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.