Indian fish and chips recipe
This awesome adaptation of a British classic uses fragrant Indian spicing. Indian chips have a typically deep golden, come-hither look. The batter is a gluten-free gram batter and, remember, it is heavier and slightly softer than a Western batter, so don’t expect the brusque bite.
If you don't want to make the chutney, just use your favourite condiment.
Recipe from Mowgli Street Food: Stories and recipes from the Mowgli Street Food restaurants by Nisha Katona. Published by Nourish Books, £25.
Ingredients
For the fish and chips- 4 large Maris Piper potatoes, peeled and sliced into chunky chips
- 1 tbsp ground turmeric
- 1 tbsp sea salt
- 120 g gram/chickpea flour, plus extra to sprinkle
- 0.5 tsp salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 0.5 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 pinch chilli powder
- 4 white fish fillets, such as cod or haddock
- 5 lemon wedges, to serve
- 1 tbsp cumin seeds
- 1 tbsp black mustard seeds
- 5 curry leaves
- 6 large tomatoes, roughly chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 cm/½ inch piece of fresh root ginger, peeled and grated
- 0.5 tbsp chilli powder
- 0.5 tbsp ground turmeric
- 2 green chillies, deseeded and thinly sliced
- 1 tsp salt
- 4 tbsp vegetable oil
Details
- Cuisine: Indian
- Recipe Type: Fish
- Difficulty: Medium
- Preparation Time: 10 mins
- Cooking Time: 25 mins
- Serves: 5
Step-by-step
- First, make the chutney. Put the vegetable oil in a large non-stick frying pan set over a medium-high heat. When hot, add the cumin seeds, mustard seeds and curry leaves and fry for around 30 seconds until the cumin seeds turn dark brown and release their fragrance.
- Add the tomatoes, garlic, ginger, chilli powder, ground turmeric and green chilli and stir well. Turn the heat down to low and fry for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes start to soften.
- Add the salt, then cover the pan and cook gently for 15 minutes until the tomatoes have cooked down and released their liquid. At this point remove the lid and stir until a smooth sauce forms. Continue to cook for a further 5 minutes so the relish thickens slightly. Store in an airtight jar in the refrigerator for up to a month. Once open, refrigerate and eat within a week.
- Next, make the fish and chips. Bring a large saucepan of salted water up to the boil, reduce the heat to low and completely submerge your chips, simmering for 8–10 minutes until they start to soften around the edges but are still firm.
- Drain in a colander and sprinkle over the ground turmeric and sea salt. Give them a good shake to make sure they are covered in the turmeric.
- While the potatoes are boiling, make your batter. Sift the gram flour into a mixing bowl with the salt, baking powder, ground turmeric and chilli powder and mix.
- Slowly start to pour 200ml/7fl oz/scant 1 cup water in, whisking all the while. You’re looking for a thick batter consistency.
- Heat a deep-fat fryer to 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4 or fill a deep frying pan with around 350ml/12 fl oz vegetable oil and heat to about 180°C/350°F/gas mark 4.
- Using a large metal slotted spoon, carefully submerge the chips in the oil and cook for 8–10 minutes until golden and crispy. Once cooked, remove gently and place on paper towels to drain, then set aside.
- Sprinkle the fish with a little gram flour, then dip into the batter and shake off any excess. Carefully lower each piece of fish into the deep-fat fryer or oil and fry for around 4 minutes or until golden and crispy.
- Serve the fish and chips immediately with lemon wedges and Mowgli chutney.
This recipe is from Mowgli Street Food: Stories and recipes from the Mowgli Street Food restaurants by Nisha Katona. Published by Nourish Books, £25. Photography by Yuki Sugiura.
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