Friday 15 March 2013

Chettinad Fish Fry | Chettinad Meen Varuval | Indian Fish Fry Recipes



Chettinad cuisine is one of the most famous cuisine all over India. It has the most flavorful dishes and you will be awed to know about the spices they use. Am so glad I have a neighbor from that region who cooks delicacies and passes some to me. Every time she gives me some dish it tastes unique and aromatic with new flavors. I have learnt some dishes from her and have even posted some here like; Chettinad chicken masalaChicken vindhari and Beetroot Pirrattal. Today's fish fry is also one such recipe that I learnt from her, it has freshly ground spice powder and masala that makes the fish fry smell and taste so good. Obviously freshly ground spices mix is what they excel at, they know the perfect blend of spices and the quantity needed to get the flavor needed. Some have a perception that Chettinad recipes definitely uses all the spices in all the cuisines, but it is a weird perception I must say, as certain recipes needs only certain spices and all spices would make the recipe a pungent smelling dish. For example I received a comment from a reader stating that all Chettinad recipes contains marathi mokku and kalpasi, I do not know from where she had heard this but let me tell you what my neighbor said about these spices when I inquired her about them; She was very clear in stating that they use marathi mokku a kind of aromatic spice only in certain mutton curries and some chicken curry, not in every dish, this was the same with cloves and kalpasi too, only a pinch of kalpasi and  little marathi mokku is used in mutton curries. She added that these three would overpower the recipe's flavor and give a very pungent tasting dish and that if someone uses it too much it may spoil the whole recipe. This was her clear statement and she said clearly added that people perceive our cuisine wrongly, its not just about spices its much more. And I do agree with her, even the technique they cook adds taste to the recipes, I have tasted all her curries and all kinds of other recipes  too and they all taste so better that the ones that you get in certain, so called Chettinad restaurants. Coming to this fish fry it has a very unique aroma taste and flavor, I have added some extra besan flour to bind masala well and make the fry even more crispy. I used red snapper but you can make this fry with any kind of fishes. Do try it and am sure you will love its flavor to the core. 




INGREDIENTS

Makes 2 fried fish
Total Preparation Time - 10 minutes (excluding spice powder making time)
  1. Red snapper fish - 2 (scaled) 
  2. Chettinad fish fry masala - 2 to 3 spoons 
  3. Shallots / Pearl onions - 2
  4. Garlic pods - 2 
  5. Ginger - 1/2 inch piece 
  6. Curry leaves - Few (optional)
  7. Salt - 1/2 spoon 
  8. Gram flour / Besan / Kadalai maavu - 2 spoon (for crispiness and binding masala; optional) 



PREPARATION METHOD

  • Wash fish pieces well in water make incisions on the fish. Then rub some turmeric powder and salt over the fish pieces and set aside for a few minutes, wash again and pat dry the fish pieces. 
  • Grind the following into a fine paste and set aside. Do not add even a single drop of water. 
1. Shallots - 3
2. Garlic pods - 2 
3. Ginger - 1/2 inch piece
(Peel of the skin from all of the above ingredients and then grind into a fine paste) 
  • Now take this paste and add the Chettinad fish fry masala powder. Then add enough salt and mix well. 
  • Apply this paste on the fish pieces add some curry leaves over the masala and set aside for 15 minutes. (You can keep longer in a refrigerator meat tray and fry when needed, this will make the masala penetrate well into the fish pieces)
  • After enough marination dust the fish pieces with gram flour and press gently so that it sets well.
  • Deep fry the fish pieces in enough oil until golden brown on both sides (flip sides carefully so that the masala layer doesn't come off). Remove from flame and drain excess oil using a  tissue paper. 
  • Drizzle some lemon juice over the fish fry and serve.





TIP 1: Gram flour is optional; it helps give crispiness and also holds the masala well onto the fish (red snapper or sankara fish has a slippery skin and does not hold on masala properly), but at the same time be careful while frying, as it can get peeled off as a layer so just turn it gently while flipping sides. Shallow frying is not the best option here. But you can avoid gram flour and use the masala alone as they authentically do. 

TIP 2: You can use other fishes too. Seer fish, barracuda makes a perfect fish fry.

TIP 3: To get tender juicy fish fry do not fry the fish pieces too long, just fry on medium flame for few minutes to get perfectly fried, succulent fish fry.




Super delicious and flavorful Chettinad fish fry is now ready!! You will definitely love the flavors in it!!

47 comments:

  1. tempting fish fry...love chettinad fish fry always...

    ReplyDelete
  2. Looks irresistible ......... Nice clicks,Loved it.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Fish fry looks yumm.... Pics are just Cool. Awesome.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Who will resist to these prefectly fried fish fry, the word chettinad itself makes me drool.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Wow, tempting fish fry dear!!! Been to a Chettinad restaurant here, awesome!

    ReplyDelete
  6. mmmmmmmmmm,i am craving for the fish ,lovely clicks

    ReplyDelete
  7. Super tempting, mouth watering and yummy fish fry.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Tempting fry...I tried once aand it tasted awesome...love the flavour...

    ReplyDelete
  9. Super tempting fish fry sis :) looks lovely :) i love the blue background, very catchy

    ReplyDelete
  10. Oo.. crispy and perfectly fried. Nice.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Chettinad Fish fry ah? never tried this, will try sometime soon, i too like the blue background, neat presentation n pics dear! Restuarant look la super ah erukku !

    ReplyDelete
  12. Wow looks so tempting dear...like to have now...

    ReplyDelete
  13. What can i say, I'm a vegetarian & I still drool over such exotic fries :-)
    Awesome recipe, Dhivya!

    ReplyDelete
  14. wow.. irresistable dish yaar.. pakkaa professional made

    ReplyDelete
  15. lovely blue background n No comments for the taste lol:P but looks gr8:)

    ReplyDelete
  16. Seriously I am drooling,looks so yummy

    ReplyDelete
  17. omg! mouthwatering fried fish, irresistible....

    ReplyDelete
  18. Tempting fish fry,too good,drool

    ReplyDelete
  19. I wish I could gorge on it now.. delicious!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Extremely inviting!! Love the plating

    ReplyDelete
  21. Looks yummy.you have a nice blog with too many varieties.love your pics,cooking and detailed tips.you are simply superb.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Divya, am not a big fan of deepfrying.will shallow/tava fry not be good?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hey Anitha :) thanks for the appreciations, yes you can definitely shallow fry it but the problem is the coating comes off easily when flipping the fish..But if you are still confident enough you can give a try..!! Do let me know after you try it :)

      Delete
    2. Ok.have a bad experience already.:| anyways let me try.will let you know for sure

      Delete
  23. So much to learn from chettinad cuisine. Temtping fish fry

    ReplyDelete
  24. Wow! Super clicks and looks very tempting..

    ReplyDelete
  25. I love fish fry more than the curry. So tempting it looks.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Lovely recipe Divya and beautiful snaps of the snapper.

    ReplyDelete
  27. hi need to prepare this with prawns fry, before bringing in the fish can't wait to try it. can you pls tell me is it ok not to put lemon juice or tamarind for marination ?..pls reply.
    thank you for sharing such recipes.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Hari :) Yes its not an issue, you can marinate of you wish. Do try and let me know your feedback

      Thanks!!

      Delete
  28. hi Divya sis, i prepared the masala just now, i tasted just the masala with onion, gg paste it tastes little bitter is it ok.?.if not where i must have gone wrong..have i added more shallots or something else? pls reply. because i am planning to make this in large qty later. thank you for your time.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Hari raw masala it is!!! so it will taste so, no worries please proceed :)

      Delete
  29. hello sis,

    just relishing the prawns fry followed the recipe have added little lemon juice. wonderful recipe
    will make this with fish now ..can i try this with tilapia or catfish.anyidea which one will be better for frying..trying for first time with your recipe..thank you

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Hari, sorry about the delay in reply. Yes you can use catfish or tilapia; any kind will taste great!! You can even try barracuda and Vanjaram. Your other comment seems missing yet, I'll answer that query you asked in that comment. Yes..You can use potatoes instead, just boil potatoes in a saucepan until it seems half cooked, then remove from flame, cube or slice it and marinate with this masala when it cools down. Then follow the same procedure. See that you don't over cook the potatoes. If you have any more queries please feel free to ask.

      Thanks :)

      Delete

Thanks for the visit. Do drop in your valuable comments and suggestions :) Please do not add any links to your site/blog such comments will not be published. Click on notify me and get notified about my reply to your comments.

Most Loved Recipe

Grilled Chicken Recipe | Indian Style Chicken Grilled

Magazine Features!

Bake Without Oven

Bake Without Oven
Click for recipes

Disclaimer

All photos, and content here are clicked and edited by me. If anyone wishes to use the photos or contents, please get prior permission from the author and then use it. If found stealing will be strictly penalized. Comments are always welcome but spam and comments that seem to hurt any individual will be deleted without prior information.