Goa Fish Curry

(click to enlarge)	Goa Fish Curry India - Goa - Meen Goa
	Serves: Effort: Sched: Do ahead:	3 w/rice *** 1-1/2 hrs Yes		Delicious and fiery. Goa is the port through which Portuguese sailors introduced chili peppers to India. Recipes labeled "Goa" tend to be rather hot, and this one does not disappoint. If you have not already made your sacrifices to the Chili Gods, you may want to approach this with caution.

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Fish (1)
Lemon Juice
Salt
Onion
Tomatoes
Chilis, green (2)
-- Coconut Paste
Tamarind (3)
Garlic
Ginger root
Coconut grated (4)
Chilis, dry (5)
Coriander seed
Cumin seed
Turmeric
Coconut Milk
Salt
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Oil
Water
-- Garnish
Cilantro Leaves

Prep

Cut FISH into pieces about 1-1/2 inch on a side by whatever thickness your fish is. Tumble the pieces with Lemon Juice and Salt. Set aside for 1 hour or so.
Chop ONION medium.
Submerge TOMATOES in boiling water for 1 minute, chill under cold running water, peel and chop small.
Prep TAMARIND if using block form (see Note-3).
Crush GARLIC and chop fine. Slice GINGER very thin and chop fine. Mix and smash to paste in a mortar.
Grate COCONUT and chop as fine as you can get it. Pound it to paste in a mortar - or use whatever means you have available.
Cap Dry Chilis, break in half and dump out any seeds that will come out. Grind along with Coriander Seeds and Cumin Seeds in your spice grinder.
Mix together All Coconut Paste Items. Run it all in a blender if you didn't get it pounded pasty enough.
Split GREEN CHILIS open lengthwise.

Run

In a spacious sauté pan heat 2 T Oil and fry Onions stirring until golden. Stir in Tomatoes and fry stirring until tomatoes are quite soft.
Stir in Coconut Paste and 1 c Water. Simmer another 10 minutes, stirring occasionally and adjusting water as needed. It should be fairly liquid.
Stir in Green Chilis, then gently stir in Fish and arrange evenly. Cover and simmer until fish is done (do not stir), about 8 minutes depending on thickness.
Serve with plenty of steamed Basmati rice.

NOTES:

Fish: This needs to be a fish that holds together well with wet cooking. Catfish, American or Vietnamese (Swai, Basa, Tra) or Tilapia work well (the photo is with Tilapia). Cod and Mullet are also good.
Chilis, Green: The pattern recipe called for 4 green chilis. These would be Indian chilis which are narrow, thin walled and moderately hot. Even here in Los Angeles availability is uncertain, so I substitute Serranos, which are wider, thick walled and much hotter, but always available, and cut the number in half. For details see my Chili Page.
Tamarind: Use concentrate, or prepare block form as shown on our Tamarind page.
Coconut: Use fresh if possible. Weight is for fresh or frozen coconut. I prefer a "fresh" coconut which is like the dry ones but white instead of brown. The flesh pops out of the shell easily and grates easier, and the water is more flavorful for drinking. If fresh or frozen aren't available use 1 cup of dried grated coconut (unsweetened) and soak with enough water to cover. Drain before using. For details on handling coconuts, see our Coconut page.
Chilis Dry: I use dried Arbols. If you want less hot use Japones. For details see my Chili Page.
U.S. measure: t=teaspoon, T=Tablespoon, c=cup, qt=quart, oz=ounce, #=pound, cl=clove in=inch