Chef Arun’s Family Fish Curry

METHOD

Step 1

For the marinade, rub the fish steaks with ½ teaspoon each of salt and turmeric powder and leave for 10 minutes.

Step 2

Rinse the fish under running water and drain well. Then marinate the fish with another ½ teaspoon of salt and ¼ teaspoon of turmeric powder along with the Kashmiri chilli powder, ginger & garlic paste and tamarind paste. Cover and refrigerate for 1 ½ hours.

Step 3

Meanwhile, put the coriander seeds into a dry frying pan and place over a medium heat. Let them warm up and toast for 1–2 minutes, until fragrant. Cool and blitz to a fine powder, set one teaspoon aside for later. Next, make cumin and fenugreek powder by toasting the cumin and fenugreek seeds in the same way. Cool and blitz together, set half a teaspoon aside.

Step 4

For the curry, in a heavy-bottomed pan, heat the oil and sauté the red onions until translucent. Add the spring onions, fenugreek leaves and green chilli, cook until golden brown, then stir in the ginger & garlic paste. Mix in the turmeric powder, Kashmiri chilli powder and tamarind paste. Add 250ml boiled water and bring the mixture to a simmer.

Step 5

Once simmering, add the marinated fish and top up with a little more hot water (if needed) to make sure the steaks are just covered. Put a lid on the pan, and let it cook over a low heat (gently swirl the sauce over the steaks without turning them over occasionally) for about 10 minutes or until opaque, firm and easy to flake with a fork. Add 1 teaspoon of the toasted coriander powder along with half a teaspoon of the toasted cumin and fenugreek powder and half a teaspoon of garam masala. Leave for another 1 minute, give it another swirl and top with fresh ginger matchsticks and chopped coriander. Serve with fluffy basmati rice.