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| KERALA STYLE FISH CURRY MEALS |
Yet another set of recipes for a simple SUNDAY LUNCH MENU.
As special as it is - a Weekend, a day of rest... turns out to be a
day of work for women folk. A good rest & a relaxed mode
asks for good food, & the women folk has to get busy planning the
meal, cooking & cleaning. Kudos to all Working Women out
there... I am always at awe with their effortless multitasking
between work & home.
Though most of the Sundays goes by with a default Lunch with Meat, Fish or Seafood also takes over the show on some Sundays. And when the craving for a typical Kerala Style Fish Curry Meals hits to the core, I plan ahead, buy fish & prawns, clean them and store it in the freezer. Then it goes along with the typical Menu I cook while I make a Fish Curry Meals, which always comprises Fish Curry, Fish Fry, Prawns, a Vegetable Thoran, Chammanthi or Chammanthi Podi and will finish off the Lunch with Curd. When it comes to Fish Curry Meals I always make Kerala Matta Rice & Steamed Tapiocas to go along with it.
A complete meal without Fish, Rice and/or Tapioca is quite rare in
Kerala. One main reason behind this is the long coastline of
the State, and availability of fresh catch. Kerala Cuisine has
a tradition of its own, with an extreme combination of a cultural mix
of locals and tradesmen from Portugal. Dishes made out of Fish
are relished by Keralites, that it has become a speciality in the
dynamic culture of ’God’s Own Country'. On the long
run, it took some twists and turns to suit the palate of Kerala
culture enhancing and enriching the tastes and flavours of the fish
curry.
Fish Curry Meals would be devoured heads down by a Keralite. My
husband says that he has seen working women(in Cochin) buy a few fish
on their way back home. He would say, maybe they would make a
simple Curry or a fry for dinner. The fact is he loves this idea,
buying a fresh catch and cooking it up immediately.
I had never been a fan of Fish Curry Menu when I was a kid. Least to mention, I used to hate eating Tapiocas & Matta Rice. I
never felt a Fish Curry meals special until I was living in India. One good reason behind that was we never got fresh catch
in our area. Whatever kind of fish we got in Coimbatore, all
came from coastal areas of Kerala & Tamil Nadu. But when we
started living in Malaysia & as the place is so close to the
coastal line, there was no lack of fresh catch. There we invented the
taste & flavour of fresh seafood. I & my husband
recreated our love for seafood since then. And whenever I travel to Cochin, I never miss a chance of eating a
Fish Curry meals. During few of our visits, we have travelled
around to have an elaborate Seafood spread at Kallu Shappu(Toddy Shop)served along with the local hooch.
So whenever a craving for Kerala Style Fish Curry Meals hits, I
prepare a combination of dishes like how they serve in a restaurant
or go ahead making Kerala Style Pothi Choru(packaged Lunch) which is
our another favourite. So here goes a combination of dishes
which can be easily prepared if you are planning for a Kerala Style
Fish Curry Meals.
For more recipes from GODS OWN COUNTRY - KERALA click here...
Cuisine - Kerala
Menu - Lunch Menu
Difficulty - Medium
Author - SM
Preparation Time - 45 Minutes - 1 Hour.
Cooking Time - 2 Hours -2
1/2 Hours
For more SUNDAY SPECIAL LUNCH MENU RECIPES, Click here...
This Kerala Style Fish Curry Meals consists of:
 | KERALA MATTA RICE
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 | KAPPA PUZHUNGIYATHU
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 | FISH CURRY WITH RAW MANGOES
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 | NADAN FISH FRY
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 | CHEMMEEN ULARTHIYATHU
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 | CHEERA THORAN
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 | UNAKKA CHEMMEEN PODI
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A SUNDAY SPECIAL LUNCH MENU #2 - KERALA STYLE FISH CURRY MEALS
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| KERALA STYLE FISH CURRY MEALS |
Though cleaning the fish & prawns can consume a bit of time while planning for this menu. If you can get it cleaned by the vendor at the fish market, then the job gets easier & can fix this menu within an hour or two. Make a Thoran/Stir fry with your preferred vegetable & simply
add Moru Curry or Yogurt/Curd to menu and complete it with a smidgen of
Pickle & a Pappadam. There you go with a complete Kerala Style Fish
Curry Meals. And dont't forget to serve it along with piping hot Kerala Matta Rice.
A Kerala Style Lunch Menu is incomplete without this variety of Rice. Kerala Matta Rice is ubiquitous to Kerala Cuisine, and it is an indigenous rice variety grown in the region. Also called as Palakkadan Matta or Kerala Red Rice or Red Par-boiled Rice. It is colloquially called as Kuthari or Chembavu Ari. It is a rich unpolished rice with a low glycaemic score.
Most of the households & restaurants in Kerala serve Kerala Matta Rice for lunch. It is popular in Kerala Cuisine due to its rich & unique taste. And in fact, this rice is the staple food of Keralites. It is an unavoidable accompaniment for Sadhyas(Banquet). The robust earthy flavour of this Kerala Matta Rice makes it suitable with Spicy Fish Curries & subtle Moru Curry.
Kappa Puzhungiyathu/Steamed Tapiocas
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KAPPA PUZHUNGIYATHU/STEAMED TAPIOCAS
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A Fish Curry meals with Tapioca is a divine combination. Kappayum Meen Curriyum is a combo made in heaven. Tapiocas/Kappa/Maravalli boiled along with a bit of Turmeric & Salt goes hand in hand with spicy Fish Curry.
You can even skip eating Rice if you love this combo.
For a detailed recipe on HOW TO COOK TAPIOCA, Click here....
I have cooked Fish Curry with Raw Mangoes. Meen
Curry with Pacha Manga is one of the best ways to cook Fish Curries in
Kerala Style among the other variations like adding Tamarind or Kokum
for a note of tanginess in the curry. This is my favourite method of
cooking fish curry. Cook them with your choice of fish variety. Small
varieties or big ones, all taste heavenly in this Curry. This curry
tastes best the next day and cooking Meen Curry in Manchatti
(earthenware) uplifts the taste of the Fish to perfection.
This Nadan Fish Fry is one dish commonly served in a Fish Curry Meals. Prepared in a typical Kerala style with local
spices and undoubtedly fried in Coconut Oil gives an authentic touch to
this Fish Fry. Fish is marinated with a ground paste which is a
combination of Shallots, Ginger, Garlic, Pepper, Chilli Powder and
Turmeric with a drizzle of Lemon Juice. Some recipes call for adding
Tamarind Paste instead of Lemon Juice. This Nadan Style fish Fry is a
spicy, tasty and flavour filled dish with a mild note of tanginess.
This Prawns/Chemmeen Ularthiyathu Recipe is a dry side dish prepared in a
typical Kerala style. Spicy and flavour filled
Prawns are slow cooked until they are well coated with the spices. Chemmeen Ularthiyathu is a sinfully spicy and succulent Prawn recipe
roasted in ample of Coconut Oil for an authentic Nadan flavour. Fried
Curry Leaves enhance the flavour and gives a wonderful aroma to the
dish. Chemmeen Ularthiyathu is one common dish served in a Kerala Style Fish Curry Meals.
A stir-fried Vegetable in a typical Kerala Style - a Thoran/Upperi or a Mezhukkupuratti with your choice of vegetable is a default item in a Kerala style Fish Curry Meals. I have made Cheera(Amaranth Leaves) Thoran in this Menu.
Cheera Thoran is a simple Spinach Stir Fry with very few
ingredients, and it can be cooked within minutes. Cheera Thoran is a stir-fry prepared with finely chopped Amaranth Leaves(Thandu Keerai/Cheera) along with a few spoons of
grated coconut,
usually seasoned with mild spices and condiments in coconut oil.
I always love to serve a smidgen of Unakka Chemmeen Podi while making Fish Curry Meals. It all started since I had this condiment in a Fish Curry Meals at Grand Hotel, Cochin.
Unakka Chemmen Chammanthi Podi is a spicy, dry condiment prepared with Dry shrimps. It is a version similar to Chammanthi Podi, where we add roasted dry shrimps along with other ingredients, which gives a unique taste & flavour from the dried shrimps. If you are a lover of dried-fish, then this Unakka Chemmen Chammanthi Podi is sure to appease your taste buds.
*Can serve Pacha Manga Chammanthi/Mulagu Chalichathu or your choice of Condiment/Nadan Chammanthi in Fish Curry Meals.
Serve Moru Kachiyathu or Curd along with Fish Curry Meals and complete it with a smidgen of
Pickle & a Pappadam.
