Cherimeen Curry

Name: Cherimeen Curry
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 35 min
Yield: 2 servings
Cuisine: Indian (Kerala)
Ingredients: Karimeen/cherimeen, whole: 2 (250 g each), cleaned and scored; Shallots: 80 g, sliced; Ginger: 15 g, julienned; Green chillies: 3, slit; Red chilli powder: 1½ tsp; Turmeric: ½ tsp; Kudam puli: 2 pieces (soaked in 100 ml water); Coconut oil: 2 tbsp; Mustard seeds: ½ tsp; Fenugreek seeds: ¼ tsp; Curry leaves: 2 sprigs; Salt: 1¼ tsp; Score the fish deeply so the thin gravy penetrates the flesh and the kudam puli sourness permeates.; This is a thin curry by design — don't reduce it; serve it generously over rice.; Adding a small pinch of fenugreek seeds prevents the gravy from turning bitter with the kudam puli.; Fresh cherimeen from the Vembanad Lake is the gold standard; any freshwater fish is a reasonable substitute.

🍗 Non-veg🌾 Gluten-free📊 Easy

Whole pearl spot fish simmered in a thin, vibrant Kerala red curry with kudam puli and shallots — the everyday version of Kerala's state fish, simpler than pollichathu but equally celebrated.

⏱️15 minPrep

🔥20 minCook

🕒35 minTotal

🍽️2Serves

🧺 Ingredients

👩‍🍳 How to make Cherimeen Curry

Heat oil; splutter mustard seeds and fenugreek.
Add shallots, ginger, chillies; cook until soft, 3 min.
Add curry leaves.
Add chilli powder and turmeric; stir 1 min.
Add kudam puli water and 150 ml plain water.
Bring to a simmer.
Add fish and salt.
Spoon gravy over fish.
Cover; cook 8–10 min until fish is cooked through.
The flesh should pull away from the backbone cleanly.
Gravy should be thin and intensely red-orange.

📖 Cultural notes

|---|---|---|---|---| | 280 kcal | 36 g | 7 g | 12 g | 2 g | Cherimeen curry in earthen pots is the everyday dinner of Kuttanad's farming and fishing families. The pearl spot thrives in the brackish water canals that crisscross Kerala's backwater delta, and is so integral to the region's identity that Kuttanad — below sea level and crisscrossed by paddy fields and canals — is sometimes called "the rice bowl and fish bowl of Kerala." # 🌴 Kerala — Dinner Recipes --- # Kerala Dinner Recipes  ---

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