SEER FISH TAWA FRY

 SEER FISH TAWA FRY

India is a vast and diverse country so our people are used to eating so many different types of fish- be they saltwater fish or freshwater fish! In the coastal belt of Karnataka, a very popular fish- despite it being more expensive than most others- is the Seer Fish.  Also called King Fish, it is known as Surmai in Hindi and Marathi, Anjal in Kannada, Vanjaram in Tamil and Visonu, in my mother tongue, Konkani. 

Seer Fish are strong in Omega 3 fatty acids and are considered very good for overall health. This article in InvestoHealth speaks of the 10 Astonishing Benefits Of Consuming Seer Fish. 

We like seer fish because it is fleshy and flavourful . Besides, it is easy to handle as it has one single central bone.  

Being fond of seafood, from time to time I use fish to make some yummy dishes. Elsewhere in this blog you will find recipes for dishes such as:-

• Mangalorean Fish Curry 
• Goan Fish Curry 
• Maanji Pulimunchi

Today's recipe is for an easy to make yet delicious shallow fried fish done in the Mangalorean style. I prefer to shallow fry rather than deep fry. The Byadgi Red Chillies which are soaked and ground add to the colour and visual appeal. I have adapted this recipe from the YouTube video for Surmai Fish Fry by Spice Dhamal.

We tried this out for lunch yesterday. It tasted so yummy with fried rice.

Ingredients:-

• Seer Fish Fillets, 250 gms
• Garlic Cloves, 8
• Ginger, chopped, 1/2 " piece
• Curry Leaves, 8
• Turmeric  Powder, 1/2 tsp
• Byadgi Red Chillies, 8
• Cumin Seeds, 1 tbsp
• Coriander Seeds, 2 tbsp
• Black Peppercorn, 8 
• Cloves, 4
• Cinnamon, small stick
• Lemon Juice, 2 tbsp 
• Salt, to taste
• Oil, as required for shallow frying 

Method:-

Wash the Seer Fish fillets and pat them dry

Soak the Byadgi Red Chillies in hot water for about 25 minutes. Discard the water and keep the soaked chillies aside.

In a mixer jar, grind together the soaked Byadgi Red Chillies, chopped ginger, garlic cloves, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, black peppercorns, cloves, cinnamon, lemon juice, and salt to taste 

Grind this to form a thick smooth paste, without adding any water

Remove the ground paste from mixer to a bowl. This forms the marinade for the seer fish. 

Apply the marinade generously and evenly on both sides of the fish fillets

Marinate for about 20 minutes

Heat oil in a thick bottomed pan. Allow it to become very hot, then reduce the heat and pan fry the marinated fish fillets for about 3 minutes on medium heat

Once one side is done, carefully flip the fillet ( so that it does not break) and fry the other side

Transfer the seer fish tawa fry to a serving plate

Serve with lemon wedges and onion rings

POMFRET CURRY GSB STYLE

 

POMFRET CURRY GSB STYLE 

In our Konkani GSB cuisine, a popular dish is Alle Piyava Ghashi. The name comes from the Konkani terms for the ingredients which give it its distinctive flavour - Ginger (Alle) and Onion (Piyavu). 

 In today's recipe I have made Alle Piyava Ghashi with the addition of Black Pomfret, called Maanji in Konkani, Tulu and Kannada, Pomfret is called Paplet in Maharashtra and Goa. 

This article shows how adding black pomfret to your diet can be beneficial for your health. 

Elsewhere in this blog, you will find recipes for dishes made with pomfret, such as:-

• Black Pomfret Curry
• Maanji Pulimunchi
• Rava Pomfret Fry

This Pomfret Curry goes great with hot steamed rice.  I used 1/2 kg black pomfret which after cutting and cleaning yields about 400 gms or about 7-8 fillets of varying sizes.

I hope you will try this out and enjoy it as much as we do! 

Ingredients:-

• Black Pomfret, 400 grams
• Onion, 1
• Green Chillies, 2-3
• Ginger, 1 to 1 1/2 " piece
• Fresh Coconut Gratings, 1 cup
• Roasted Byadgi Red Chillies, 6-8
• Tamarind, size of a small marble
• Coconut Oil, 1 tbsp
• Salt, to taste

Method:-

Wash the fish fillets thoroughly. Keep aside. 

Chop the ginger, peel and chop the onion, and slit the green chillies

In a mixer jar, grind together the fresh coconut gratings, roasted Byadgi red chillies, and  tamarind to a smooth paste, adding water as required

Transfer this ground paste to a thick-bottomed kadhai, add water to bring to a gravy like consistency 

To this add the chopped ginger, onions, slit green chillies, and salt to taste

Mix well and bring to a boil 

Lower the flame and let it simmer for a few minutes

Add the fish fillets and let it cook for 3-4 minutes on medium flame. Remember, the fish gets cooked very soon. Don't use a ladle or spoon to mix the curry as the delicate, cooked fish will break. Instead, lift and gently shake the kadhai. 

Finally drizzle the Pomfret Curry with coconut oil and allow it to sit for about 10-15 minutes so that the curry absorbs all the flavours.

Serve with hot steamed rice

RAVA POMFRET FRY

 RAVA POMFRET FRY

Although we are largely vegetarian at home, once in a while we enjoy eating seafood, mainly fish and prawns. In today's dish, I have used black pomfret, which is called Kappu Maanji/Paplet/Halwa. 

Apart from being very tasty, one of the biggest benefits of the pomfret is that it is rich in Omega 3 fatty acids and has numerous health benefits. 

Elsewhere in this blog, you will find recipes for dishes made with pomfret, such as:-

• Paplet Masaledar 
• Maanji Pulimunchi

Often, I just like to shallow fry the pomfret. Today's recipe is for Rava Pomfret Fry where we apply spices on the pomfret slices and then shallow fry them dipped in a coating of rava/semolina.

This is easy to make and yet the fish tastes amazing!! 

Ingredients:-

• Black Pomfret, 3-4  pieces about 250-300 grams
• Rava/ Semolina, 1/3 cup
• Lime Juice, 1 tbsp
• Ginger Garlic Paste, 1 and 1/2 tsp 
• Turmeric Powder, 1/4 tsp
• Chilli Powder, 2 tsp 
• Garam Masala, 1/4 tsp
• Oil, as required to shallow fry
• Salt, to taste

Method:-

Wash the pomfret slices thoroughly and drain away the excess water

Apply lime juice to these slices and set aside for a few minutes and then drain away the lime juice

In a bowl, mix together ginger garlic paste, turmeric powder, chilli powder, garam masala,  and salt 

Apply this mixture evenly to the pomfret slices on both sides and keep aside for about 10 minutes

Take the rava in a plate and dip the pomfret slices one by one in the rava so that they are evenly coated on both sides

Heat a pan with oil and shallow fry the pomfret on medium heat for about 3-4 minutes

Next, drizzle oil on and around it and flip the pomfret to shallow fry the other side

Switch off the gas and transfer the pomfret to a serving plate

Serve the Rava Pomfret Fry with onion rings and lime wedges 

MANGALOREAN FISH CURRY

 MANGALOREAN FISH CURRY

We have become recent fans of Food Lovers TV the Kripal Amanna show and I wanted to try out one of his demonstrated recipes. By a happy co-incidence, we had got some good seer fish from our usual shop. A quick internet search showed us Kripal demonstrating the making of Mangalorean Fish Curry. The decision was made!! 

Though my blog is largely vegetarian I do have some Seafood recipes as my husband and I are very fond of prawns and fish. 

Elsewhere in this blog, you will find recipes for some really yummy dishes such as:-

• Goan Fish Curry 
• Maanji Pulimunchi 
• Sungta Alle Piyava Ghashi (Konkani Style Prawn Curry)

So, this recipe  has been adapted from "Mangalorean Fish Curry"  by Kripal Amanna  of Food Lovers TV. While he has used  a mix of 9 Kashmiri Red Chillies and 6 Gunter Chillies, to suit our spice level, I went in for 9 of our usual Byadgi Red Chillies.

You can make this using different types of fish. We have a distinct preference for pomfret and seer fish so we used seer fish today. Indo Pacific King Mackerel/seer fish/king fish is known as Surmai in Marathi, Anjal in Kannada and Visonu in my mother tongue, Konkani.

I was happy that the dish came out very well. We had this for lunch with hot steamed rice. It was truly delicious. 

Ingredients:- 

• Seer Fish/Anjal/Visonu, 500 gms, cut into fillets
• Water, 400 ml or as required
• Salt, to taste

To Roast and Grind For The Masala:-

• Coriander Seeds, 1 tbsp
• Cumin Seeds, 1 tsp
• Peppercorns, 10
• Mustard Seeds, 1/4 tsp
• Fenugreek Seeds, 15
• Carom Seeds, a pinch
• Byadgi Red Chillies, 9
• Turmeric Powder, 1/2 tsp for marination + 1/2 tsp for the masala
• Large Onion, roughly chopped, 1 
• Garlic Cloves, 10
• Ginger, 1/2 " piece
• Tamarind, lime-sized ball
• Fresh Coconut Gratings, 5 tbsp
• Coconut Oil, 1 tsp -to roast the chillies

For the Seasoning:-

• Small-sized Onion, 1
• Curry Leaves, 12-15
• Coconut Oil, 2 tsp 

Method:

Mix together 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder and 1/2 tsp of salt and apply this to the fish fillets evenly on both sides and marinate them in the refrigerator for 30-45 minutes.

Roughly chop the ginger

Roughly chop the large-sized onion -  for the masala 

Finely chop the medium -sized onion - for the seasoning

In a thick-bottomed kadhai , dry roast the spices ( coriander seeds, cumin seeds, peppercorns, carom seeds, fenugreek seeds, mustard seeds) on low/medium heat taking care that they don't get burnt.

Once they give off a good aroma and are roasted, transfer to a plate and allow them to cool.

Add 1 tsp coconut oil to the same kadhai  and roast the Byadgi Red Chillies till they become crisp, switch off the flame and allow them to cool 

In a mixer jar, grind together the roasted spices, roasted chillies, along with coconut gratings, garlic cloves, chopped ginger and onions, tamarind and 1/2 tsp turmeric powder. Add water- little by little -and  grind to get a smooth masala of thick consistency. 

Transfer the ground masala to the kadhai, add water from the mixer jar, to get a curry of thick consistency 

To this add salt to taste and mix well

Switch on the gas and bring the masala to a boil 

Cover and cook on low flame . Check for salt and add if required.

Now one by one add the marinated fish fillets gently into the masala so that they are fully submerged in the curry 

Cover and cook for 3-5 minutes on medium heat till the fish gets cooked

Lastly do the seasoning by heating 2 tsp of coconut oil in a pan, add the finely chopped onions and curry leaves and saute till the onions get browned

Pour this seasoning onto the fish curry 

Switch off the gas and transfer to a serving bowl

Serve the Fish Curry with hot steamed rice 

GOAN FISH CURRY

 GOAN FISH CURRY

Before I got married, we were strict vegetarians in my parents' house. Over the years, I began to eat non-vegetarian food once in a while and began to cook it too. Later, this dropped and we used to eat out more often than I cooked at home.  

Due to the Covid we haven't been going out so I decided a few days ago to make Goan Fish Curry. This is because we love prawns and other seafood and have fond memories of annual trips to Goa! I was delighted to get cleaned and ready to cook Black Pomfret delivered at home by Big Basket. In Goa, pomfret is known as Paplet. 

Apart from tasting delicious, Black Pomfrets have many health benefits as well. They are high in fatty acids besides having lots of Vitamin B 12 which is good for the nervous system.

This Goan Fish Curry was delicious and we enjoyed it for lunch with hot steamed rice. I have adapted this recipe from the video by Chef Varun Inamdar of Get Curried.

Fresh Fish from Big Basket! 

Happy to see My Story in Facebook Page for "Cooking With Shobana" for this - Goan Fish Curry In The Making - was well liked. I am sure you will like the dish too ! 

Ingredients:-

• Black Pomfret, 500 gms, or about 7-8 slices 
• Green Chillies, slit, 2, for the final touch! 
• Water, 2 cups
• Salt, to taste

To Be Ground To A Smooth Paste: 

• Fresh Coconut Gratings, 1/2 cup
• Byadgi Red Chillies,  5
• Tamarind Paste, 1 tbsp
• Green Chillies, 2 
• Ginger, 1 " piece, 
• Garlic Cloves, large-sized, 3
• Medium-sized Onion, 1/2
• Turmeric Powder, 1/4 tsp
• Cumin Seeds, 1/4 tsp
• Black Peppercorns, 1/4 tsp
• Coriander Seeds, 1 tsp 

Method:-

Wash, peel and roughly chop the ginger 

Roughly chop 2 green chillies 

Slice the onion

Wash the fish slices 3-4 times in water

Apply turmeric powder and salt to the fish slices and keep aside to marinate for about 15 minutes 

Dry roast the Byadgi red chillies, cumin seeds, black peppercorns and coriander seeds in a kadhai for a couple of minutes and then allow this to cool 

In a mixer jar, grind together the fresh coconut gratings and the dry roasted ingredients, along with tamarind paste, green chillies, ginger, garlic, sliced onion and turmeric powder initially in a pulse mode till the ingredients get crushed. Then grind the ingredients once more, adding the required amount of water to a smooth paste

Heat a thick bottomed kadhai and add the freshly ground paste, 2 cups of water and salt. (Remember that some salt has already been added to the fish while marinating)

Mix well, cover and cook the curry for about 10 minutes by when you will find that the masala would have released oil 

To this add the marinated fish slices and again cover and cook for about 6- 8 minutes or till the fish gets fully done

You can check whether it is well cooked or not by piercing the fish slices with a toothpick 

Take care that the fish is not overcooked otherwise the fish slices could break up

Lastly, add the slit green chillies 

Switch off the gas and transfer the curry to a serving bowl

Serve the Goan Fish Curry hot with steamed rice 

OUR DINING EXPERIENCE: MAINLAND CHINA

OUR DINING EXPERIENCE: MAINLAND CHINA

Both my husband and I are fond of Chinese food, or really the Indian version of Chinese food which is popularly called Indian-Chinese. Recently to celebrate my birthday, we went to Mainland China in Jayanagar, Bengaluru which is one of several Mainland China restaurants in the city. I know there are many others in Whitefield, Malleshwaram, Koramangala, Indiranagar and so on..

It is important to make a reservation especially when you are dining there in the week end. We did so when we reached there at 1.30 p.m. we were straight away escorted to a table for two. Initially it looked as if there weren't too many diners but within no time it filled up. Soon there were no tables empty at all.

To start with, we ordered the Leechis and Basil Quenchers . These mocktails  tasted out of this world. The blend of the leechis and basil was a treat to the palate.

There is so much to choose from when it comes to soups. We overlooked the more common Sweet Corn Soup, and Lemon & Coriander Soup opting for the Hot and Sour Soup. This is made with soy and crushed white peppercorn. It was quite delicious.

For starters, we asked for the tried and trusted Assorted Non- Vegetarian Dimsum Platter. We read from the menu that Dimsums mean Heart's Delight in Chinese. The best part of the Dimsums is that they are lightly spiced and steamed. The platter had a good mix with Chicken Siu Mai, Pan Grilled Crab Cake and Prawn Hargao. These were delectable especially as we dipped them in the accompanying sauces. We particularly liked the orange sauce made with mustard with chillies.

For the main course, we did not  want to experiment so chose a combination of fried rice and fish, We skipped the offerings in noodles. There was again innumerable types of fried rice to choose from.  We opted for the Prawns Fried Rice which we had with Chilli Basil Fish served with Devil's Sauce as this was marked as being more spicy than the others on the menu. Both these dishes were great. The quantity served was quite adequate for the two of us. We were so engrossed in enjoying the fried rice and fish that no pictures were taken. That shows just how delicious they were!!

You can't leave without dessert, can you? We opted for the Dessert of the Day which was Date Ice Cream with Palm Jaggery and Roasted Almonds. It was well worth the extra calories that must have gone in.

All in all, we left entirely satisfied with the dining experience. The food was exceptional, the service and ambiance were pretty good too.

Highly recommended if you are looking for a tasty Chinese meal.