South Indian delights: Heading south for the summer

South Indian dishes are quite simple to prepare and are similar to some forms of Southeast Asian cuisine.

When the weather gets as hot as it is these days, one just doesn’t feel like eating. Saalans fall into the “not for hot weather” food category. It’s a dilemma however, since having salads and light ‘gora’ food can become exceptionally boring, at least for me.

Under these circumstances, a great cuisine to explore is South Indian food. The dishes are quite simple to prepare, and are conceptually very similar to some forms of Southeast Asian cuisine. It’s also a popular misconception that South Indian food is very spicy. It is, but there is a beautiful balance in the cuisine itself — almost like a well-constructed couplet or a raag. There are hidden nuances, flavours, explosions of taste and finally, infinite satisfaction. A good meal should do that to a person!

Sometimes though, it can be a bit daunting to try out new things. A question most frequently asked of me is, “where can I get the right ingredients?” The answer is simple — most ingredients used in South Indian cuisine are similar to what we use in our typical Pakistani dishes. In fact, most ingredients used in cooking are shared by all cuisines, but are used differently, thus evoking different flavours.

When you experiment with cuisine in general you learn to cut corners and find simpler ways to reach the final result. The recipe I have put down is a super easy fish curry, in which the only two ingredients you might not have in your kitchen are dried coconut and gur/jaggery. The rest of the spices are everyday fare.

Red cabbage pickle:

Cooking oil - 1 tbsp

Red cabbage - 1 - sliced

Cumin - 1 tsp

Red chilli flakes - 2 tsp

Salt - 1.5 tsp

Lemon - 2 - juiced

White sugar - 2 tsp

Coriander seeds - 1 tsp

Water - 1 cup

Method:

Heat 1 tbsp of oil in a pot, and add the red cabbage. Saute the cabbage for 2-3 minutes and add in all the spices. Saute for another 3 mins and add in the lemon juice, sugar and water.

Place a lid on the pot and cook on a low flame for 18-20 minutes till the water has reduced and the cabbage is soft and ready.

Curried coconut fish served with steamed rice and a red cabbage pickle



Cooking oil - 2 tbsp

Snapper - 2 fillets - made into bite size pieces

Onions - 2 medium sized - minced

Tomatoes - 3 chopped roughly

Garlic - 6 cloves - minced finely

Ginger - 1.5 tbsp - minced finely

Salt - 3 tsps

Turmeric - 1/4 tsp

Red chilli flakes - 3 tsp

Coriander powder - 2 tsp

Cumin - 2 tsp

Tamarind - 2 tbsp - soaked in 1 cup water

Jaggery/gur - 2 tbsp

Lemon - 1

Mustard seeds - 1.5 tsp

Green chillies – 3, slit

Dried coconut - 6 tbsp

Curry leaves - 6

Water - 2 cups

Method:

Marinate the pieces of fish with 1/2tsp of coriander powder, 1/2 tsp of red chilli flakes, 1 tsp of salt and 1 tbsp of coconut and let it rest.

Heat the oil in a deep pan and add in the ginger and garlic. Saute for a minute and then add in the onions. Once the onion starts changing color and going golden, add in the tomatoes. Saute for about two minutes. Add in the turmeric with a dash of water, fry and add in the remaining coriander powder, red chilli powder and salt and cumin.

Next pour in the tamarind water, cook for about 3-4 minutes and then add in the jaggery/gurr. Once the gurr is added squeeze in the lemon juice and pop the green chillies into the pan, as well as 2 cups of water and 4 tbsp of dried coconut, 4 curry leaves and the mustard seeds.

Place a lid on the pan and let the liquid simmer for about 15-18 minutes on a medium flame.

In a separate pan, add in 1 tbsp of cooking oil and saute your fish till it is almost cooked.

Add the fish to the simmering sauce, and cook for about 2-3 minutes till all the flavours have infused.

Voila!

Garnish with fresh coriander leaves and serve with steamed rice.

Published in The Express Tribune, Sunday Magazine, June 12^th, 2011.