Narkel er Dudh Diye Macher Kalia / Fish Kalia with Coconut Milk

Literally I smell of chocolate milkshake right now!! Well I admit that I was very excited to try this chocolate smelling body lotion....but the smell is quite lingering and pungent as well, which is a bit annoying at some times. Between cooking and shopping, there is one goal that I have reached this month, which was so necessary...and that is reducing our electricity bill. I am so sooo relieved.

I always keep a can of coconut milk in my fridge as an emergency gateway. The versatility of coconut milk in innumerable!!! Besides, it’s not always easy to have fresh coconut every time I wish, and coconut milk is an easy replacement in that matter.

I was cooking Fish Kalia one day and suddenly I just wanted to add coconut milk to it. Just to see the change in taste and how it turns out. Luckily, this fish curry with coconut milk turned out to be more like Malaikari where the prawns are replaced with fishes. In every way I loved this curry. I hope you will too. For step by step procedure go to my fish kalia recipe where I have explained each and every step with pictures. You only have to replace water with coconut milk in the end. Trust me you will not regret.

Bengali Fish Kalia  with Coconut Milk / Narkel er Dudh Diye Macher Kalia

Serves 4

Ingredients:

4 -6 pieces of fish

2 medium onions – chopped

6-7 fat cloves of garlic – paste / minced

1 inch stick of ginger – paste / minced

2 tsp turmeric powder

2-3 tsp red chilli powder

1 and ½ tsp cumin powder

1 and ½ tsp coriander powder

1 tsp garam masala powder

2 tsp sugar

1 can of coconut milk

2 small cinnamon sticks

4 green cardamoms

3 cloves

1 medium may leaf

½ cup mustard oil

A handful of fresh coriander leaves – chopped

Method:

Sprinkle 1 tsp turmeric powder and some salt over the pieces of fish and rub them well. Keep aside for 12-15 minutes.

Heat oil in a a kadai and fry the marinated fishes one by one, until they become nicely golden and crisp from outside. Once done take them out of the kadai and keep aside.

Temper the rest of the oil with whole spices, i.e. cinnamon stick, green cardamoms, cloves and bay leaves.

Saute them for half a minute and then add the garlic paste into them.

Saute the garlic for some seconds or until you have their smell. Do not let them turn brown.

Immediately add the chopped onions.

Sprinkle some salt and sugar on them and start to cook until they become lightly golden. Adding sugar will give the curry a nice colour as well as it will enhance the taste as well.

Stir and cook the onions until they turn golden brown. Then add the ginger paste and mix them well.

Saute the ginger for a minute and then add ¼ th cup of water to the onions. Also add in the turmeric powder, red chilli powder, cumin powder and coriander powder.

Mix them well and simmer on medium flame until the water is almost evaporated, the spices are cooked and the oil has started to separate at the edges.

Add a little more water again and repeat the same process. Stir often so that the curry can not stick to the bottom of the pan.

Repeat this adding water process for 2 or 3 times more to have a smooth thick creamy gravy. Also slow cooking like this will help to develop more intense and rich flavour giving the curry a rich brown colour.

Finally when you are satisfaied with the texture of the curry, add salt as required.

Also add in the coconut milk and ½ cup of water.

Add the fishes and put cover. Make sure that the fishes are well covered with the curry.

Cook like this for 15 minutes more. Do open the lid after every 5 minutes and stir.

After 15 minutes, open the lid and simmer on medium flame till the oil starts to float on top of the curry.

Taste and adjust the seasonings.

Finally sprinkle the garam masala powder and chopped coriander leaves and put off the flame.

Serve hot with plain hot rice.