Goan Fish Curry

Original version, minus okra

This was my first go at a) a Goan curry and b) a fish curry.  I'd say it was - for me - around 85% successful, however for my son & hubby, 95% successful.

For me, it was a little one-dimensional.  The original recipe didn't contain any lemon juice or okra and even with the tamarind paste, I felt it just needed that sharpness that lemon juice brings.  I had dithered and dathered over whether to include okra or not and was dubious about the texture of okra combined with the fish.  However, having sampled the original version, I'd definitely include okra in the mk. 2 version.

I used cod in the original version and again, I'd change that to haddock when I try it again.  The flavoursome sauce did a very good job of wiping out the delicate flavour of the cod, so I feel that haddock would stand up to it a lot better.

I served ours with rice, although I can't help but think that with the addition of a carbohydrate-based vegetable to the curry - such as potato, or sweet potato - you could easily dispense with the rice and just go for Naan bread as an accompaniment.  Served from warmed bowls, with naan to dip and scoop with, would be ideal.

Goan fish curry - very good with a Cobra beer!

GOAN FISH CURRY  (serves 3-4)

Ingredients :

2 tsp ground coriander

½ tsp ground cumin

1 dried red chilli

olive oil

1 onion, halved and sliced

a small piece root ginger, finely grated

2 garlic cloves, crushed

½ tsp turmeric

400ml tin coconut milk

a handful of Okra, top & tailed, then diced

1 tsp tamarind paste 

1 tbsp lemon juice

2 green chillies, finely sliced

300g firm white fish cut into chunks

fresh coriander, to garnish

Method :

Heat a little oil in a pan and cook the onion with a big pinch of salt until soft and golden.

Add the ginger, garlic, turmeric and ground spices and fry for 1 minute.

Add the coconut, tamarind, lemon juice, okra and green chillies and simmer for 5 minutes.

Add the fish and cook for 3-4 minutes until just cooked.

Sprinkle with chopped coriander and serve. 

Oh noes! Curryless in Curry Week!

Well that was spectacularly bad planning on my part.  It's National Curry Week this week (21st - 27th November) and I haven't scheduled a curry - at all!  ~gasp~

Is there a calendar somewhere that shows when National <insert foodstuff here> week is?  At least then I'd be prepared - and you all know how I love to be prepared!  There has to be some boy scout somewhere back in my lineage somewhere.

Although - have you heard (or even seen) some of the weird and wonderful dishes that Cobra Beer have cooked up in honour of National Curry Week?

Devonshire Cream Chai
with cardamom cream and chilli jam

Having teamed up with currinary (*snicker*) talent and Indian cookery writer Pat Chapman, made-for-curry beer Cobra conducted a survey which identified the nation’s top ten favourite regional foods. Various ‘Br-Indian’ versions were then created of each of the nation’s ten favourite traditional dishes. While the humble Yorkshire pudding has been named Britain’s number one favourite regional dish (not surprisingly, perhaps), the results of the survey also includes the Cornish pasty, the Devonshire cream tea, the Bakewell tart, Haggis and Welsh rarebit – all of which have been ‘curried’ in celebration of Cobra National Curry Week 2010.  The mind boggles at how they have managed to "curry up" a Devon Cream Tea, for instance.

Ha-ghee-s
*snort*

So, the ten new delicious recipes – including ‘Devonshire cream chai’, a spice-infused take on the teatime classic served with chilli jam; ‘ha-ghee-s’ (my personal favourite), traditional haggis served with curry sauce; and ‘pie, madras & liquor’, an Eastern twist on the East end favourite –will be sold in participating regional Indian restaurants across the country throughout Cobra National Curry Week 2010, 200 years on since the very first curry house opened in Britain in 1810.For those after more traditional dishes, Cobra has also teamed up with 500 restaurants across Britain to offer a two for one promotion on main meals from Monday 21st November to Thursday 25th November with the purchase of Cobra Beer.
 Log onto www.cobrabeer.com (where you can find pictures of all 10 "curried up" dishes) or www.facebook.com/welovecurry for details of the nearest participating curry house as well as the recipes and details of the curry houses selling the special dishes during National Curry Week.

Now, if only we could afford to go out for a curry .... *sigh* .... ah well, I guess we'll just have to "curry up" something at home!