Meen vevichathu

About 14 years back ,when I first came to U.K in 2006, we lived in a little village called Ipswich. Life was a bit boring and dull  there, as I was new to the place and didn't have any friends.There were hardly any malayalees or Indians  around and I had trouble understanding british accent, so I used to be a bit hesitant to step outside on my own.  

When boredom hit me real hard, I decided to venture out on my own and it was during one of my casual walks that  I met Marina chechi. She was from Kottayam and was a great cook !  She  made this Kottayam fish curry/meen vevichathu for one of the dinner parties at her place. She confessed before dinner  that she messed up with kashmiri( milder) chilli and hot chilli powder and ended up adding hot chilli powder  instead of kashmiri chilli and gave us all a heads up !

My husband was in for a real treat..he can’t handle too much red chilli..he sweats like crazy ! As soon as we started eating, he started sweating nonstop . He was sweating profusely at one end and she was handing him tissues one after the other..it was hilarious ! So if you are attempting this recipe and can’t handle spicy, please make sure u used kashmiri chilli instead of normal chilli.

Ingredients

Fish – 500 gm ( I used pomfret/ avoli)

Shallots/ cheriya ulli – 4- 5 number

Fenugreek seeds – one small pinch ( 1/8 tsp)

Mustard seeds – ½ tsp

Ginger crushed – 1 tbsp

Garlic crushed – 1 tbsp

Curry leaves

Kashmiri red chilli powder – 3 tsp or according to your spice level( more  u add  better the colour)

Turmeric powder - ½ tsp

Coconut oil – 2 tbs                                                                         

Kudam puli – 2 petals
Fenugreek powder - 1/8 tsp ( a pinch)
Water as required

salt

Method

In a chatti/ clay pot or pan add coconut oil and sputter mustard seeds.

Once it sputters add fenugreek seeds and saute until its light brown.

Add thinly sliced shallots and fry for 4-5 minutes until light brown.

Add crushed ginger and garlic and saute for a minute or so , or until raw smell goes.

Add chilli powder, turmeric powder and fry the powders until raw smell goes( sprinkle some water if it’s sticking to the bottom of the chatti)

Add water, salt,kodum puli, curry leaves and let the gravy boil for 2-3 minutes.

Add the fish pieces and cook for 5-8 minutes until done. Add a pinch  fenugreek powder and remove from fire.

Drizzle some coconut oil in the end.

Leave it untouched for few hours before serving

I usually make it the overnight and boil it again next day  before serving.