Pearl spot fish curry/Karimeen Curry Aleppy Style

 Ingredients

Medium sized pearl spot fish (Karimeen) 4 nos.

Onion medium sized 2 nos.
Garlic chopped 2 tsp
Ginger chopped 1 tsp
Turmeric powder ½ tsp
Red chilli powder 2 tsp
Tomatoes chopped ½ cup
Green chillies 4 nos.
Oil 3 tbsp.
Salt to taste
Curry leaves 1 sprig

Method of preparation of pearl spot fish curry/karimeen curry

Clean wash and cut each of the pearl spots into 3 pieces.  Mix chilli powder, turmeric powder, salt and 2 tsp water into a fine paste and mix the fish pieces with the paste and allow to marinate.

Heat oil in a pan and sauté the ginger, garlic, chopped onion and Green chillies and when the onions become translucent add the red chilli powder and turmeric powder and mix well.  Now add chopped tomatoes and stir together.  Now add the marinated fish and enough water to the sautéed paste and cook on low flame till the gravy thickens.

Serve along with appam, kallappam, kappa or rice preparations.

The name Karimeen comes from the lowlands of kuttanadu in Kerala.  In local dialect the land reclaimed from the backwater areas were called karinilam (land of charcoal) and these pearl spots were abundant in those lowlands.  Hence this fish is called Karimeen-the fish from the lowland rice fields and its canals.

Allepy was the old name of the Kerala town and harbour Alappuzha during the English days till the mid-1980s.  and this special preparation is from the region and District Alappuzha which comprises a major part of Kuttanadu.