Anjali's Food Kaleidoscope

Fish pakoras / fritters

        In Punjab the fish is preferred as a dry snack with chutney and pickled onions. My family loves fish this way and I cleverly make a few accompaniments like stir fried vegetables and home made brown bread with garlic butter and convert the snack into a complete meal….that way everyone is happy.

Ingredients:

For the fish pakoras  / fritters

1.           500 grams fish cut in 2 inch pieces of 1.5 cm thickness

2.           ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder

3.           ½ teaspoon coriander powder

4.          1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chilli powder

5.           Salt to taste or like I put 1 level teaspoon

6.           ½ teaspoon garam masala

7.           ½ teaspoon dry aniseed seed powder/ saunf powder

8.           ½ teaspoon  dry bishop seeds powder / ajwain powder

9.            ½ teaspoon chat masala

10.       1 level tablespoon chick pea flour / besan

11.       Mustard oil for frying

Method:

1.    Mix all the dry masalas from 2 to 9 in the list and marinate the fish for at least 20 minutes to half an hour.

2.    Smoke the mustard oil and let it cool down.

3.    Just before frying, warm the mustard oil again on medium flame .

4.      You will need to add a tablespoon of water in the fish if the pieces are absolutely dry and then follow by sprinkling  a tablespoon of chick pea flour and mix gently.

5.      Deep fry on medium flame till fish pieces are done, to check if the fish is done just pierce the fish gently with a tip of a sharp knife and if the knife goes easily that means the fish is cooked , fish pieces that size will take about  five minutes on each side to cook.

•  For the stir fried vegetables to go as an accomplaniment:

1.  Take about a cup  each of chopped carrots and potatoes and another cup of peas. Boil them or steam them like I did in a vegetable steamer and in just one whistle of the pressure cooker,that way vegetables remain  crunchy.

2.  Take a tablespoon of butter in a pan and when it begins to melt on medium flame just tumble in the cooled vegetables and toss them once and season with salt pepper and a dash of dry mixed herbs.

•   Garlic butter:

          For every tablespoon of butter take about two cloves of crushed garlic and mix it well till blended. Sprinkle a dash of dry herbs and spread the butter generously on the brown bread.

So there you are….Fish pakoras with stir fried vegetables and brown bread with garlic butter.