Fish is something I was never comfortable with. Be it buying, skinning or cooking. Maybe because I did not have much exposure in cooking or even buying fish. So, primarily in the non-vegetarian section, mutton and chicken would be cooked in the house.
Very recently, a great discovery was made and that was the availability of fish in shops and markets in a frozen form. That really saved my day. It would be neat, cleaned, skinned and with little or mostly no smell.
This was like finding gold. I have always loved eating seafood but somehow did not get down to making much at home. Well, then began the quest of making fish at home after learning the art from several recipes.
And I finally ended up in making Creamy Coconut Milk Fish Curry at home. The good part about fish is that it cooks in a jiffy and is very healthy and light.
The Recipe
- Get two packets of fish. I like using Basa or Sole. You can buy fresh fish also. Cut the packed or fresh fish (deboned) into small pieces. Rub some salt into it and leave for 5-10 minutes. Then wash it clean.
- In a thick bottom pan, pour three packets of Homemade Coconut Milk. This is easily available in market. For about 10 pieces of fish, we would need 3 packets of coconut milk.
- Let it boil for sometime then add one tablespoon of haldi powder and one table spoon of red chilli powder. Stir for a bit and let it boil.
- When the milk starts frothing, add the fish pieces. Now stir gently to avoid breaking the fish pieces. Cook on low flame for about 10 minutes. The milk would start becoming thick and creamy.
- Add salt and chilli to taste. Many recipes add kokum to this but I could not find it here so added two imli pieces. You can however avoid this.
- In a separate pan, prepare the garnishing (tadka) heat with some coconut oil or sesame oil. If you don’t have either, use refined though the others will taste better.
- In the hot oil, add little rai, methi dana, curry patta, green chillies, 2 onions (sliced thin and long) and 6 cloves of garlic (sliced into tiny pieces).
- Saute a bit till it splutters and becomes golden brown.
- Add the tadka to the fish curry. Cover and simmer for about 5 minutes. Just before you serve, add 2 tablespoons of fresh cream to the dish curry for the creamy texture. No need to cook the cream. Sprinkle hara dhaniya to beautify your dish.
The Creamy Coconut Milk Fish is ready to be served and eaten with some steamed rice. You can saute some potatoes with sesame seeds, salt, chilli and roasted peanuts to add to the spread. The combo is a killer, quick for midweek and ready in under 30 minutes.
