Mackerel Bake - Indian style
Ingredients:
Khus khus/poppy seed 3 tblsp, dhania/coriander 2 tblsp, jeera/cumin 2 tsp, methi/fenugreek 1/4 tsp, turmeric powder, chilli powder (to your taste), 1 full onion chopped roughly and roasted with a little oil, tamarind paste about 2 tbsp, 4 to 6 green chillies sliced, 10 or 12 garlic flakes sliced and a little ginger too. Use it fresh to get the flavours. Lots of curry leaves and salt to taste.
Method:
Lightly roast the khus khus, dhania, jeera, and methi and grind it all together. Then puree the roasted onion. Mix all the ingredients with the chilli and turmeric powders and the tamarind paste. Fry all these ingredients in a little extra oil with curry leaves and put the green chillies and ginger/garlic last and fry till you are rid of the raw smell. Put a little salt. Make slits in the mackerel fish and rub it with salt and keep as marination. Then smear each piece of fish completely with some of the fried masalas and add the remaining paste in a layer in a little oil in the baking pan. Then arrange the fish side by side on top of the pasty masala. Use the left over (masala) paste and put it over the fish and put a few spoons of oil over it and bake it for about an hour. It should be nice and brown and the masala paste should be nice and thick. No water to be added while baking, however you can choose to add some when you are frying the ingredients into a paste, so it doesn’t stick to your vessel.
The consistency should be slightly wet (pasty) and not dry. Lightly sauté more curry leaves and garnish with the same and little bit of chopped fresh coriander and serve.
