On hot days, a serving of oven-grilled mackerel makes for a light, nutritious meal. One that doesn’t demand long hours in the kitchen. What makes this dish for me, is the tangy and herbaceous chermoula, generally slathered over the fish. Teamed with a helping of garlic-fried spinach, this plate of oven-grilled mackerel leaves you feeling sated, not stuffed. How to make chermoula Chermoula is a North African marinade/condiment eaten mainly…
I’m happy to be finally sharing this Indian yellow fish curry recipe on the blog after life threw my routine off the rails for a few weeks. Now, you would think this to be a yellow fish curry from East Asia, and I wouldn’t blame you. In truth, I don’t know of any specific Indian yellow fish curry recipe, this one is just what I choose to call this curry.…
Spicy prawn soup in November is like winter haiku in a bowl. Just a few ingredients celebrating the season creating deep, warming harmony on your palate. The heat hums in this spicy prawn soup, never jarring, just right. I started the season of soups with one that’s not too hearty and heavy, yet it’s filling enough to be a meal by itself. Surf and turf This soup is spiced with…
Hyderabadi fish for someone like me, who calls the city home, is a dish that never gets its due. Biryanis, salans and meat dishes tend to dominate the narratives on Deccani and Hyderabadi cuisines. The city is landlocked but it more than makes up for the lack of seafood, with freshwater fish dishes. There are spicy fried fish dishes, tangy, tamarind-based fish curries and fiery masala fish preparations.This Hyderabadi fish…
Tandoori prawns are a surefire crowd pleaser; whether you’re cooking it for just for your family or for a large party. Seafood is delicate, yet the ground spices in the marinade for these tandoori prawns builds a savoury patina of flavour that complements the intrinsic sweetness of the prawns. Now, tandoori dishes – chicken, lamb and seafood must be grilled in a tandoor as the name suggests, but in the…
An everyday fish pulao is a wonderful dish to have in one’s repertoire. It makes a nice change from fried and curried fish. Like many if not most Indian home cooks, I cook from instinct, adding flavours and seasoning without always adhering to recipes and measurements. Cooking over time, one develops a sense of which ingredients complement each other and how much needs to be added to achieve a certain…
My red fish curry was born from my love of fish curries from the western coast of India. It’s not ‘authentic’ in the sense that it incorporates elements from Malvani, Goan and even Malabari cuisines. Although each of these regional cuisines is different in its basic flavours and in the way it combines seafood, spices and other aromatics to create unique dishes, more than a few ingredients are common to…
A prawn pulao is always a crowd pleaser. Seafood and rice have a synergetic relationship and together create the most soul-satisfying dishes, paella for example. One of my favourite comfort foods is a plate of fish curry and plain steamed rice. It needs nothing else, no side dishes, relishes or accompaniments required. The prawn pulao is similar. We’re a seafood loving family and when my local fish seller had a…
I ate the best crispy coconut prawns at The Green Turtle, a charming little restaurant on a white sand beach in Mozambique. Everything about that experience was magical – the spotless sand beside the turquoise Indian Ocean, the beautiful verandah-style restaurant, the delicious coconut water and rum cocktails and of course, golden, crispy and succulent coconut crusted prawns served in a coconut shell.. Crispy coconut prawns are a popular appetiser…
You can tell, blindfolded, when Kerala prawn masala is on the menu. First, you smell the curry leaves, then the pepper or maybe the cinnamon, cloves or fennel seed and don’t forget the prawns. …