Fish Moilee - Fish Molly aka Karimeen Molly

The colloquial name for a Fish Moilee is Fish Molly. When I was young i assumed this recipe would have been first prepared by a Molly aunty and so the name. However, the story took a U turn when I read the menu at a restaurant. It read Fish Moilee. Since the Moilee is similar to a stew this would have been prepared by a Keralite butler to a foreign master, either the Portuguese, Dutch or the British.

There are many variations to the Fish Moilee. I have prepared a recipe without spices and with lemon juice. The addition of lemon juice makes this Fish Stew very refreshing. A moilee is usually served with velleppam, idiyappam or bread, as a starter. I have used Pearlspot. You can prepare with Pomfret or fish fillets.

the recipe

Pearlspot – 4 medium sized

Ingredients to marinate

Pepper powder – ½ tsp
Turmeric powder – 1/3 tsp
Salt to taste

Ingredients for the gravy

Oil – 3 tbsp
Onion, sliced – 2 medium
Ginger, julienned – 1 inch piece
Garlic – 5 cloves
Green Chillies – 5
Lemon juice – 1 ½ tbsp
Pepper powder – ½ tsp
Thin Coconut Milk - 3/4 cup (extracted from 1 medium coconut)
Thick Coconut Milk - 3/4 cup (extracted from 1 medium coconut)
Salt to taste

the method

Clean the fish and make scores on it. Mix the ingredients to marinate using few drops of water. Rub the marinade over the fish and keep it aside for 15 minutes. Add about 5 tbsp oil into a non- stick or heavy bottom pan and sear the fish (lightly fry the fish – need not be crispy).

Use the left over oil or use fresh oil and sauté the onion, ginger, garlic and green chillies. Saute for about a minute and a half in medium flame. Add the lemon juice and let it cook for about 1 minute ( If the lemon juice remains fresh, it will curdle the coconut milk.).

Add the thin coconut milk and the seared fish. Simmer for 5 minutes. Check salt and add pepper powder. Add the thick coconut milk and cook till it turns hot. Turn off heat. Serve as preferred.

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Announcing the Kerala Kitchen Event - Feb 2012

Hello Everybody,

I am glad to welcome you to the Kerala Kitchen, hosted by me for the month of February 2012.

Kerala Kitchen…. The kitchen of God’s Own Country is an event / blog space started by Rose and Ria where you can prepare and post traditional or contemporary or Kerala inspired recipes by using vegetables or non vegetarian ingredients and lure your readers with those luscious luxurious or simply healthy and tasty food that would make everybody crave for it.

The recipe could be traditional breakfast recipes like velleppam, idiyappam, puttu, stews, egg roast or kappa or a curry for lunch like fish curry, beef curries, thoran (veg stir fried with coconut) or a mezhukkutpuratti (stir fried veggie), or prawn recipes and gravies like pulissery, erissery or pachadi or aviyal, egg curry and desserts like payasam or snacks like achappam, kuzhalappam, vattayappam, neiyyappam or unniyappam or a pazhampori.

The contemporary recipe may include Kerala inspired ingredients in a recipe like coconut cake, coconut cookies, coconut & banana pancake, banana fritters, baked fish or a grilled pork, wheat payasam in a pressure cooker or colocasia curry or chips or a yam cutlet.

You may contact me if you find it difficult to choose a recipe or an ingredient to cook with.

Now the rules

It is simple. Anyone can participate in the event and post as many recipes as you wish! You are not restricted from sending your entries to any other contests.

Simply cook a dish that is inspired by Kerala. and post it on your blog anytime between the 1st and 29th of February and link it to my announcement page and to the Kerala Kitchen page.

Please send new entries or repost old entries (pls restrict reposts to just 5)

Email the following details to roshanscucina@gmail.com with the subject line Kerala Kitchen.

• Your Name

• Blog Name/URL

• Recipe Name

• Recipe URL

• Photograph

So come one every body lets celebrate the taste & tales of Kerala!

Saffron Sago Badami Kheer

I wanted to start this New Year on a sweet note and found the Vermicelli Badam Kheer at Sreevalli’s Ammaji Recipes

She had given an option of substituting the vermicelli with sago. Since vermicelli kheer / payasam is an usual version I have prepared the kheer using sago.

the recipe

Sago / Jowari – 4 tbsp, soaked for 1 – 1 ½ hours

Sugar – to taste

Cardamom - seeds from 5 cardamom, powdered

Milk – 300 ml

Almonds / Badam – 20 nos soaked in hot water, peeled and ground to paste

Saffron – 1 generous pinch

Few almonds to garnish

the method

Wash the soaked sago / jowary thrice. Cook the sago with 100 ml water. When it is almost done add the milk and almond paste and cook in medium flame. When the milk starts bubbling add the saffron strands and sugar and keep stirring for about 5 minutes. The kheer will begin to thicken slowly. Add the powdered cardamom and check sweetness. Add more sugar if need be. Turn off heat.

Serve after 5 – 10 minutes garnished with few almond slivers and saffron strands.

Merry Christmas Wishes with Cake, Red Wine & White Wine

Wish you all a Merry Christmas!!

the recipe for cake & wine shall be posted later...

cheers

roshan

Fish Cutlet - - - - -lightly spiced

This is a recipe which you can prepare and freeze and fry it whenever you need. The Fish Cutlet is slightly different from the usual ones (which I came across the web) bcause I have not added garam masala. I prefer to taste the taste of fish rather than lot of masala and the addition of ginger, garlic and coriander simply enhances the flavor.

The usually egg dip to coat is replaced with a rice flour dip to get a very crunchy texture. Try it and you’ll like it.

Use these fish cutlets as a starter or simply prepare a fish burger for lunch.

…enjoy!!


the recipe
Fish keema – 500 gms
Potato – 500 gms (boiled and finely mashed)

Oil – 2 tbsp
Onion – 1 large, finely chopped
Green chilly, finely chopped – 2 (deseeded would be better)
Garlic – 8 medium cloves, finely chopped or grated
Ginger – 1/3rd inch piece, finely chopped
Corianders leaves – leaves with only tender stem – 6 sprigs
Chilly powder – ½ tsp
Pepper powder – ½ tsp
Lemon juice / Vinegar – 1 tsp
Salt to taste

ingredients to coat the cutlet

Rice flour – 2 -3 tbsp - Coarse rice flour (the one used to make puttu)
Water – ½ cup
Bread Crumbs – as much as you need
Oil to shallow fry
Salt to taste
Pepper powder – ¼ tsp

Note: I have used fish keema to prepare this recipe. If you are preparing with fresh fish, clean the fish and boil it with ¼ inch ginger, 4 garlic cloves, turmeric and salt and just adequate water to immerse the fish. Separate the flesh from the skin and bones and mash it with a fork and then follow the method below.

the method

Heat 2 tbsp oil in a heavy bottom or non-stick pan. Stir in the onions and sauté till translucent. Add the green chilly, ginger and garlic and stir for few seconds. Add the chilly, turmeric and pepper powder. Sauté for a while and add the fish keema / mashed fish. Stir well in low flame till the fish turns dry. Pour the lemon juice and sprinkle the coriander. Sauté for few seconds and turn off heat. When the fish turns warm, add the mashed potatoes and mix well, preferable using a potato masher. Knead the mix into a dough. Take a table spoon of the mix and shape it into a cutlet. I used a cutlet mould and ended up with very large ones. You can shape it according to your preference. Shape all the potato – fish mix.

Mix the rice flour with about 10 tbsp water (the mix should not be very watery), salt and pepper powder. The rice flour batter should be solid enough / liquid enough to coat the cutlet. Dip each cutlet into the rice mix and then coat it with bread crumbs and keep it ready. To avoid the bread crumbs from leaving the cutlet, place it in the freezer for half an hour and then keep it at room temperature for 10 minutes and then shallow fry in a non-stick pan.

These cutlets can be stored in the refrigerator (freezer) in an air tight container for upto a month.