Fish Padha (Sri Lankan Fish Pickle)

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Fish Padha (Sri Lankan Fish Pickle)

Fish Padha (Sri Lankan Fish Pickle) is a traditional Sri Lankan recipe for a classic dish of fish pickled in oil and coconut milk. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Sri Lankan version of: Sri Lankan Fish Pickle (Fish Padha).

prep time

20 minutes

cook time

20 minutes

Total Time:

40 minutes

Serves:

Rating:

Tags : Curry Sri-lanka Recipes

This is a quick pickle that's served as a main dish, typically served in Sri Lankan yeasted rice batter pancake cups known as 'hoppers'.

Ingredients:

250ml (1 cup) oil
500g (1lb) fish sliced, washed, and seasoned with pepper, salt, lime juice and turmeric
3 tomatoes scalded, peeled and chopped
6 curry leaves
4 green chillies, slit lengthways
250ml (1 cup) thick coconut milk
1 tbsp chilli powder (amount varies according to your taste)

For the onion-garlic paste:
3 garlic cloves, peeled
1 large onion, chopped
1 tbsp cumin seeds, toasted

Method:

Take 1/2 of the oil, heat in a frying pan over medium heat then add the fish steaks and fry until golden brown all over (about 8 minutes). Remove with tongs and set aside on a plate until needed.

For the onion-garlic paste until no longer raw (about 2 minutes), combine the ingredients in a blender with a little water and render to a paste.

Heat the remaining 1/2 of the oil in a pan and one hot add the onion-garlic paste. Fry for about 4 minutes until aromatic then add the tomatoes. Cook for 4 minutes until they begin to break down then mash well.

Now add the curry leaves, slit chillies and salt. Fry for a few minutes before adding the fried fish and the coconut milk. Bring the ingredients to a simmer and cook for about 5 minutes to allow the flavours to meld.

Serve with rice, hoppers and/or flatbreads.