Shark Puttu

Ingredients:

Shark	½ kg
Onions	3 big
Garlic	1 pod (10-12 cloves)
Ginger	1 inch piece
Green chillies	7 – 8 nos
Turmeric	little
Salt	¾ tsp or to taste
Curry leaves	few
Coriander leaves	few chopped
Oil	4 – 5 tbsp

Method:

1. Cut Shark into big pieces (or buy as it is). Wash 2-3 times by changing the water. Keep aside. Boil water in a wide big bowl with little salt and turmeric powder (need to boil enough water to immerse the shark pieces). Once the water comes to a boil, add shark pieces gently. Again allow the water to boil. Immediately switch off the flame and cover with a lid for 10 minutes.
2. After 10 minutes remove the shark pieces and allow to cool. Once the pieces cooled completely, peel off the skin from the pieces gently (the skin will peel off easily). Shred the pieces into crumbles (just like crumbling the paneer). Keep aside.
3. Chop onions and green chillies into fine pieces. Chop garlic and ginger into very fine pieces.
4. Heat oil in a thick bottomed kadai to medium hot. Add chopped onions, green chillies, garlic and ginger. Saute till onions turns into light pink and translucent. Lower the flame and add turmeric, salt and curry leaves. Mix well. Add shredded shark pieces and chopped coriander leaves. Mix gently and keep frying in low flame. Do not cover. In between check the salt. If needed adjust (careful while adding salt).
5. In this dish only green chillies are used. If spice level is less, separately fry 1 or 2 green chillies (cut into fine pieces) and add to the dish.
6. Fry and cook untill all the moisture evaporates and sticking to the bottom stops. Just touch and check. There should not be any more wetness. At the same time the cooked dish should remain soft (do not over fry. The dish will turn into hard and rubbery). Once done, switch off the flame and keep frying for 1-2 minutes. Shark Puttu is ready.

This is a very flavourful and tasty dish. Can serve as side dish to any spicy curry or sambar or rasam.

Sliced Fish Spicy Gravy

Ingredients:

Fish slices	5 – 6
Onion	1 small
Mustard	¼ tsp
Fenugreek seeds	¼ tsp
Oil	4 tbsp
Coconut pieces	¼ cup
Tamarind - small lime size

Ingredients for marinating:

Turmeric	little
Red chilli powder	¼ tsp
Salt	¼ tsp

Ingredients to be mixed with tamarind water:

Red chilli powder	1 tsp heaped
Coriander powder	1 tsp heaped
Turmeric powder	1/8 tsp
Salt	1 tsp
Curry leaves	few

Ingredients for grinding:

Onion	1 medium
Sour tomato	1 medium
Garlic	5 – 6 cloves
Red chillies	3 nos
Pepper corns	8 – 10 nos
Coriander seeds	1 tsp
Curry leaves	6 – 8 nos
Oil	1 tbsp

Ingredients for finishing:

Sambar powder	1 tsp
Coriander leaves	few chopped

Method:

1. Clean and wash the fish slices well. Add all the ingredients mentioned for marinating. Coat well and keep aside.
2. Grinding: Chop onion and tomato into thin slices. Peel the garlic and cut into pieces. Heat a kadai with 1 tbsp of oil to medium hot. Lower the flame and add coriander seeds, pepper corns, red chillies and curry leaves. Fry for few seconds and then add onion slices. Raise the flame and saute till onion turns into light brown. Then add tomato slices and garlic pieces. Cook till tomatoes become soft and mushy. Switch off the flame and allow to cool. Then grind into smooth paste using little water. Keep aside.
3. Grind coconut into coarse paste using sufficient water and take thick milk. Keep aside.
4. Soak tamarind in one cup of water for 10-15 minutes. Squeeze and strain the water. Add all the ingredients mentioned to be mixed with tamarind water and keep aside.
5. Now start preparing the curry: Chop onion into fine pieces. Heat a kadai with 4 tbsp of oil. Add mustard and allow to splutter. Then add fenugreek seeds and fry for a second. Now add onion pieces and fry till golden brown. Add ground paste and fry and cook till oil leaves the sides. Add tamarind spice mix and allow to boil. Then add coconut milk and again allow to boil. Lower the flame, cover and cook for 10-15 minutes mixing in between.
6. Check the salt and if needed adjust. If the curry is too thick, add little more water and continue cooking for 2-3 minutes. This curry should be semi-thick in consistency. So careful while adding water.
7. Now add sambar powder and chopped coriander leaves. Mix gently and add marinated fish slices. Gently press the fish slices using back of the ladle to immerse into the curry. Do not raise the flame. Wait for one boil and immediately switch off the flame. Cover with lid for 5 minutes. Fish curry is ready.

Serve with plain rice, idli, dosa, upma, pongal etc.

Sliced Fish Fry

Ingredients:

Fish slices	8
Turmeric powder	little
Read chilli powder	1 tsp
Coriander powder	1 tsp
Pepper powder	½ tsp
Garam masala	¼ tsp
Salt	¾ tsp or to taste
Corn flour	2 tsp
Ginger-garlic paste	¼ tsp
Lime juice	few drops
Water for mixing
Oil for shallow frying

Method:

1. Clean and wash the fish slices well. Drain water completely.
2. Mix all the remaining ingredients except lime juice and water.
3. Now add lime juice. Mix again. Add water little by little to make soft and smooth paste. Check salt. If needed adjust with little more. (If it is salty adjust with little more chilli powder).
4. Rub over each fish slices on either side. Use all the paste over the slices. Once all the paste used, just turn over all the slices together up and down by using hands (in a rotating manner). By this way all the slices will be coated evenly.
5. Keep marinated for one hour.
6. Heat a non-stick pan with 3 tbsp of oil to medium hot. Reduce the flame to lowest. Place 2-3 marinated fish slices gently. Flip the slices to other side after 2-3 minutes. Like wise shallow fry the slices till golden brown (do not over cook. Fish slices will turn into rough and chewy. Remove once all the sides fried into golden brown). Repeat with remaining fish slices.

Serve hot with lemon wedges and onion rings or as side dish to meals.

Tip: Marinated fish slices can be kept in fridge for one day. Before frying bring to room temperature.

Chicken Kurma for Biryani

Ingredients

Chicken	300 gms
Onion	1 medium (fine pieces)
Bay leaf	1 or 2
Fennel seeds	little
Curry leaves	few
Oil	4 tbsp
Coconut	½ from half coconut

Ingredients for marinating

Turmeric	little
Red chilli-Coriander powder mix	1 tsp flat
Clove-Cinnamon powder mix	2 pinch
Garam masala powder (readymade)	¼ tsp
Fennel powder	1 tsp
Pepper powder	¼ tsp
Salt	½ tsp
Ginger-Garlic paste	¼ tsp

Ingredients for Grinding

Onion	1 medium
Tomato	1 medium
Green Chillies	4 – 5
Ginger	1 inch piece
Garlic	5 – 6 big cloves
Pepper Corns	8 – 10
Fennel Seeds	½ tsp
Coriander leaves	few (5-6 stem with leaves)
Oil	1 tbsp

Ingredients for finishing

Fennel powder	¼ tsp
Garam masala (readymade)	2 pinch
Coriander leaves	few chopped

Method:

1. Chicken marination:  Clean and wash the chicken pieces. Add all the ingredients mentioned for marination with little water. Keep aside for 15-20 minutes.
2. Grinding: Cut the onion and tomato into slices. Slit the green chillies. Chop ginger and garlic into big pieces. Heat oil in a kadai to medium hot. Add green chillies and fry for 2 seconds. Then add onion slices, ginger pieces, garlic, pepper corns, fennel seeds and coriander seeds. Saute till onion turns into light brown in colour. Now add tomato slices and cook till soft. Then add coriander leaves, mix and switch off the flame. Once cooled, grind into a smooth paste using sufficient water. Keep aside.
3. Grind coconut using water into coarse. Take first and second milk (pour ground coconut into a strainer, squeeze and take the first milk. Again add half a cup of water to the coconut residue, mix and squeeze to take the second milk. Keep aside.
4. Preparing kurma: Heat a kadai with 4 tbsp of oil to medium hot. Add fennel seeds and allow to splutter. Then add bay leaf and onion. Saute till onion turns into light brown. Add ground paste and fry and cook untill oil shows on the sides. Now add marinated chicken and curry leaves. Saute in high flame for 2-3 minutes. Then add coconut milk (needed 2 cups of thin coconut milk. Adjust water to coconut milk according to that). Gently mix and allow to boil. Then lower the flame, cover and cook for 15-20 minutes.
5. Now open the lid, mix and check the salt. If needed adjust with some more salt. This kurma should be semi-thick. Careful while adding water.
6. Now add ingredients mentioned for finishing. Mix and switch off the flame. Chicken kurma is ready.

     Serve with Biriyani, plain rice, roti, dosa or idli etc.