Kerala masala fish fry

Fish steaks, coated with spicy marinade and shallow fried , kerala style.

Course dinner

Cuisine Indian

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 15

Marination time 15

Servings

Calories 352kcal

Author Chhavi

Ingredients

½ kg King fish fillet 5-6 fillets, depending on the size of the fish
¼ cup Coconut oil for shallow frying

Marinade

2 Tablespoon Rice flour
1 Tablespoon Ground Coriander seeds
1 Tablespoon Red Kashmiri chili powder
2 Tablespoon Ginger Garlic paste
20 Curry leaves divided
1 Lime
½ teaspoon Salt as per taste

Instructions

Chop half of the curry leaves finely.
In a large bowl, mix toghether the marinade ingredients - chopped curry leaves, turmeric, ground chili powder, ground coriander seeds, salt, lime and ginger garlic paste.
Add 1 -2 tablespoon water to make it into a thick paste. Taste and adjust the salt, chili and lime if needed. We are looking ofr toothpast consistency
Wash the fish. Pat it dry with a kitchen towel. Add the cleaned fish to the marinade.Gently apply the marinate to both sides of the fish.
Marinate for 15 minutes minimum. It's best to marinate for 12 hours in the refrigerator. Check notes for freezing.
Heat a cast iron or non stick pan. Once hot, add 2 tablespoon oil and let it heat through.
On low heat, gently place the fish and cook for 3-4 minutes per side. Flip using a broad spatula or fish turner. Cook the other side.
Repeat with rest of the fish.Add more oil if needed.
In the leftover hot oil, add the rest of the curry leaves.Fry till they turn crispy amd top tje fish fry with it.

Notes

Tricks and tips

Taste the marinade before you add the fish. Adjust the salt and spice level.
The fish is cooked if it turns bright, opaque white inside. The ideal texture of the fish when cooked just right is flaky. Fish can overcook easily so be hands-on while frying the fish.
Keep the heat medium and not smoking hot.
In between frying two steaks, you might need to sprinkle some water on the tawa and wipe the charred bits.
Use a dosa turner or a fish turner whose edge is sharp like a knife to flip the fish.

Meal Prep

I usually portion the fish, place it in smaller containers or zip lock bags. This way, I can take out the amount I need, without disturbing the rest of the fish.

The smaller quantity of fish will also thaw faster.

Substitutes

Fish- You can use any fish using the same recipe. Larger, thicker fish fillets take more time to cook. You can also use cuttlefish or shrimp, too. For a vegetarian option use raw banana slices or eggplant.

Coriander powder - You can use garam masala or cumin masala too.

Ground Chili- This recipe is medium spicy, and we use Kashmiri chili powder. You can choose to use a spicier chili powder as per your taste.

Ginger Garlic paste- Use storebought or homemade.

Curry leaves- You can skip them if you can't find curry leaves. Dry curry leaves or curry leaves powder are good substitutes, too.

Lime Juice - Replace with lemon juice or vinegar

Oil - Traditionally coconut oil is used but you can use groundnut oil too.

Nutrition