Along the Malabar coast this curry is cooked in clay, soured with kudampuli — smoked tamarind that gives Kerala fish curry its particular dusk-colored tang — and eaten over rice at midday. We call for standard tamarind because kudampuli is a hunt outside Kerala; if you find it, use three petals, soaked, and you will taste the difference.
Ingredients
- 600g firm white fish (kingfish, halibut, or cod), thick-cut
- 400ml coconut milk
- 2 tbsp coconut oil
- 1 tsp black mustard seeds
- 12-15 fresh curry leaves
- 2 shallots, thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp ginger, julienned
- 3 green chillies, slit
- 2 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
- 1/2 tsp turmeric
- 1 tbsp tamarind paste soaked in 120ml warm water (or 3 petals kudampuli)
- Salt
Method
- Warm the coconut oil in a wide, shallow pan. Pop the mustard seeds, then add the curry leaves and let them crackle.
- Soften the shallots, ginger, and green chillies until the shallots turn translucent, 4-5 minutes.
- Lower the heat, add the chilli powder and turmeric, and stir for 30 seconds — no further, or the chilli turns bitter.
- Pour in the tamarind water and simmer 5 minutes to take off its raw sourness.
- Add the coconut milk and salt, and bring just to the edge of a simmer.
- Slip in the fish in one layer. Spoon sauce over it and cook gently 8-10 minutes without stirring — shake the pan instead, as the fish is delicate.
- Rest 10 minutes off the heat; the curry rounds out as it stands. Serve over matta or plain rice.
Set the table to music
A midday coastal dish wants light percussion and air. We pair it with our bansuri afternoons — the sound of a shoreline kitchen with the windows open.