Kerala Fish Curry with Kokum
INDONESIAN · MALAYSIA

Kerala Fish Curry with Kokum

മീൻ കറിMain

A fiery, rust-red curry from Kerala's coast: fish simmered in coconut milk soured with kokum and perfumed with curry leaf. No tomatoes, no cream — just heat, sour and the deep funk of the sea.

Total
45 min
Heat
4/5
Serves
4

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Flavour profile

Heat
Funk
Acid
Richness
Umami
  • Funky
  • Rich
  • Sour
  • Spicy

The real deal

Region
Kerala's Malabar coast, where kokum and coconut milk define the fish curries.
Technique
A ground coconut-cum-chilli masala fried in coconut oil, then simmered with tamarind-family souring and fish.
We kept
Kokum for sourness, curry leaf and coconut oil, no tomato — the fish goes in at the end so it stays whole.

Ingredients

4 Serves

curry

  • 700 g · cut into steaks or thick chunks
  • 16 · rinsed, soaked in warm water
  • 400 ml
  • 1 tsp
  • 100 ml · warm
  • 200 ml

masala

  • 1 tsp
  • 2 tbsp
  • 1 tsp
  • 1 tbsp
  • ½ tsp · ground
  • 6 cloves · sliced
  • 3 cm · julienned
  • 3 · sliced
  • 4 · slit lengthways

tempering

  • 3 bunches
  • 1 tsp
  • 3 tbsp

Method

  1. Slice , julienne , slice and slit lengthways. Keep the aside for the tempering. Rinse the and soak it in a small bowl of warm water for 10 min while you prep. It will soften and bleed a deep purple sourness into the water.

    Use the soaking liquid too — that is where much of the sourness lives.

  2. Blend with , , , and into a smooth, thick paste. If it seizes, splash in a little of the kokum soaking water.

    Kashmiri chilli gives the brick-red colour without blowing your head off — add a pinch of hotter chilli powder if you want it meaner.

  3. Heat 3 tbsp in a wide clay pot or heavy pan over medium heat. Add and wait for them to pop, then add the — it will crackle and turn glossy in 15 sec.

    Curry leaves need a moment in hot oil to release their perfume; do not let them blacken.

  4. Add the sliced , and and fry for 2 min until soft and fragrant. Pour in the masala paste and cook, stirring, for 5 min until it darkens and oil beads at the edges.

    This is the heart of the curry — fry until the raw coconut smell disappears and the paste looks glossy.

  5. Tumble in the soaked with its purple liquid and the slit . Stir in 200 ml and 1 tsp , then bring to a gentle simmer.

    Kokum is strong — start with less and add more at the end if you want it sharper.

  6. Slide the into the simmering gravy. Cover and cook gently for 8 min without stirring — just shake the pot. The fish is done when it flakes at a nudge and has turned opaque through.

    Stirring breaks the fish into shreds. Shake the pan instead.

  7. Take the pot off the heat and let it sit for 5 min so the fish drinks in the sour coconut gravy. Taste for salt and kokum sharpness, then serve hot with rice.

    Kerala fish curry tastes even better the next day — but reheat gently or the fish falls apart.

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