MEEN KUZUMBU/SPICY FISH GRAVY




This is a very common dish but I have so many memories and nostaligia associated with this dish. This is my all time favorite seafood dish and my mom used to make this very often for me, sometimes even thrice a week! Mixed with rice and a fried fish on side, this is the ultimate comfort food for me. Meen kuzumbu always reminds me of my grandma and her cooking. For me, the best seafood dishes I ever tasted are my grandma’s only. Whenever I taste meen kuzumbu or prepare it at home, I always compare notes with hers. I remember when I was a kid my mom used to coax us to having lunch saying that it was cooked by grandma and then we would go and sit in the dining table right away ;) This post is dedicated to my grandma who is right now in India. I learnt my cooking basics from her. She is the reason that my sister and I were not latch-key kids. I miss her a lot, though I talk to her over the phone often; it is still not the same like being there.


INGREDIENTS:

  1. Small onions, 1 cup.
  2. Tomatoes, medium sized, 2.
  3. Fish slices, any type, around 5-6.
  4. Garlic, 3-4 cloves.
  5. Ginger-garlic paste 1 teaspoon.
  6. Tamarind, 1 lemon-sized ball.
  7. Chili powder, 2 teaspoons.
  8. Coriander powder, 2 tablespoons.
  9. Sambar powder, 1 teaspoon (optional).
  10. Turmeric powder, ¼ teaspoon.
  11. Curry leaves for seasoning.
  12. Salt for taste.
  13. Vadakam for seasoning (optional).
  14. Mustard seeds for seasoning.


PREPARATION:

Clean and wash the fish well. Once the fish is cleaned, add ½ teaspoon of salt and the turmeric powder to the fish and mix everything well until all the slices are coated with the turmeric mixture. Let it sit for 15 minutes. Extract thick tamarind juice from the tamarind and dice the onions and tomatoes into small pieces. The small onions can also be left as whole. Heat a pan with some sesame oil. When the oil is hot enough, add the mustard seeds and let it splutter. Then add the vadakam and fry for a few seconds and then add chopped onions and sauté for a few minutes until the onions turn brown. Add the tomatoes, curry leaves, garlic cloves, and ginger-garlic paste and keep sautéing until everything is blended. Add the powders one bye one and keep frying on a low flame with another tablespoon of oil until good smell comes from the mixture. Add the tamarind juice and salt and cook closed in medium flame for 10-12 minutes and the gravy starts to thicken. At this stage, add the fish slices and let the gravy cook for 5 more minutes until the fish is cooked. Once the fish is cooked, garnish with chopped cilantro and serve hot with rice, idlis or dosas.

29 comments:

priya said...

my mouth is watering so badly, dear...yummmmmmmmm

Ann said...

I started eating fish recently, your recipe could be my easy try! looks really good.

Astra Libris said...

Such a beautiful tribute to your grandmother! Recipes with family memories are so special...

Aparna S Mallya said...

I'm a sucker for fish gravy, and this looks delicious!

Trupti said...

fish gravy looks delicious..I will try this gravy for chicken as I am not a fish lover :)

Ganga Sreekanth said...

colorful and delicious....

Treat and Trick said...

Looks yummy, this is my favorite too....

http://treatntrick.blogspot.com

Sushma Mallya said...

oh wow very nice and delicious gravy with fish,am sure must have been yum with rice

Namitha said...

Spicy spicy...lovely color, Gita :-)Love fish curry..

Lena Jayadev said...

woww...superaairukku.. :) awesome shot Gita..i love to have it with appam.. :)

Priya Suresh said...

Thats a delicious gravy Gita, just love it..athuvum namba oorula puthusa meen vangi kuzhambu vacha saapitute irrukalam..missing it..

Sarah Naveen said...

OOh...so mouthwatering..yummy yumm...love the recipe..

PranisKitchen said...

i want to taste it now..looks so delicious..spicy one
u have a nice blog

Cool Lassi(e) said...

Looking Good Dear! Love to have it with rice and some papadam

Vrinda said...

Sambar powder in fish curry...?Would lov to try this version,looks spicy n yummm

priya said...

i never tried having meen kuzumbu on my own.But its tempting me to do so.

Rumana Rawat said...

i love spicy fish curry.. my mom use to make this for me very often before my marriage... looks very tasty:)

Pavithra Srihari said...

Meen kolambu is just awesome gita.

Can you please collect your awards from my blog.

Muraligeetham said...

fish curry is super .. adding sambar powder in fish is new to me...good one .

Jayanthy Kumaran said...

Hy Gita,
Looks divine...
First time here...You hv a lovely collection of recipes. Do drop in at my blog sometime.

Kalai said...

Gita,
looks very tempting..never took a shot to make them at home, I always go for fish fry. Yours inspired me to cook at home:) Simply lovely!

Tina said...

Sooooo creamy and delicious...

Padma said...

Looks spicy and delicious Gita.

Vikis Kitchen said...

Superb kulambu pa. Meen kulambu nu sollum pothey pasikkuthu:) Anecdote is great Gita. Good to keep up the recipes of Grandma.Seems very special. Notable recipe and lovely picture.

gtyuk said...

oh my, meen kozhambu looks absolutely tempting!!! grandmas are always great cooks, they're our best teachers I'd say!!! reminds me of my own grandma, I miss her too!!!

Nadji said...

Such beautiful.
See soon.

Soma Pradhan said...

Wow..The fish curry looks so tempting....Cant resist

Unknown said...

Fish curry is our fav..Love this recipe! Nice click too..

Madhura Manoj said...

Looks tempting...following you.