Fish curry with coconut milk, Thengai paal meen kuzhambu, Meen kuzhambu, Fish Curry

Fish curry with coconut milk/ Thengai paal meen kuzhambu is a very delicious and vibrant colored dish that is a real treat for for both eyes and mouth. Fish curry with coconut milk tastes very different from regular fish curry/ fish kuzhambu due to addition and deduction of few ingredients regular ingredients. This fish kuzhambu is a beginner friendly recipe as the making involves no grinding of special masala or any cumbersome preparation. This Fish curry is spicy, tangy and also has flavors of coconut infused in the fish making it a dish that can be served with rice, idli and dosa.

For the below recipe I used TILAPIA fish which just matched the recipe and you can try making it with red snapper, sardines and Indian mackeral, also I used canned coconut milk. I usually buy canned coconut milk from trader joe but for a change this time I used some asian named coconut milk can from island pacific which I think gave the curry excellent taste. So lets get to the making!

Ingredients

Fish – 1 full fish/ 5 slices
Onion – 1
Garlic – 10
Tamarind – golf ball size
Coconut milk – 1 cup
Turmeric powder powder – ¼ tsp + ¼ tsp (for marination)
Red chilli powder – 1 tsp
Sambar powder – 1 tsp
Coriander powder – ½ tsp
Salt – to taste
Sesame Oil – 1 tbsp
Mustard seeds – ½ tsp
Fenugreek seeds – ¼ tsp
Dried red chilli – 3
Curry leaves – a spring

Note

* 1 cup = 160 ml

How to make Fish curry with step by step images

Soak tamarind in water and extract tamarind juice and keep it aside. ( I soaked tamarind in 1½ cup water)
Wash fish slices well and marinate fish with salt and turmeric powder for 10 to 15 minutes. Slice onions thin and keep it aside.
Heat oil in a pan, add mustard seeds, when it splutters add fenugreek seeds, dried red chilli and curry leaves. When aromatic add sliced onion and garlic. Saute well till onions turn light pink.
When the onions and garlic looks sauteed add salt, turmeric powder, red chilli powder, sambar powder and coriander powder. Mix well and add tamarind juice and mix everything really well. Now allow the mixture to boil well.
After 1 to 2 minutes of boiling add the marinated fish pieces, Give it a gentle stir. Cook the fish in medium flame with lid on.
When the fish looks cooked put the flame to low and add the coconut milk and mix it gently. When the mixture starts to boil put off the flame. Serve it hot with rice!