Arachuvitta Meen Kuzhambu (Fish with Ground Masala)

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I've probably mentioned before that fish addiction runs in my family. Let me give you an example... My grandfather would go fishing late at night at a lake in our village. I'm told that he would tell my grandmother to grind the masala and keep everything ready for when he got back. As soon as he returned with the live fish, she would quickly prepare the fish gravy. He HAD to eat it before he'd be able to get some peaceful sleep.

My mother and amayee (my maternal grandmother) both start drooling the second they set their eyes on fish. I wasn't a huge fan of fish as a child, but I think the fish bug has bit me too! I often find myself in a fix getting a really strong fish craving only to run to the fish market, buy some really good fish, make some fish kuzhambu and proceed to devour it!

This recipe is one that always hits the spot! It's inspired by a recipe that I saw on the internet long before I started this blog. I quickly scribbled down some of the points and didn't record the website. So, I apologize for not being able to give that person credit.

The awesome thing about this recipe is that you grind all of the required masala. Seasoning is done with onions and garlic. The fish is then cooked in the ground masala and tamarind. It's really delicious without the addition of any coconut (if you're concerned about that)!

Also, if you have any reservations about your fish (i.e. you're not sure it's the best), this is the recipe to go with! The combo of the fennel flavor with black pepper, green chillies, and garlic is really special and will help to overcome any possible fishy aroma you may be concerned about. Without any further ado, let me get to the recipe!



Ingredients:

Fish - approx 2 lbs, cleaned, cut into thin slices
Tamarind - small key lime size, soaked in water, and juice extracted
Shallots - 2 medium, sliced finely
Garlic - 3 cloves, chopped finely

To grind into paste:

Shallots - 1 medium
Tomato - 1 medium
Black peppercorns - 1/2 tsp
Fennel seeds - 1 tsp
Green chillies - 3-4, or to taste
Curry leaves - 6-8 (optional)
Chilli powder - 2 tsp, or to taste
Coriander powder - 1 1/2 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp

For seasoning:

Oil (recommended: sesame oil)
Methi seeds/vendheyam - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 10

Method:

1. Wash the fish in water with turmeric powder and keep aside.

2. Heat oil in a pan. When hot, add the seasoning ingredients. Once the methi seeds have browned and spluttered a little, add the sliced shallots.

3. Fry the shallots until softened. Then, add the chopped garlic and fry until fragrant.

4. Pour in the ground masala, tamarind extract, and required salt. Allow to boil until thickened to desired consistency. Note: Make this a little thicker than your ideal gravy consistency as the fish will cause the gravy to loosen once it's added!

5. Now, gently place the fish pieces in the gravy. Do not mix with a spoon at this stage. Just pick up the pot by the handles and gently swirl the gravy over and around the fish. Allow to simmer until the fish is cooked, about 5-6 minutes. Turn off and enjoy with hot steaming rice!

This delicious bowl of meen kuzhambu is on its way to dear Sig who is hosting JFI tamarind this month. Hope she enjoys it as much as we did!

Meen Kuzhambu with Ground Onion (Fish Gravy with Ground Onion)

I had the worst craving for fish the other day. It's funny that when I was a kid, I never used to care for fish very much. I'd much rather eat shrimp or crabs and used to get quite irritated when Amma would buy fish. Funny how times have changed! I've become a self-professed fish addict as well! I found myself dying for fish and drove to the fish market, cooked the fish right away and ate it. Man, was that ever satisfying!!

When I was thinking about how to make the gravy, it occurred to me that I could add a bit of coarsely ground onion with the masala. I found it to help balance the sourness of the tamarind a bit as well as give the gravy a bit of richness that was really divine! Just be sure to compensate with enough extra spice or the gravy will be dull, since the onions will make it feel less spicy than usual!



Ingredients:

Fish - 1 1/2 lb, cleaned and cut into small steaks
Shallot - 3 medium, sliced finely (you could use 1 medium onion instead)
Tomato - 2 medium, chopped
Tamarind - small lime size, soaked in water, juice extracted

Dry roast for a few seconds and coarsely grind with 1 shallot (or 1/4 onion):

Coriander powder - 2 tsp
Fennel powder - 1 1/2 tsp
Chilly powder - 3-4 tsp, or to taste
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp

For seasoning:

Oil (recommended: sesame oil)
Fenugreek (methi) seeds - 1 tsp
Curry leaves - 1 sprig

Method:

1. Wash the fish well with turmeric powder and lime juice. Keep aside.

2. Heat oil in a pan. When hot, add the fenugreek seeds and toss for a few seconds until lightly brown.

3. Add the curry leaves and shallots. Fry until the shallots brown.

4. Then, add tomatoes and saute until they soften a bit.

5. Now, add the tamarind juice, masala paste, 1 cup of water, and required salt. Bring to a boil and simmer until the gravy becomes thick (to your desired consistency).

6. Now, lower the heat and add the fish pieces. Cover the pan and cook for about 3-5 minutes on medium low until the fish is cooked. Re-check for seasoning and turn off.

Serve with a platter of steaming hot white rice and enjoy with some fish fry!! :)

a serving for you!

Masala Shrimp

I came up with this dish on a spur, really. I was thinking of what to make for Sunita's Think Spice - Star Anise event and was royally stuck. I googled for ideas until my eyes hurt (just kidding!), and kept reverting to the idea of making pulav rice. But, I wanted to do something a bit different. Then, I realized I had some shrimp... What if I ground some star anise with the masala?? And, voila! A new dish was born.



So, how did it come out, you ask? Well, we ate it for dinner last night and my usually silent husband couldn't stop complimenting me on the dish. Coming from him, this is huge!! Then, I took a bite and had to agree. It was sooooo good. By now, you want to look at the recipe, right? I hope you do, so here's the recipe!

Ingredients:

Medium shrimp - 1/2 lb, cleaned (I left the tails on, but that's up to you!)
Onion - 1 medium, sliced finely
Tomato - 1 medium, chopped finely
Coriander leaves - 2 tbsp, chopped
Butter - 1 tbsp
Oil, as required
Salt to taste

Grind to a paste:

Red chillies - 6, or to taste
Black peppercorns - 1 tsp
Fennel seeds - 1/2 tsp
Coriander seeds - 2 tsp
Star anise - 2
Cloves - 3
Cinnamon - a small piece
Garlic - 4 cloves
Ginger - 1 inch piece
Turmeric powder - 1/2 tsp

Method:

1. Heat oil and butter in a pan. When hot, add the onions and fry until golden brown.

2. Then, add the ground paste. Fry until the raw smell is gone.

3. Add the tomatoes, salt to taste, and 1/2 cup water. Saute until the tomatoes soften and you get a thick consistency.

4. Add the shrimp and continue to saute on medium-high heat until the shrimp is cooked and coated with the masala sauce. This should only take 5 minutes or so. Be careful not to overcook the shrimp or they'll be rubbery!

5. Turn the heat off, add coriander leaves and a squeeze of lime juice, if desired. Check for seasoning.

Serve hot. Tastes great with pulav rice or by itself as a starter. If you make it a little looser, you could mix it with white rice. Enjoy!

Meen Kuzhambu (Fish Gravy)

Well, I guess that this would be considered to be my first "real" post, huh? I think it's only fitting that my first recipe should be dedicated to my mother. Amma has always been my culinary inspiration. She is such an amazing cook and a strong woman. So, what does meen kuzhambu have to do with Amma? Well, it turns out that being crazy about fish runs in our family! My mother loves fish as do her mother and her grandfather. So, you could say that this post is really dedicated to my family, but especially my mother!

What makes this meen kuzhambu really awesome is the flavor that the roasted spices gives it. Truly a delicious treat...!

Ok, let's get started!

Ingredients:

2 lb fish, cut and cleaned
Shallots - 3-4
Cherry tomatoes - 1/4 cup
Whole red chillies, as per taste
Whole black pepper (milagu) - 2tsp
Coriander seeds - 2 tbsp
Fennel seeds (sombu) - 1 tsp
Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp
Tamarind - small lime size
Coconut, grated - 1/4 cup
Fenugreek seeds (methi, vendheyam) - 1/2 tsp
Curry leaves - 2 sprigs
Salt to taste
Oil

Method:

1. Wash fish with turmeric powder and water. Soak tamarind in small amount of warm water for 15-20 minutes.

2. Cut shallots into medium dice. Cut cherry tomatoes in half.

3. Dry roast coriander seeds, black pepper, fennel, and red chillies until slightly golden and aromatic. Cool and grind into fine powder.

4. Grind grated coconut to paste adding very little water.

5. Heat oil in pan. Add vendheyam and let it brown and splutter. Add curry leaves and shallots. Fry until golden brown.

6. Now, add tamarind juice, ground spice powder, turmeric powder, tomatoes, and salt.

7. Boil until raw smell is gone. Check for salt and add fish pieces gently to simmering gravy.

8. Let cook on medium low heat for 5-7 minutes, add ground coconut paste and turn off.

Enjoy hot and spicy meen kuzhambu with hot rice!