We ate fish at home after a very long time. Sig’s beautiful fish curry recipes and pictures had started fish cravings in me. Thanks to Asha’s links of Sumeet mixer, I have a very good mixer which makes very smooth paste. So I wanted to try some fish dishes that require real smooth paste. My hubby being a great fish fan, I thought he would enjoy aayi’s fish dishes.
So we went to Chinese market here to buy some fish. To our disappointment, we didn’t find many familiar fishes. Then I saw a piece of shark (mori) which looked very fresh. There was one more fish which looked familiar and we bought those two. The guys who were cleaning the fish didn’t agree to de-skin mori – this is one of the toughest fishes to clean. Removing the thick skin off the fish takes forever if you don’t know how to do it. Luckily they had cleaned the fish(it smells real bad if the insides are not removed) but had only the skin on.
At my native, mori is one of the most loved fishes. The day people get this, they have a big feast. At my home, this was not very frequent since removing the skin of this fish is very hard. Aayi used to ask the maid or someone else to clean it. As I said, this fish has a very peculiar smell which is not loved by many. So when we bought it here, my parents were very skeptic about cleaning the skin – the fish cannot be eaten with skin on since it is very hard and thick. I took about 30mins to clean it well (everyone was surprised that I could clean it, considering I have never attempted to clean it anytime before). Aayi made this delicious gravy. Everyone liked it very much.
Things to remember:
– The skin is real hard and thick, so it has to be removed before cooking this fish.
– The fish has only one hard bone in the center, it does not have any other bones. So usually it is cut into small 1″ by 1″ square pieces. They slightly increase in size after cooking.
– Wash them very well in water.
– Do not cook them for a long time.
Ingredients:
15 pieces of shark(mori)
1 cup fresh/frozen coconut
6-7 red chilies
1/2 tea spn chopped ginger
1/4 tea spn turmeric powder
4-5 sichuan pepper(teppal)
2-3 kokum pieces
2 green chilies
Salt
Method:
Grind together red chilies, coconut, ginger, turmeric powder into a very smooth paste.
Cook the paste with enough water, slightly crushed teppal, slitted green chilies, kokum, salt and cook. When the gravy starts boiling, add fish pieces and cook for about 3-4mins (when it comes to a rapid boil. Do not boil for long after adding pieces, they become paste if cooked more).
Serve hot with rice. Top with few drops of coconut oil while eating, this increases taste.
Serves : 3-4
Preparation time : 15mins
Oh yummmm…. Haven’t had shark in a long time… now I have serious cravings for a shark curry… 🙂
I love all things made with shark – shark curry and the shark puttu.. Btw we boil the shark in water and the skin just comes away easily.
I really wish we could get shark here.
Shilpa: Shark puttu?? thats something I never heard of. Please blog about it if you find shark. Thanks for the tip about the skin, I didn’t know this. I will try next time.
Shilpa, I have never tasted shark, but you did tell me I should try every Konkani recipe you have posted… 😀
But, I just bought (frozen) tilapia the other day, and everything else I have handy (except kokum- but I’ll use kadampuli instead) So…I’ll make this tonight using the different fish- because the gravy, with its ginger and teppal, looks too good for me to pass by!
Shilpa: haha..okay, try all the recipes and let me know :). Then I will decide if you were a Konkani in your previous birth ;).
I haven’t tasted tilapia anu time, so please let me know how this gravy turns out 🙂
Hi,
i have tried almost all your recipes-specially all traditional ones with seafood just loved all of them.now i found one more authentic konkani recipe gonna surely try it.i am just loving it ……waiting for more from your mom’s khazana.
Do you fry the red chillies or you use them raw? The colour looks very nice. Which chillies do you use? could you kindly let me know?
Shilpa: Sabita, we use the red chilies raw. But if they are too soggy, just heat them a bit to help grinding. We used Byadagi chilies which my parents got from India. Byadagi chilies are available in many Indian stores here in US also, i can’t say they are as good as the original though.
Hi Shilpa,
Mori is my favourite fish too(2nd pomfret)! i used to eat mori randayi & tal-leyli mori in Mumbai! Ur ambat wt teppal is new to me, i m also fwding the same to my amma who is not only a fish fan(calls herself mulki majjar) but also a teppal fan! Thankyou very much for posting this and feels happy to read ur regular posts…
rgds-purnima
Wow i have never had mori ambat,my mom always made mori tondak(brown gravy).Btw where did you buy the summet mixer?
Shilpa: Supriya I bought it online from here.
hey u hv been tagged:
http://asdearassalt.blogspot.com/2007/07/paneer-mixed-veg-in-creamy-gravy-meme.html
Sorry Shilpa,I just got some time.Kids are home for summer,keep me on my toes!::))
I made Ambat last week with Wadis,will post tomorrow at Aroma.Mine looks different.I love the color.I don’t cook Sea food much but gravy looks mouthwatering.
Good that you bought Sumeet,there is no other which grind coconut like Sumeet.Enjoy,it lasts longer too,so money spent is worth:))
mori makes my mouth water…unfortunately here I dont get it..will look for it though,but is it written shark or any other name,do you know the name of another familiar fish you got,do let me know.
i like mori very much.i desperately want to try your mori ambat but have not found mori yet.
So can you tell me which other fish can i use for this ambat….
Shilpa: You can use Indian mackerel(bangada), Spanish mackerel(iswan/surmai), bellanji, pomfret etc for this ambat.
Your curry looks very red.But mine didn’t turn out so good as yours i mean color wise
but tasted very yummy.I thank your aayi for such a tasty dish.
Shilpa: Asha, color depends on the type of chilies used. Since I used byadagi chilies that mom brought from India, the color turned out bright red.
I have never tasted shark before. Do you eat fresh water fish back in India or is it more of sea fish ?
Shilpa: we eat both Sandeepa. We have a river and sea very near to our home in India. So we get all kinds of fish. Since the river water is salty, you can say it is salt water fish mostly.
Hi shilpa,
Can u just tell me where u get shark in US.
Thanks
Shilpa
Shilpa: Shilpa, I got it in Chinese store.
Hi Shilpa,
The recipie luks gr8 n tempting…. really missing India v.mch nw….i guess whether il find shark here in US markets..! n of course the Byadgi chilies also..!!..coz only these chilies can impart tht rich red color to d fish gravy….
Dear Shilpa,
Shark puttu is a tamilian Dish. It is very very Tasty. I shall help u to make it.
250 gms of shark- we would need 300 of onion, 10 to 12 green chillies depending on the spiciness, 100 gms garlic.
Buy Sharks (little bigger ones),donot de-skin it(we shall boil it and then de-skin which would be much easier). Just get them cut them into large pieces. Now boil them with little water and tumeric. once done, cool them and then remove the skin. Squeeze out excess water in each of them. u break it in to tiny pieces called podimas (like how we break potatos to make the puri masala baaji).
Now heat a kadai, pour oil little liberally, add finely cut onions, green chillies and garlic, fry for sometime till the onions come to a transparent stage. then add shark podimas and fry well now till the raw smell goes off and the puttu turns slight brownish color.
garnish with coriander leaves. I hope u will like it.
thanks
Sai
congrats on all ur hard work which is kinda handy when moms away
now in this recipee how much is 15 pieces
15 mori fish the 1 foot+ long variety or
15 indl pieces?
Shilpa: Prax, I used 15 individual small pieces about 1″ X 1″ X 1″ size.
well i did the same
though it didnt look as beautiful as ur
but nonetheless it was great
thanks for that lovely meal
🙂
I think meti ( metti in konknai mente in Kannada) was added to this when my mom prepared this shark curry ( kal pakka mori ) It has been long years i havent been able to get the one like my used to prepare I think metti was a must ingrediant and this is only for mori not for any other fish …Is that correct ????
Shilpa: Shridhar, aayi does not add methi. So I don’t know about methi addition to this dish.
Hi Shilpa
Is there a substitute for teppal
thanks
No, just leave it out.
I heard about mori but i don’t know that it is prepared from shark fish.I eat mori (shark) in venguralla at hotel myboli the taste is very fantastic.I like the konkani receipe of mori.
I think mori fish is best for making fish prickle.
Hi Shilpa,
I have been closely following your blog and am completely hooked to it. I browse more on your blogs rather than any other site on the net, Though it is to my own advantage because of the praises and compliments I am deriving from my not so easy to please m-i-l nowadays. Thanks a ton for your commendable efforts.
By the way, to brief you on my background, we are DB from Karwar, NK, but born and brought in Goa and married to a Goan, so I am familiar with most of your recipes. Just want to let you know that Shark ambat tik or amot tik is a delicacy in Goa and mori masala prepared on lines of chicken masala is a rage in Karwar. In case your are interested, I could forward the same to you. Do let me know.
Regards,
Very tasty and delicious. Thanks for ur recipe.