Goan Fish Curry

Did you know there are some people in the world that have NEVER eaten a fish curry?  I know, I, too, am flabbergasted.

Fish curry, for those of you uninitiated in the experience, is one of the most delightful curries you will ever devour.  Providing, of course, you love a curry and are partial to fish.  I have noticed, coming from a fishing family, that those who have not been lucky enough to experience variable types of seafood from a young age and typically live inland, are not very good with fish.  By which I mean they pull an ‘oh no’ squirmy face when I mention fish and begin to jibber on about bones etc. at which point I have to change the subject.

That aside, if you tick the aforementioned boxes, you will find this irresistible.

The wee boy and I decided it would be a lovely thing to eat fish curry on Friday evening, so we bought all the ingredients we didn’t have in, including a bag of frozen Talapia from the Continental supermarket down the road.  Sadly, for one reason and another, this didn’t come to pass on Friday.  Undeterred, Saturday became designated as fish curry day.  However, according to the wee boy, it was puppet Dave’s birthday on Saturday, so I made a lovely batch of brownies which we all enjoyed enormously.  So much so, that when I tentatively suggested fish curry for dinner no-one, including myself, really had the appetite for it.

And so it was that we eventually ate this glorious curry on Sunday as, quite frankly, had we not done that, it would have been shelved for at least a week.

So what is in this now infamous curry, I hear you cry.  Well…

Whizz up a 4cm chunk of fresh ginger with 2 cloves of garlic, 2 deseeded long green chillies, and 2 onions.  Fry in a little oil until translucent then add 2 teaspoons of cumin, ground coriander, garam masala, and turmeric.  Stir for a couple of minutes before adding 6 large chopped tomatoes, one tin of coconut milk, 2 bay leaves and 2 cardamon pods, cut into two.

Allow it to simmer for around ten minutes.  In fact, I actually made this sauce the night before, but it’s not necessary.  Then add approximately 600g of meaty fish.  I used Talapia and salmon, but choose whatever you fancy.  Allow this to cook in the sauce then add a few prawns.

Just before you serve this delight, have a cheekie taste as you may want to add a little salt. Add a shake of lime juice (the juice of one if you’re going fresh) and sprinkle with fresh, chopped coriander.

Serve with whatever takes your fancy.

Midway through finally eating the curry, I remembered that I had forgotten to add the lime juice, which does give it a little extra kick, but is not, it turns out, the end of the world if you forget.  Also, as a little tip for those of you who like a curry with spicy heat in it, you could consider adding a couple more green chillies.

The important thing to remember here is, however you like your curry, making it with fish instead of meat, is a wonderful, dare I say healthy, alternative and one I can guarantee you won’t regret.

 

 

 

Fish Pie

I absolutely love fish pie.  In fact, I would go so far as to say it’s probably in my top 20.  Which may seem a little underwhelming, but if you think about it, there are so many wonderful things to eat that, until I really spend time deciding on my true top 20, it’s the best I can do.

Meanwhile, we have also been doing some baking today as it is Mollie’s birthday. The wee boy decided, as her present, that she would probably like some chocolate buns.   As Mollie is a hand puppet she didn’t really get a say in the matter, but when you’re five, the question as to whether something is actually alive or not, is irrelevant.  Mollie is his friend and that’s good enough for me.  We even went as far as putting candles on the cakes, lighting them, and singing her ‘happy birthday’. Glorious.

However, this has been my greatest challenge yet in the no sugar stakes, and I have to admit to lapsing without thought, twice.  Firstly, I licked my fingers which were covered in raw cake mixture, and then, later on, I inadvertently popped a piece that had fallen off the cooling rack, into my mouth.  No, truly, it was an accident.  Bloody lovely though.

Anyway, back to the fish pie.  I always put smoked fish in with white fish and some salmon.  I like the combination.  But to be honest, the beauty of fish pie is that you can put whatever fish takes your fancy in there.  I make a white sauce, which consists of cornflour, salt, pepper, milk and butter.  Occasionally, if I have it in, I put a wee bit of anchovy paste in and leave out the salt, and sometimes, like today, I replace some milk with cream, just because it needed using up.

After making the sauce, ensuring it has quite a thick consistency, I add the fish, cut up with scissors.  Make sure not to make the chunks too small as they will disintegrate.  Now then, if you wish, a little chopped parsley is a lovely compliment to fish, but I didn’t have any of that around so this time, omitted it.

Put the fish and sauce into a dish.

Make some mashed potato, place on top, fiddle about with a fork to make a pretty pattern, and place in the oven, gas mark 5 for around 45 minutes.

Take out and let it all sit in itself for a few minutes.  I tend to serve it with peas as I’m a creature of habit, but anything green goes well.  Except green peppers, but I’m not a fan of the taste of those anyway.

I find fish pie so delicious I am always tempted to have seconds, but every time I do, I regret it within approximately ten minutes, as it is very, ‘catches you unaware’, filling.  As a consequence of this, we do have a very large amount of fish pie left, so if anyone fancies popping over for some, do feel free.