and serve hot with rice.
I love to serve avial with kerala matta rice.
For Coconut Paste
- 1/3 Cup Fresh Shredded Coconut
- 2 Green Chillies
- 1/2 Teaspoon Cumin Seeds
For Steaming Veggies
- 3 Cups Mixed Veggies
- (I used carrots, beans, potatoes, raw mango, drum stick, raw banana, cucumber and potatoes)
- 1/2 Teaspoon turmeric
- 1 Teaspoon salt
For Tempering
- 1 Teaspoon Coconut Oil
- 1/2 Teaspoon Mustard Seeds
- 2 Green Chillies, Slit
- 2 Sprigs Curry Leaves
- Grind the coconut, green chillies and cumin with half a cup of water to a smooth paste. Set aside.
- Take a bowl add in the veggies. Add in the salt and turmeric. Mix well to coat the veggies evenly.
- Add half a cup of water to the pressure cooker. Place the bowl of veggies inside the cooker. Cook for 3 whistles on medium flame. Remove from heat and wait for the pressure to release naturally. The veggies cooked for 3 whistles are firm. If you want a soft veggie, then cook for 4 whistles.
- Take a pan and add in coconut oil. When the oil is hot, add in the mustard seeds, curry leaves and green chillies. Let the mustard seeds splutter. Add in the steamed veggies and saute for a minute so the oil coats evenly.
- Add in the coconut paste and toss well to coat. Cook for a minute. Remove from heat and serve hot with rice. I love to serve avial with kerala matta rice.
- Author: Kannamma - Suguna Vinodh
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 15 mins
- Category: Side Dish
- Cuisine: South Indian
