Meen Peera Pattichathu/ Anchovy Fish with Coconut

Meen Peera Pattichathu

Meen peera pattichathu is a yummy traditional seafood delicacy of Kerala. It is a very simple home-style recipe, healthy and easy to make. Seafood is an indispensable part of Kerala cuisine and fish is available in plenty. Back home my mom makes fish peera pattichathu almost every week because it is such an easy recipe. And we had no complaints! It is so tasty! All you need to do is to mix the fish with a tangy, spicy coconut masala and cook and simmer till it is dry and the coconut gets coated with the fish. This fish uses less or zero oil and is very healthy. All the flavor comes from coconut. If you have never tried meen peera pattichathu, you should try it. You are in for a delicious seafood treat. This humble fish recipe is heartwarming homey food and will change the way you think about food.

Meen peera pattichathu/ vattichathu as I said is made with lots of fish and lots of freshly grated coconut. Peera means grated coconut. It is usually made with small fish like anchovies or small-sized sardine. You can also use small-sized prawns to make prawns peera pattichathu. It is served as a side dish with steamed rice.

The fish used in this recipe are anchovies. If you get cleaned prepackaged anchovies, with head and tail removed, you are good to go. One star ingredient in this recipe is Kudampuli/gambooge. It is also called Malabar Tamarind. It has a tangy, smokey flavor that is distinctive in Kerala fish curry. The chilly gives heat and tamarind the tangy smokiness. Kudampuli is prepared by smoking and sun drying and hence the smoky flavor. If you do not have kudampuli, you can use tamarind instead. Other souring agents that can be used is raw mango or tomatoes. In some regions of Kerala Irumban puli / Averrhao Bilimbi is also used to make meen peera pattichathu

How to make Meen Peera Pattichathu

Cooking time- 15 minutes
Recipe type- Side dish/ Fish
Cuisine- Kerala/ Indian

Ingredients

Fish - 1 lb

Grated coconut- 3/4 cup

Kudampuli- 3 small pieces

Green chilly-3

shallots- 5-6

Ginger- 1 inch thick

Turmeric powder- 1/3 tsp

Chilly powder- 3/4 tsp

Salt to taste

For tempering

Mustard seeds- 1/2 tsp

Fenugreek seeds- a few

Dry red chilly 3

Curry leaves- one spring

Two tsp of coconut oil

Wash and clean fish and keep aside. Make a coarse paste of coconut, turmeric powder, chilly powder shallots, ginger and green chilly. You can use a mortar and pastel or a mini blender. Pulse a few times to get a course meal like mixture.
Marinate the fish with this mixture and set aside for 5-10 minutes.
Add kudampuli into a half cup of warm water and set aside for 5 minutes
In a cooking pot add the marinated fish, salt and kudampuli along with the water. Cover and cook for two to three minutes. Toss the fish in between cooking. Fish you are using spatula gently turn the fish to the other side. The fish is very tender, so it is best to shake the pan and toss it instead. Cover and cook for three more minutes. Remove lid and continue cooking till all the water evaporates and the masala becomes dry.
Heat oil in a pan and add mustard seeds and fenugreek seeds. When they splutter add curry leaves and dry red chilly and after a minute add the cooked fish. Toss a mix well and after a minute switch off the flame.
If you do not want to do the tempering you can finish off the dish with some fresh curry leaves and coconut oil.