The tale of Fish Stories continues…. my endless love for fish and seafood dishes…!

Like all my other South Indian fish recipes, this Roasted Coconut Fish Curry is also an All-Time Favorite… an Amalgamation of some Authentic Flavors! The memories of this dish go all the way back to my childhood and my mom’s hometown; a small village called Pathiyoor in Kerala. My grandma was the master of this recipe and she perfected this dish so well that even today the taste and aroma unravel a vision of hidden childhood memories which make me nostalgic and homesick. Grandma used to serve this curry with mashed tapioca, a combination called Kappayum Meenum (കപ്പയും മീനും) which is every Malayalee’s meal to die for. And, if the fish came with roe (പരിഞ്ഞിൽ), then this dish just tastes a whole new level!

The key to this dish’s perfection is the roasted coconut gravy. Dry roasting the coconut properly is a heinous task, which you can master by stirring it on a low flame with a little patience. It should not be under or over done (coconut turned dark brown) and should have a light golden color, which is ideal to proceed with adding spices.  When you blend it, a perfectly roasted coconut will release oil making it a thick n rich paste.

Roasted Coconut based dishes are a staple to every Keralite. Be it a street food meal or a luxury hotel dish, vegetarian or non-vegetarian, a regular home meal or a feast… you will come across endless varieties of curries made with this thick brown gravy. And it doesn’t matter either if served for breakfast, lunch or dinner. In fact, visit any Toddy shop in Kerala and Kappayum Meenum is the go-to meal with a bottle of fresh coconut toddy.

You can also check out my Roasted Coconut Chickpeas Curry and Cashew Theeyal recipes which also have a similar gravy base.

It is this rich and thick gravy which makes this dish stand out among other fish recipes. The aroma of the roasted coconut along with the spices and the combination with the sourness from the tamarind, makes this curry a lip-smacking dish which you can savor with the classic side of kappa (tapioca/yuca). You can also enjoy this dish with steamed rice, roti or naan.

Interested in more Kerala style fish recipes, check this out:

• Anchovy Fry/ നെത്തോലി നിറവ്
• Fish Fry / മീൻ വറുത്തത്
• Fish Molly / Kerala Style Fish Stew
• Fish Curry with Coconut Milk /തേങ്ങാപാൽ ഒഴിച്ച മീൻ കറി
• Red Fish Curry/മീൻ മുളകിട്ടത് 
• Fish Biriyani 

Enjoy, Happy Cooking…!

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Roasted Coconut Fish Curry / Varutharacha Meen Curry

Rich n Hearty Kerala Style Roasted Coconut Fish Curry … made with Spices, Tamarind, Coconut and Balanced to a Perfection! Serve with a side of Mashed Tapioca and you have a Match made in Heaven…!!

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Indian

Keyword fish curry, kerala

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 1 hour hour

Servings 4

Author Akhila

Ingredients

For Roasting Coconut

• 2 cup grated coconut
• 3 small onions (sliced)
• ¼ tsp turmeric powder
• 2 tsp chili powder (add more if you like it hot)
• 1½ tsp coriander powder

For the fish Curry

• 5 അയല / mackerel (or fish of your choice, cleaned and cut)
• 2 green chilly (slit)
• 2-3 കുടംപുളി / gambooge (malabar tamarind)
• ¼ tsp fenugreek powder
• 2 sprigs of curry leaves
• 1½ cup water (or more as required)
• Salt (as required)

Instructions

For Roasting Coconut

• Heat a pan and dry roast grated coconut along with small onions on a low to medium flame until it starts turning lightly golden brown.
• When you start seeing a golden / light brown color, add the spices; chili, coriander and turmeric powder. Stir on a low flame for another 2-3 minutes until roasted well, be careful not to overdo nor turn dark brown. Turn off the flame and allow it to cool. If you are using whole spices, you need to roast them from the beginning along with the coconut at step 1.
• Once cooled, grind all the roasted ingredients into a smooth paste. While grinding, the roasted coconut will release its oil, indicating that you roasted it perfectly.

For the Curry

• In a manchatti (earthern pot) or pan, add the roasted coconut paste along with gamboge (kudampuli), curry leaves, green chilies and water, stir and mix well. Heat the pan on a medium flame bringing the curry to a boil.
• Once the curry starts boiling, add the fish and reduce the flame to a low. Check the tanginess and salt. As the curry reaches a boil, add fenugreek powder.
• Allow the curry to boil on the low flame for another 10-15 mins or until the desired consistency is reached.
• Switch off the flame and cover the pan with a lid. The curry should sit undisturbed for 30 mins at least before serving. Ideally it tastes best when served the next day.
• Enjoy with steamed rice, mashed tapioca or chapathi.

Notes

• Fishes like mackerel (അയല), king fish (നെയ്യ് മീൻ), tuna (ചൂര), pompano, tilapia, sardine (മത്തി), big pink perch (ഉണ്ണിമേരി) can be used.
• Add more water if you prefer your curry with more gravy.

The post Roasted Coconut Fish Curry / Varutharacha Meen Curry appeared first on Pepper Delight.

It’s been a while since I have posted a Prawn recipe, and I humbly dedicate this dish to our stormy weekend. There are a few Prawn recipes from my hometown which I was planning to post but kept on delaying as they were simple and didn’t require a lot of effort. Finally it was during this last weekend that I found a lot of time due to a freezing rain storm, having nothing to do but sit at home. How better an opportunity to clear out a few easy recipes from my cookbook? Also my dear readers stay tuned for a delicious Prawn Biriyani recipe which I’ll be posting next week.

Talking about any Indian recipe, the first thing which comes to your mind is the Masala! We use quite many different varieties of masala in pretty much every dish, and it’s the spices and curry powders which make our life eternal. Though there are a handful popular Indian dishes which have crossed the borders making a mark for themselves globally and even adapted into local variations, still a lot of amazing authentic recipes stay intact within the thatched roofs and the heart of India maintaining their authenticity, flavour and sanctity.

This prawn recipe is quite easy and very popular across India, but the only difference if cooked by a malayalee (native of Kerala) is, the inclusion of coconut. Right from the oil which of course would be coconut oil, we add sliced coconut bites to complement the crunchiness. This dish is spicy, stir fried with onions, ginger, garlic and crunchy coconut bites, and finally topped with some fresh curry leaves. You may skip coconut bites, but I love it..!!!

And did you see that picture below. That’s how to eat like a Malayalee!!! Yes, you eat with your hands, mixing the different curries with rice and at the end you of your meal you lick down your fingers to savor every last bit of the taste. Trust me, that feeling is amazing. (Wohoo, somehow I managed to convince my husband to pose his hands for this click).

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Prawn Roast

Spicy Prawn Roast in an Aromatic Masala with Coconut Bites… Spoiler Alert - it’s Delicious…!!!

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Indian

Keyword kerala prawn roast, prawn roast

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Total Time 35 minutes minutes

Servings 3

Author Akhila

Ingredients

• 2 cups of prawns (peeled & deveined)
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp coriander powder
• 1 tsp black pepper powder
• 1 tsp garam masala
• ¼ tsp turmeric powder
• Fenugreek powder (small pinch)
• Mustard seeds (small pinch)
• 2 sprigs of curry leaves
• ½ cup pearl onion / 1 medium onion (sliced)
• 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
• 1 green chili (slit)
• 1/3 cup coconut (sliced bits)
• Salt (as required)
• Coconut oil (as required)

Instructions

• Clean the prawns and keep aside. Prepare the marinade by mixing chili powder, coriander powder, black pepper powder, turmeric powder, garam masala and salt. Marinate the prawns and allow it to rest for 15 mins.
• Heat oil in a pan on a medium flame, fry the sliced coconut pieces until it starts turning brown. Remove from the pan and set aside.
• In the same pan, add the marinated prawns, cook by pan roasting on both sides. Remove from the pan and set aside.
• Into the same pan, add some mustard seeds to splutter (add oil if necessary). Add curry leaves, green chilies, salt and onions. Saute on a medium flame until they are translucent.
• Add ginger garlic paste, saute for one minute.
• Add the roasted prawns into the pan, mix well, and close the lid to cook for 2 minutes on a low flame.
• Open the lid and stir properly, check the salt, and add more curry leaves. Switch off the flame, close the lid and let it rest for 5 minutes before serving.
• Serve warm with Naan, Bread, Chapatti or Rice.

Notes

Coconut oil goes well with this recipe, it's an authentic Kerala style.

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Kerala, a state in the Southern part of India is famous for its natural beauty and of course it’s authentic traditional style seafood dishes. Being a coastal state with a lot of backwaters, lakes, and rivers; this dish is believed to have originated from the homes of the fishermen with the fresh catch they bring daily, and prepared in its entire authenticity.

Kerala tourism offers a lot of activities for the tourists and among them the houseboats are one of their best attractions. The food prepared by the chefs in these houseboats is well sought after; they offer wonderful delicacies like spicy Kerala style fish and prawn dishes, and you can surely find this crab curry dish here which is an all-time favorite.

There are different variations to the preparation of this dish. A coconut milk based gravy is quite common, but here I have adapted my mom’s recipe using grated coconut and tamarind pulp.

For more Crab recipes, check out my Crab Roast which I had uploaded earlier.

Prep time : 30-35 minutes
Serves : 2 -3 servings 

INGREDIENTS

• 1 big Dungeness crab (Cleaned and cut)
• 1 cup grated coconut
• 2 green chilies
• ½ tsp chili powder
• 1 tbsp coriander powder
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
• 2 pearl onions
• ½ tbsp garam masala
• ½ tbsp pepper powder
• ½ cup of tamarind juice (squeezed from a lemon sized ball of tamarind soaked in water)
• ¼ cup water
• salt (as required)
• mustard seeds (a small pinch)
• 1 sprig curry leaves
• oil (as required)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Clean the crab well. You can refer this link to see to how to clean a crab.
2. Make sure you remove all the dirt from the crab. Break its legs, do not pop out its flesh while breaking.
3. Make a paste of grated coconut, green chilies, chili powder, pearl onions, coriander powder and turmeric powder.
4. In a heavy bottomed pan, add this grind mix diluted in water with salt and tamarind pulp, allow it to boil.
5. Add crabs and mix well with the gravy, followed by adding garam masala and pepper powder. Close the lid and cook on a low flame for 5 – 8 minutes.
6. When the curry start to boil and slightly thicken up, check the salt level.
7. In another small pan, prepare tempering by adding little oil, splutter mustard seeds and add curry leaves.
8. Add this tempering to the curry, mix well. Switch off the flame and cover and allow it stand for five minutes.

Serve hot with rice or chapatti or mashed tapioca.

Note:

• You can vary the amount of chili and pepper to suit your spice level.
• The garam masala I have used in my recipe has been bought from an Indian store (Sakthi Garam masala). You can also use a homemade masala which is preferable.

The post Yellow Crab Curry / Kerala Boatman’s Crab Curry appeared first on Pepper Delight.

A Healthy n Hearty Kerala Style Mixed Vegetable Curry… Cooked in a Coconut Cumin Green Chili mix! Avial… the inevitable element of a Sadya…!!

Avial is one of the most popular traditional vegetarian dishes of my hometown Kerala, and as well in Udupi cuisine. It is favored for its simplicity, use of locally available vegetables, and ease of preparation. Avial is also one of the main dishes served during a Sadya; the biggest vegetarian feast of Kerala. It being a South Indian delicacy, is also served for celebrations, special occasions, and as a regional specialty in many international restaurants.

The origin of this dish has various mythological stories behind it. One among them goes back to the Virata Parva of Mahabharat, when Prince Bhima was living in disguise as a cook named Ballava. Bhima did not like to waste vegetables and to ensure all leftovers were used, he created a recipe by boiling all the vegetables into a single dish with spices and lots of coconut. The word Avial inherently means boiling everything in water. Whoever tasted his dish loved it so much and that’s how this recipe named Avial thereafter became popular.

Avial can be prepared in different ways with the variations ranging from the type of vegetables used, the sour agent, and the pot in which it is cooked. The lengthwise cut of the vegetables is signature to the recipe. You might have noticed in my ingredients photo that the yam is square shaped. That’s due to the unavailability of fresh yam where I live and I’m forced to use frozen yam which comes in packets as small cubes. Traditional cooking in earthern pot / manchatti is preferred for all Kerala recipes including avial, as it enhances the flavor of the dish. The sour agent used varies in different regions of Kerala; tamarind, tomato, yogurt or green mango are the common ones. You may use just one or multiple types of sour agents together in your recipe, although I prefer a combination of tomato and a little tamarind.

The choice of vegetables in an Avial recipe are endless, so I highly recommend you read the Notes section below. While cooking, ensure not to overcook the vegetables. Some of them like yellow cucumber contain a lot of water and cook pretty fast ending up losing it crunchiness, so I would recommend cooking the dish on a low flame to get it right. And don’t forget to finally top the avial with coconut oil and curry leaves, it elevates the taste all together…!

Enjoy, Happy Cooking…!

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Avial / Mixed Vegetables in Coconut Gravy

A Healthy n Hearty Kerala Style Mixed Vegetable Curry… Cooked in a Coconut Cumin Green Chili mix! Avial… the inevitable element of a Sadya…!!

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Indian

Keyword avial, aviyal, kerala

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 50 minutes minutes

Servings 5

Author Akhila

Ingredients

• ½ cup elephant-foot yam / chena
• 1 cup snake gourd / padavalanga
• 1 small raw banana / pacha kaya
• 1 small yellow cucumber / vellarikka
• 1 carrot (sliced lengthwise)
• 4-5 drumsticks (slit)
• 1 small tomato (sliced)
• ½ cup grated coconut
• 2 shallots
• 3 green chilies
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• ½ teaspoon turmeric powder
• ¼ teaspoon of chili powder
• 1 small piece of gooseberry sized tamarind
• 3 sprigs of curry leaves
• ½ cup water
• 1-2 tbsp coconut oil
• salt (as required)

Instructions

• Peel / scrape the skin off of the yam, cucumber, carrot, drumsticks and raw banana. Pit the cucumber and the snake gourd.
• Clean and rinse all the above vegetables properly in water, and then slice them lengthwise. Keep aside.
• Make a paste of coconut, cumin seeds, shallots, and green chilies. Keep aside.
• Soak tamarind in a bowl with 4 tbsp of water and keep aside.
• In a pan / manchatti, cook the vegetables along with one strand of curry leaves, turmeric powder, chili powder and salt. Cover the lid and cook on a medium flame until the vegetables are half cooked.
• Squeeze the soaked tamarind to extract its juice, add it to the pan. Cook for another minute.
• Now add the grinded coconut paste and mix all the contents of the pan well. Allow the curry to boil for another 2-3 minutes on a low flame. At this stage, check for the seasoning. Ensure not to overcook the vegetables.
• Top with coconut oil and curry leaves, give it a final stir. Turn off the flame, cover the lid and allow it to rest for another 5-10 minutes before serving. Serve with hot steamed rice.

Notes

1. Vegetable options: Yellow Cucumber, Snake Gourd, Ash Gourd, Bottle Gourd, Elephant Foot Yam, Carrot, Potato, Drumsticks, Beans, Okra, Bitter Gourd, Raw Banana, Pumpkin, Egg Plant.
2. Sour agent options: Tamarind / Green Mango / Yogurt / Tomato
3. Ensure not to overcook the vegetables, they should maintain the shape and the curry should neither be too watery nor dry.
4. Using of Coconut oil is recommended for all authentic Kerala recipes.

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