Indian fish coconut curry

I love Indian curries. The thick,  spice- laden sauce, the succulent meat and the wonderful aromas that accompany it. Nothing makes me groan in  satisfaction  louder than a good bowlful of this flavourful stew. FF shares my love for Indian cuisine. As a matter of fact  he  loves it a tab bit more than I do. Just a teeny tiny bit more. His family on the other hand, albeit being well travelled, is still relatively new to this cuisine. So today, FF and I want to show them what they've been missing.

Along with Oven baked tandoori chicken, I served Indian fish curry using some excellent and fresh salmon fillets. His family loves this fish and what better way to serve foreign foods, than using familiar ingredients? I just modify the heat knowing that they're not overly keen to spicy things. Use just enough chilies to whet and warm their appetite. And whet and warmed it did. I guess, there will be few calls to Namaskaar   in the coming days.

Ingredients:

Serves 6

1.2 kgs salmon fillet cut into 2 inches cubes

Marinade:

3 dried chilies, soaked in 1 tbsp. water 

1 tbsp. tamarind paste

1 tsp. coriander powdered seeds

1 tsp . turmeric powder

3 tbsp. grated coconut ( I only have desiccated coconut at hand and it worked just fine)

1 cup coconut milk

Sauce:

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 red onion, finely chopped

1 thumb sized ginger, grated

4 cloves of garlic, finely minced

1 tsp fenugreek 

200 grams  tomatoes, finely diced

2 green chilies ( optional, I skipped this)

 2 tsp. tamarind paste and

 3 tbsp Indian curry mix dissolved in 1 1/2 cups of water

1 cup coconut cream

salt and pepper to taste

Cooking instructions:

 1. Using a mortar and pestle, grind chilies and 1 tbsp of water. Scrape out and transfer into a small mixing bowl.

 2.Add the rest of the marinade ingredients into the bowl. Mix until everything is well combined.

 3. Pour marinade into the cubed fish fillet. Make sure that each piece is lathered in marinade. Use hands, if necessary.

5. Cover bowl in cling foil and refrigerate for 3 hours.

 6. Heat oil in the pan. I used coconut oil. Add fenugreek and stir fry under medium heat until aromatic. Add in minced onion, garlic and grated ginger.

 7. Add in diced tomatoes.  Sauté until it tomato softens a bit . Dissolve tamarind pulp and curry mix in  water. Pour into the pan, bring mixture into a boil and then let curry sauce simmer gently for about 10 minutes. Let the sauce thicken.

 8. Add in fish cubes and marinade. Carefully fold mixture, cover and let it simmer for 8 minutes.

9. Add coconut cream into the pan. Stir carefully to avoid smashing fish cubes. Turn heat to high and cook for another 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with white rice or Na an bread.