Try this Home-Style Light Indian Fish Curry Today

Sunday is finally here and a great day to cook something exotic.

Why not try a simple home-style light Indian fish curry today?

Interestingly, this simple fish curry is so popular that it is eaten almost daily in many homes in West Bengal.

So enjoy this fish curry Bengali style and have fun with your family members.

Ingredients

Sliced Fish –1/2 kg (18oz) (2 cups)

Tomatoes -2 (to be made into a paste)

Onion-1 small (chopped)

Garlic-2 pieces

Ginger-1 inch

(Onion+ Garlic + Ginger to be made into a paste in a blender)

Salt–1 teaspoon (or to taste)

Sugar–1/4 teaspoon

Coriander powder–1 teaspoon

Garam Masala– 1/2 teaspoon

Tip: If you can’t get ready-made garam masala mixture from a nearby Indian store, you can make yours by using 1 black cardamom, 3 green cardamoms, 4 cloves, and 1 inch cinnamon-all ground together for this dish.

Turmeric (Haldi)–1 and 1/2 teaspoon (1 teaspoon for marinating the fish and half for the curry).

Red Chilli powder– 1/4 teaspoon

Fresh green chillies whole–4 (Whole chillies only impart a lovely flavour to the cuisine and will NOT make it spicy)

Mustard oil–3 tablespoon (If you want that classic taste, otherwise whatever oil you normally use)

Cumin seeds (Jeera)-1 teaspoon

Water-1 glass (roughly 300 ml)

Vessels:  One non-stick frying pan and one kadai (wok)

Method

Sprinkle 1/2 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of the turmeric on the fish to coat it on all sides.

Heat 2 tablespoon of oil (the third tablespoon to be used for making the curry) in a non-stick pan and gently fry the fish @ only 2-3 pieces of fish at a time.

After the fish turns a nice golden brown, remove to a plate and add the next batch to the oil.

Please ensure that the fish does not burn.

In a wok, add the oil left from frying (make sure the oil is clean and there are no pieces of fish in it) as well as the fresh third table spoon of oil.

Put the wok on your heat source.

As the oil heats up, add the cumin seeds and let it brown.

Do please make sure it does not burn.

Add onion+ garlic + ginger paste and stir well.

Add the salt, turmeric powder, coriander powder, red chilli powder, garam masala and sugar.

Keep on stirring till the paste is fried and you can see the oil glistening on the sides of the wok.

Add the tomato paste and stir well till the tomato is cooked.

Add 1 glass of water.

Add the fried fish to this mixture and also add the whole fresh green chillies.

When the mixture comes to a boil, reduce the heat to the minimum (SIM on a gas stove) and cook it for 2 more minutes.

Your classic light fish curry is ready.

Prep time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 10 minutes

Total time: 15 minutes

Have a happy Sunday!

By the way this recipe forms a part of my upcoming book ‘The Ultimate Guide to Cooking Fish the Indian Way’.

Prasenjeet Kumar

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