Naturally Nutritious: Spicy Fish Curry with Brinjal and Green Pepper

A bitterly cold and rainy day today inspired this meal, which is based on a recipe that my mum and her mum used, with a twist in the ingredients to make them Paleo Reboot friendly.

A quick easy to prepare meal where the spice and flavours can be adjusted according to your taste. I've opted to go chilli hot due to the weather and my palate for all things pungent and spicy. A typical south Indian fish curry uses tamarind infused water to add to the flavours, a some-what hot and sour curry fish curry is quite the Indian delicacy. I used the juice of half a lemon to create the sour taste and this really blended perfectly with the spices to produce an awesome tasting curry.

Brinjals and green pepper were used, however an authentic fish curry calls for brinjals only - some to choose to leave it out completely. I used coconut oil to add to the flavour, but olive oil may be used. Typically, a fish curry is served with rice or roti and is best eaten a day after cooking to allow the sourness of the tamarind to soak into the fish and curry sauce. Of course, I ate this immediately after it was cooked and saved half to have tomorrow! ;)

Ingredients

1 tbslp coconut / olive oil
1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1 small cinnamon stick
1 bay leaf
1 onion grated or finely sliced
2-3 tomatoes grated
10ml crushed garlic
200g fresh fish
1/2 - 1 green pepper sliced
fresh brinjals
1-3 green chillies (optional)
1-2 tsp masala of your choice OR
1-1.5 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp coriander powder
1/4 tsp turmeric powder
1/2-1tsp garam masala
juice of 1/2 a lemon
salt to taste
fresh coriander to garnish

Here's How

Add the oil to a pot and heat
Add the seeds and bayleaf and allow to sizzle, then add the onion, green chilli and garlic and braise till onions are translucent