AS January draws to a close, I realise what a month of frugality and exhaustion it has been in the kitchen. Quick dishes with simple ingredients and the cutting back of finances, have made me miss my mother’s rich, decadent cooking. In my parents' home, unlike in most Pakistani meat-eating households, we ate a lot of vegetables, and the weekly treat would always be seafood. Karachi being a port meant we got some treasure from the coastline.
Seafood forms a huge part of the diet of those people living by the Arabian Sea coastline or along the banks of the River Indus that flows through this diverse land from north to south. Spice and chilli are important to the Pakistani palate, so we have learned to combine these with seafood. The results may be simple or pungent, but there is always a balance of taste sensations. The products of briny ocean and fresh water lakes and rivers blend surprisingly well with rich base flavours of red onions, tomatoes, garam masala and red chilli together with the freshness of coriander, mint, ginger and green chilli. Though seemingly heady aromatics, these flavours never overpower – and the way Pakistanis cook with spices aims to accentuate rather than hide flavours.
When I was growing up, the weekend was the time for seafood: there was fresh lobster at the beach, steamed with lemon and cumin; a crabbing trip off the coast, with stir-fried spicy crab “lollipop claws”, the juices mopped up with hot tandoori rotis; or fresh surmai (Indo-Pacific king mackerel) steaks topped with my mum’s spicy tomato and red onion soffritto-style sauce.
Our fish was always bought fresh and the sources ranged from the fishmonger at our weekend street bazaar to a tiny little man who would deliver from the fisheries on his rickety old bicycle, a jute bag dripping with icy water full of fish tied behind it.
However, the ultimate adventure in search of fresh seafood would be a trip to Karachi’s Empress Market. This fresh produce market, built in colonial days, still teems with dedicated shoppers and equally passionate shopkeepers. The fish hall, though reeking of the pungency of fish in the heat, would be the one place you were guaranteed to find the jewels of the Arabian Sea and beyond.
All I have learned about cooking seafood with spice has been from watching my mother cooking in the kitchen. I have picked up tips almost by osmosis and these come naturally to me now.
Many people are daunted by the idea of using strong aromatics with seafood. The key is to stick to a few fresh ingredients and just one or two hero spices. Mastering the base marinade will ensure the flavours stay balanced, so I love using a combination of lemon or tamarind for sourness, sugar or jaggery for sweetness and fresh chilli and turmeric for heat. I love making a base of red onions, spices, ginger and garlic if I am making a curry-style fish dish, and then I build the flavour with fresh herbs and crispy friend onions to finish. One of the most important things when cooking with spice is to season with salt well; under-seasoned spiced fish lacks flavour.
In the east generally, many small seasonal fish are either pickled with "achar" spices or salt-dried. The most common pickling spices are nigella, cumin and fenugreek, while salt and mustard seeds are used to dry out fish including the notoriously smelly Bombay duck. Fish dried in this way is rehydrated in curries or stir fries before eating, but if you don’t fancy that, try using these spices in fresh fish instead.
Scotland is blessed with seafood that marries just as well with spice, and a way back to eating less frugally in the coming months, would be with some wonderful fish and spice.
Parsi fish in banana leaves
(Serves 5)
This is one of my favourite fish recipes. I’m a big fan of “hara masala” (green masala), which marries green chilli, coriander and mint. It works brilliantly with white fish like hake or haddock. This recipe is from the Zoroastrian community in Karachi. The banana leaves aren’t easy to come by, but it’s worth tracking them down in a specialist food shop for the sweet, tea-like aromas that they infuse into the fish. For the best results, cook right before serving.
Ingredients?
For the hara masala
1/2 a large bunch of coriander
10-15 mint leaves
2-4 deseeded green chillis
1/4 fresh coconut
1/2 tsp turmeric
1 lemon, juiced
1 tsp dry-roasted cumin
1 tbsp ginger/garlic paste
Salt, to taste
For the fish
1 kg of firm-fleshed, white fish like hake, haddock or cod, skinned and cut in palm-sized fillets
1-2 large banana leaves
A roll of thick jute twine or string
Oil, for frying
Method?To make the hara masala, grind all the ingredient into a very thick, fine paste using a pestle and mortar.
Marinate the fish pieces in the hara masala for 45 minutes.
Meanwhile, soak the banana leaves in just-boiled water for five minutes, until they’re more pliable. Then cut into five pieces, each one big enough to wrap the fish in.
Fold the leaves into envelopes. Wrap each fillet in a leaf-envelope and tie with lengths of twine or string.
Heat a little oil in a shallow pan. Fry the fish inside the parcel on low heat for three or four minutes, while covered (the steam will help cook it, and contain the splatters). Flip over and repeat on the other side.
Serve straight away, with plain basmati rice.
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