Kerala fish curry

Before you start

• a wide shallow pan — the fish sits in one layer and is never stirred

Ingredients

Serves 2 · dimmer marks are storecupboard

• 400gfirm white fish — kingfish or seer steaks traditionally; cod, pollock or tilapia all hold together
• 160mlcoconut milk
• 60gbasmati rice — red matta rice if the shop has it
• 1 tbsptamarind paste — kokum is the Kerala answer and goes in whole
• 1 tbspoil — coconut oil if there is any in the house
• 8shallots
• 1 thumbginger and garlic
• 20curry leaves
• 3green chillies
• 2 tspkashmiri chilli and ground coriander
• 1 tspmustard and fenugreek seeds

Method

9 steps

1. chop · 8m

   Fish into thick steaks or large pieces, shallots sliced, ginger and garlic into fine strips rather than a paste.

2. fry · 10m

   Mustard and fenugreek into the oil until they spit, then curry leaves, shallots, ginger, garlic and chilli cooked until soft and just turning gold.

3. simmer · 12m

   Tamarind loosened in warm water and poured in with the chilli and coriander, then simmered until the raw sourness has gone out of it.

4. fold · 3m

   Fish laid in in one layer, and from here the pan is shaken rather than stirred. A spoon through it breaks every piece into flakes.

5. simmer · 10m walk away

   Barely bubbling with the lid on, until the fish is opaque all the way through and gives at a fork without being pushed.

6. fold · 5m

   Coconut milk in and brought only to the edge of a simmer. Boiled once it is in, it splits into grains and oil, and there is no way back from that.

7. boil · 15m walk away

   Rice alongside: rinsed, twice its volume of water, lid, lowest heat.

8. rest · 30m walk away

   Off the heat and covered for half an hour before eating if there is time. This is noticeably better in thirty minutes and better again tomorrow.

9. finish · 3m

   Fresh curry leaves crackled in a spoon of hot oil and poured over, then salt.