Chettinad Meen Varuval Recipe
Chettinad Meen Varuval 
Fish Fry Chettinad Style
Submitted By: Taz

Ingredients:

1 lb Skin-on/Boneless Fish Steaks* (Machli / Meen)
Ghee (Ney) for shallow frying

Masala/Marinade:
8 cloves Fresh Garlic (Leh-sun / Poondu) - rough chopped
10-12 Black Peppercorns (Kali Mirch / Kurumilagu)
3-6 Fresh Curry Leaves (Kaddi Patta / Kriveppilai)
1 small Shallot (Gradana / Chinna Venggayam) - rough chopped
1 tsp Cumin Seed (Jeera / Jeeragam)
1 tsp Coriander Seed (Dhania Saabut / Kothamalli Vidhai) 
1 tsp Fennel Seed (Saunf / Shombei)
1-2 tsp Oil - can use canola, vegetable, grape seed, or rapeseed oil
¼ inch piece Fresh Ginger (Adrak / Inji) - rough chopped
1 Large Roma Tomato (Tamatar / Thakkali) - rough chopped
2 tsp Tamarind Concentrate (Imli / Puli)
1 tsp Turmeric Powder (Haldi / Manjalpodi)
1 tsp Red Chile Powder (Lal Mirchi / Mulakupodi)
1 tsp Kosher Salt (Namak / Uppu) or to taste

Preparation:
  1. Wash your fish thoroughly, pat dry, and place in a medium nonreactive bowl
  2. Place a small skillet over medium-low heat and add the garlic, peppercorns, curry leaves, shallot, cumin seed, coriander seed, and fennel seed - Dry roast until fragrant (apx 2 minutes) - Transfer to a plate and allow to cool to room temperature - After the spices have cooled, transfer to a mortar and pestle - Add the oil and grind into a relatively smooth paste - Transfer to the work bowl of a blender or small food processor
  3. Add the ginger, tomato, tamarind, turmeric powder, red chile powder, salt, and 1 Tbs of water to the blender or food processor - Purée into a thick paste (think tomato paste); add as little water as necessary if needed to achieve consistency
  4. Add the marinade/coating paste to the fish pieces and gently massage into the pieces to thoroughly coat on all sides - NOTE: A thick coating is what you want for best results - Cover and allow to marinate at room temperature for 30 minutes
  5. Heat ½ - 1 inch of the ghee in a large, heavy bottomed pan or skillet over medium/medium-low heat until a pinch of flour sizzles (350-360ºF) 
  6. Once ghee is hot, place the marinated fish in the oil and allow to fry for 3-4 minutes to a side or until crispy on the outside and the fish flakes easily - Transfer to absorbent paper and allow to drain for 1-2 minutes
  7. Serve hot with some lemon/lime wedges, fresh onion slices, steamed rice, and chutney of choice
* Truly any type of fish work (pomfret, king fish, seer fish, and salmon are commonly used) and I
   recommend tilapia, cod, bass, haddock, halibut, snapper, or even trout - all work well

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