Just recently, I visited Kerala with my husband and in-laws. I had an opportunity to stay with his aunt and uncle in Kottayam, Kerala. There, I was introduced to Karimeen Fish fry. Karimeen, also known as pearl spot, is a fish that is found in southern India and Sri Lanka. It was really tasty! Today, I happen to be walk in to Fairway Market to pick up some salmon steaks, but instead ended up buying some Porgy fish. The Porgy fish, although different, reminded me of Karimeen. I instantly took it home and knew I wanted to make a Kerala-spiced fish fry. I used the spices from a blog, kannammacooks.com because it was simple enough and substituted a few ingredients.
Ingredients:
- ~10 black peppercorns
- 4-5 garlic cloves
- 2 teaspoons turmeric
- 5-6 curry leaves
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 3-4 teaspoons red chili powder
- lemon
- ginger (optional)
- olive oil
- 2 porgy fish
1. In a mini processor, add black peppercorns, peeled garlic cloves, turmeric, curry leaves, salt, red chili powder, freshly squeezed lemon juice, and half a cup water. Mix until it forms a thin paste.
2. Cut 4-5 slits in the porgy fish. Marinate the fish with the above paste and set aside for 30 minutes.
3. Heat a grill pan with olive oil on medium-high heat. Cook the fish on each side for 2½ minutes.
