Spicy Green Masala Fish Fry Recipe

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Spicy Green Masala Fish Fry Recipe made with mint, coriander, curry leaves and green chillies. Recipe with step by step pictures.

This fish fry uses green chillies for spice instead of the regular red chilli powder that is traditionally used in South Indian style fish fry. I marinated the fish in a masala made with coriander, mint, curry leaves, green chillies and other spices. The heat from green chillies when combined with the green herbs, is a total winner. Do try it at home.

Here is how to do Spicy Green Masala Fish Fry
First, we shall make a spice paste and here is what you will need.
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I have used about 500 grams of fish and about 4 chillies. But if you want a really spicy fish fry, use up to 6 chillies. Take all the ingredients in a mixie and grind it to a coarse paste. Use the pulse mode and frequently, open the mixie and clean the sides of the mixie so everything gets ground evenly. You can also grind in a mortar and pestle if you do not have a small mixie jar. The main trick is “do not add water while grinding”.
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Once the mixture looks coarsely ground, add juice of half of a lemon to the mixie jar. Pulse again for a few seconds.
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Empty the contents of the mixie to a bowl. Add in the turmeric and the salt. Mix well to combine.
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I have used mackerel fish for making the fish fry today. Pomfret also works well. Apply gashes on the fish so the masalas can penetrate well and the fish will also cook evenly.
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Apply the masala evenly on the fish and apply the masala inside the gashes. Apply evenly on both sides of the fish.
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Take quarter cup of maida (all purpose flour) and place it on a wide plate. Coat the fish in maida (all purpose flour) on both the sides. A thin coating is enough. This step is essential so the masalas do not disintegrate in oil while fried.
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Let the fish marinate for 10-15 minutes. Heat coconut oil in a pan and when the oil is hot, gently place the fish in the hot oil. After placing the fish, reduce the flame to medium and let the fish cook for three minutes on one side.
Note: Non stick pan or a cast iron pan works well for making the fish fry. I prefer a non stick pan as the masalas do not stick to the skillet and adheres to the fish nicely. Here is my choice of non-stick pan.
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After 3 minutes, gently turn the fish. If the fish is small, two minutes will suffice. If the fish is big, it will take more time. Just slightly turn the fish and look for doneness and see if the fish is nice and brown. If its nice and brown, then turn the fish. I like to use a couple of forks to turn the fish.
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Let it cook for three more minutes. After two minutes, add in sliced shallots, crushed garlic, curry leaves and green chillies to the oil. Add it to the sides of the fish and not on top of the fish. Let these cook in the fish flavored oil and crisp up too. Add only at the end as it requires just a minute to crisp up. If you notice that the shallots are becoming very dark before the fish is getting done, remove and set aside on a plate.
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Gently turn the fish and cook the fish on all the sides and let it nicely crisp up evenly.
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After the fish is done, remove and set aside on a plate lined with paper towels. The fish fry is ready.
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Serve the fish fry with the fried shallots and curry leaves mixture and also add a lemon wedge. Do try this recipe at home. It is very different and delicious than the normal fish fry we do with red chilli powder as the main spice. Hope you like it. If you do try this recipe, do leave a comment. Would really love to know how you liked it.
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Spicy Green Masala Fish Fry Recipe

Spicy Green Masala Fish Fry Recipe made with mint, coriander, curry leaves and green chillies. Recipe with step by step pictures.

  • Total Time: 20m
  • Yield: 4 servings 1x

Ingredients

Scale

For the marination of spicy green masala fish fry

10 cloves of garlic
1 inch piece ginger
46 green chillies
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
2 sprigs curry leaves
4 sprigs mint leaves
4 sprigs coriander leaves (with stem)
Juice of 1/2 of a lemon
1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup Maida (all purpose flour) to coat
500 grams fish (whole cleaned)

Other ingredients for the spicy green masala fish fry

4 tablespoon coconut oil
10 shallots, slices
5 cloves garlic, slightly crushed with skin
2 sprigs curry leaves
3 green chillies

To serve

Lemon Wedges

Instructions

Take all the ingredients in a mixie and grind it to a coarse paste. Once the mixture looks coarsely ground, add juice of half of a lemon to the mixie jar. Pulse again for a few seconds. Empty the contents of the mixie to a bowl. Add in the turmeric and the salt. Mix well to combine.

I have used mackerel fish for making the fish fry today. Pomfret also works well. Apply gashes on the fish so the masalas can penetrate well and the fish will also cook evenly. Apply the masala evenly on the fish and apply the masala inside the gashes. Apply evenly on both sides of the fish.

Take quarter cup of maida (all purpose flour) and place it on a wide plate. Coat the fish in maida (all purpose flour) on both the sides. A thin coating is enough. This step is essential so the masalas do not disintegrate in oil while fried.

Let the fish marinate for 10-15 minutes. Heat oil in a pan and when the oil is hot, gently place the fish in the hot oil. After placing the fish, reduce the flame to medium and let the fish cook for three minutes on one side. After 3 minutes, gently turn the fish. If the fish is small, two minutes will suffice. If the fish is big, it will take more time.

Let it cook for three more minutes. After two minutes, add in sliced shallots, crushed garlic, curry leaves and green chillies to the oil. Add it to the sides of the fish and not on top of the fish. Let these cook in the fish flavored oil and crisp up too. Add only at the end as it requires just a minute to crisp up. If you notice that the shallots are becoming very dark before the fish is getting done, remove and set aside on a plate. Gently turn the fish and cook the fish on all the sides and let it nicely crisp up evenly.

After the fish is done, remove and set aside on a plate lined with paper towels. The fish fry is ready. Serve the fish fry with the fried shallots and curry leaves mixture and also add a lemon wedge.

  • Author: Suguna Vinodh
  • Prep Time: 10m
  • Cook Time: 10m

Keywords: spicy green masala fish fry

9 thoughts on “Spicy Green Masala Fish Fry Recipe”

  1. Fantastic recipe, Suguna. You are so right that this has very different taste and flavours compared to our traditional fish fry with red chilli powder. I would be making this more often. Vthank you so much for sharing your recipe.

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