Chinchoni - Fish Curry - East Indian Recipes

Chinchoni - Fish Curry

Chinchoni is a classic East Indian fish curry made with fresh ground masala. There are a few variations of this recipe made with or without coconut as well as with or without oil. Today, I make it with fish but you can use prawns as well as a mix of different fish or seafood.

Course Diinner, Lunch, Main Course

Cuisine East-Indian, Indian

Keyword chinchoni, fish curry

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 15

Total Time 20

Servings servings

Calories 224kcal

Cost $5

Ingredients

1 lb Fish white fish, prawns, shark, pomfret, skate,
1 tbsp Cooking oil
½ tsp Salt
2 tbsp Tamarind soaked in water or 1/2 tsp tamarind paste
2 tsp Coriander leaves chopped cilantro
1½ cups Water

Chinchoni masala

6 Red chilies Kashmiri or similar - soaked in hot water
8 med Garlic cloves
1 tsp Cumin seeds jeera
¼ tsp Turmeric powder ( up to 1/2 tsp)
¼ cup Ground coconut (up to 1/2 cup)

Optional

½ tsp Mustard seeds rai seeds
4 Curry leaves

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

Add all the masala ingredients to a food processor or mixer grinder and grind to a smooth paste.
Pro tip - I like to soak the chliies in hot water for 10 minutes which softens the skin and I remove the seeds. This makes a much smoother paste.
In a skillet, add the oil, mustard seeds, and curry leaves. Then, and ground masala paste. Fry it for a minute until fragrant. Then add the tamarind juice and water. Bring to a boil.
Pro tip - tamarin juice is fresh tamarind soaked in water while tamarin paste is concentrated so very sour and you need to use very little. You can always add more.
When the curry comes to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and gently place the fish pieces in the curry. Cover and cook for 15 minutes.
Pro tip - keep the heat to a gentle simmer to prevent the fish from breaking.
When the fish is cooked, taste and adjust seasoning. Garnish with fresh chopped cilantro/coriander leaves.

Nutrition