I love seafood. We never cooked seafood at home when I was young as both my parents are vegetarians. My parents used to cook chicken for us but never fish. The smell of fish is something they cannot appreciate. I have this fond memory of my dad getting us fried fish on his way back from work. He is a civil engineer and he had a job that involved a lot of travelling. My dad was involved in a huge project in the 90’s for his company in a place called Thalavady near Sathyamangalam in Tamilnadu. He used to go there at-least twice a week. On his way back, he would stop at Bavani (famous for Bavanisagar dam). He would get us fried fish from Bavani. He used to tell that the fish was so freshly caught, I knew you guys would love it. So for almost 5-6 years till the project was over, we had fried fish dinners at-least once a week. The fish was fried along with curry leaves and came as a double wrapped parcel. Once with the banana leaf and then with a news paper. It was loosely tied with a white twine. It smelled oh so good! My dad has taken me and my brother many times to Thalavady during our holidays for wild animal sighting. He would be busy with his meetings and me and my brother would be with the care taker of the land Mr.Channappa. Channappa Uncle would take us into the forest to pick goose berries. He would scare us not to leave him and stay close to the jeep as he knew that the area was frequented by Sandalwood Bandit Veerappan at that time. We were really excited and super scared at the same time. Every trip was so thrilling. Wonderful days. This recipe has been inspired from Thalavady days!
I have tried and re-tried many recipes before arriving at this one. The fried fish from Bavani always had a battered coating. So I used egg for binding the ingredients. That little oil in the marinade helps to emulsify the masala so the masala is smooth. I doubt if the original recipe used corn flour but I have used very little in this recipe for binding the Masala well and to coat the fish evenly. Here is what you will need. Scroll down to the bottom of the page for detailed measurements.
Grind all the Masala ingredients to a fine paste. Don’t add water while grinding. The liquid in the egg and the oil will suffice. Pulse it several times until you get a fine paste. Rub the paste on the fish steak on both sides and let it marinate for 30 minutes. I used seer fish today.
Heat sunflower oil in a pan until really hot. Add in the fish steaks and just place a sprig of curry leaf on each of the steak. After 1.5 to 2 minutes, turn the fish to the other side. Turn with the curry leaf along. It might very slightly splutter. Be cautious. Cook the other side for 1.5 to 2 minutes and remove from oil. Drain on paper towel.
Serve hot. I like to squeeze a little lime juice on the fried fish just before serving. Yummy Spicy Fish fry just for ya!
Masala Ingredients For Marinade
- 1 tablespoon Coconut Oil
- 1 Egg
- 2 heaping teaspoon Red Chilli Powder (use more if you want really spicy)
- 1 teaspoon Turmeric Powder
- 1 teaspoon Black Pepper Powder
- 1 tablespoon Corn Flour
- 2 iinch piece Ginger
- 5 Garlic Cloves
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 sprig Curry Leaves
Other Ingredients
- 500 grams fish steaks
- 1/2 cup Sunflower Oil / Vegetable Oil
- 10 sprigs curry leaves for deep frying
- 5 Lime / Lemon wedges for serving
- Grind all the Masala ingredients to a fine paste. Don’t add water while grinding. Pulse it several times until you get a fine paste. Rub the paste on the fish steak on both sides and let it marinate for 30 minutes. I used seer fish today.
- Heat sunflower oil in a pan until really hot. Add in the fish steaks and just place a sprig of curry leaf on each one of them. After 1.5 to 2 minutes, turn the other side. Turn the curry leaf along. It might very slightly splutter. Be cautious. Cook the other side for 1.5 to 2 minutes and remove from oil. Drain on paper towel.
- Serve hot. Squeeze a little lime juice on the fried fish just before serving.
Notes
#Don’t let the fish to marinate for more than 30 minutes. I have noticed that the texture of the fish becoming hard if marinated for too long. #You can omit the curry leaves if you do not like them. #Always cook fish in really hot oil. That’s the trick to getting crisp and juicy fish. #Fish cooks faster than you think. So eyes on the hot pan. If you cook fish for too long, it might become really dry.
- Author: Kannamma - Suguna Vinodh
- Prep Time: 40 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Appetizer
- Cuisine: Tamilnadu
Masala Ingredients For Marinade
- 1 tablespoon Coconut Oil
- 1 Egg
- 2 heaping teaspoon Red Chilli Powder (use more if you want really spicy)
- 1 teaspoon Turmeric Powder
- 1 teaspoon Black Pepper Powder
- 1 tablespoon Corn Flour
- 2 iinch piece Ginger
- 5 Garlic Cloves
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 sprig Curry Leaves
Other Ingredients
- 500 grams fish steaks
- 1/2 cup Sunflower Oil / Vegetable Oil
- 10 sprigs curry leaves for deep frying
- 5 Lime / Lemon wedges for serving
- Grind all the Masala ingredients to a fine paste. Don’t add water while grinding. Pulse it several times until you get a fine paste. Rub the paste on the fish steak on both sides and let it marinate for 30 minutes. I used seer fish today.
- Heat sunflower oil in a pan until really hot. Add in the fish steaks and just place a sprig of curry leaf on each one of them. After 1.5 to 2 minutes, turn the other side. Turn the curry leaf along. It might very slightly splutter. Be cautious. Cook the other side for 1.5 to 2 minutes and remove from oil. Drain on paper towel.
- Serve hot. Squeeze a little lime juice on the fried fish just before serving.
Notes
#Don’t let the fish to marinate for more than 30 minutes. I have noticed that the texture of the fish becoming hard if marinated for too long. #You can omit the curry leaves if you do not like them. #Always cook fish in really hot oil. That’s the trick to getting crisp and juicy fish. #Fish cooks faster than you think. So eyes on the hot pan. If you cook fish for too long, it might become really dry.
- Author: Kannamma - Suguna Vinodh
- Prep Time: 40 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Category: Appetizer
- Cuisine: Tamilnadu
Find it online : https://www.kannammacooks.com/spicy-fish-fry-fish-fry-with-masala/
Veg Kothu Parotta Recipe – Kothu Parotta Madurai Tamil Veetu Style Long time ago, friends were home for dinner. The children were playing and we were talking. One of our good friends Karthi had asked us to come to their home the next weekend as he wanted to give us a party for his son’s birthday. Immediately, Manoj, another friend of ours told Karthik, “I want unga veetu (your home) kothu parotta for party.” Karthi nodded his head as he does all the time. Karthi is from Madurai. We went for the party and I was eagerly waiting for the kothu parotta. I wanted to know what that “unga veetu kothu parotta” was all about. Oh my god! It was that good. It was not like any other kothu parotta. This one was soft and juicy and had absorbed so much of the masala gravy that I must have had 3-4 servings. Its now a compulsory dish that needs to be on the table for any party at Karthi’s place. I asked Satya, Karthi’s wife for the recipe and when she told me the recipe, I was surprised at the method in which the dish was made. No complicated masalas, no coconut and no parottas. YES. No parottas. You bet! They make this dish with maida pooris. Oh my god. This recipe is a genius. You should try this at home. Here is Satya and Karthi posing for my camera.
Here is Veg Kothu Parotta Recipe – Kothu Parotta Madurai Tamil Veetu Style Mix Maida, salt and baking soda (Aapa soda) until combined. Add water and mix well to form a stiff dough similar to that of Poori dough. Knead for 3-4 minutes. Apply a teaspoon of oil to hands while kneading so the dough does not stick to the hands. Cover the dough and set aside. Let it rest for a minimum of 1 hour up to 2 hours. Make small 2 inch balls from the dough and dredge the balls in maida and roll it into even circles. Let it not be super thin. It wont fluff up in oil. Keep the circles slightly on the thicker side.
Heat oil in a pan and fry the pooris on both sides and drain on paper towels. Once all the pooris are fried, tear the pooris using your hand into bite sized pieces and place it in a bowl. Set aside.
Now lets make Masala Paste. Heat oil in a pan and add in the onion and garlic. Fry till the onions are soft. Add in the sliced tomatoes and fry till the tomatoes are soft too. Remove from heat and grind the mixture to a smooth paste. Add up to a cup of water while grinding. Set aside.
Now lets make Gravy Heat oil in a pan and add in the cumin seeds. When the cumin seeds splutter, add in the ground masala, chilli powder, garam masala, curry leaves, salt and one cup of water. Bring the mixture to a boil.
Once the mixture is boiling, add in the pooris and mix well. Switch off the flame and add sliced onions, mint leaves, green chillies and lots of coriander leaves. Close the pan with a lid and let it rest for one hour.
Kothu parotta is ready after resting. Serve with raita.
For the Pooris / Parottas
- 1 1/2 cups Maida
- 1/4 teaspoon Baking soda / Aapa Soda
- 1/2 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Vegetable oil
- Water for the dough
- Vegetable Oil for deep frying
For the Masala Paste
- 2 teaspoon Vegetable oil
- 2 Onions, sliced
- 5 Cloves Garlic
- 3 Tomatoes, sliced
For the Gravy
- 1 teaspoon Vegetable Oil
- 1 teaspoon Cumin seeds
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 2 sprig Curry leaves
- 1 teaspoon Garam masala
- 1 teaspoon Chilli powder
For Garnish
- 1/2 Onions, sliced
- 3 sprigs Mint leaves, chopped
- 3 stalks Coriander leaves, chopped
- 2 Green chillies, chopped
- Mix Maida, salt and baking soda until combined. Add water and mix well to form a stiff dough similar to that of Poori dough. Knead for 3-4 minutes. Apply a teaspoon of oil to hands while kneading so the dough does not stick to the hands. Cover the dough and set aside. Let it rest for a minimum of 1 hour up to 2 hours. Make small balls from the dough and dredge the balls in maida and roll it into even circles. Let it not be super thin. It wont fluff up in oil. Keep the circles slightly on the thicker side.
- Heat oil in a pan and fry the pooris on both sides and drain on paper towels. Once all the pooris are fried, tear the pooris using your hand into bite sized pieces and place it in a bowl. Set aside.
- Heat oil in a pan and add in the onion and garlic. Fry till the onions are soft. Add in the sliced tomatoes and fry till the tomatoes are soft too. Remove from heat and grind the mixture to a smooth paste. Add upto a cup of water while grinding. Set aside.
- Heat oil in a pan and add in the cumin seeds. When the cumin seeds splutter, add in the ground masala, chilli powder, garam masala, curry leaves, salt and one cup of water. Bring the mixture to a boil.
- Once the mixture is boiling, add in the pooris and mix well. Switch off the flame and garnish with sliced onions, mint leaves, green chillies and lots of coriander leaves. Close the pan with a lid and let it rest for one hour.
- Author: Kannamma - Suguna Vinodh
- Prep Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Category: Main Course
- Cuisine: Tamilnadu
