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4.75 from 4 votes

South Indian Fish Curry

A spicy fish curry cooked with a few ingredients the Durban way
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time45 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Indian
Keyword: fish curry, indian food, south african food, tamarind fish curry
Servings: 4

Ingredients

  • 700 gram firm textured fish
  • 1/4 cup light olive oil or vegetable oil
  • 1 large onion finely diced
  • 1 tspn mustard seeds
  • 8 large garlic cloves smashed and cut in half
  • 3 sprigs curry leaf
  • 3 green chillies slit in halves
  • 8 medium roma tomatoes blanched and blended
  • 1 teaspoon turmeric
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 2 teaspoon kashmiri chilli powder
  • 1 tablespoon masala
  • 1 tablespoon tamarind
  • 1/2 cup hot water
  • salt
  • coriander for garnishing

Instructions

  • Soak the tomatoes in boiling water for a few minutes. Rinse under cold water. Remove skin. Blend and set aside. Wash the fish and make a few tiny slits in each piece and set aside
  • Heat oil in a large flat pot on medium heat. Add the mustard seeds and when it pops add the onion and garlic. Turn the heat to a low setting. Sauté until the onion is golden brown
  • Add the chilli and curry leaf and fry for a minute
  • Add the chilli powder, cumin, masala and turmeric and fry the spices for a minute. Add a few drops of water to prevent the spices from burning
  • Add the tomatoes and season with salt. Bring to the boil
  • Lower the heat, cover and simmer until the oil surfaces to the top, about 15-20 minutes
  • Mix the tamarind in 1/2 cup hot water and put it through a strainer. Add it to the curry. Allow it to cook for 5 minutes
  • Add the fish but do not mix. You can baste the fish with the gravy. Cover and allow the fish to cook, about 5 to 8 minutes or until the fish is cooked. The time will depend on the thickness of the fish
  • Turn off the heat and garnish with coriander

Notes

 
  1. This curry does require a fair amount of tomatoes as the fish is meant to be cooked in a chutney (a tomato based sauce)
  2. We also use fish on the bone for this dish, however feel free to use any fish you prefer
  3. If you don't want a very hot curry you can reduce the amount of masala and chillies
  4. If you do not have masala you can use chilli powder only, you may need to increase the quantity