Monkfish Curry
Chunks of monkfish simmered in a coconut and tomato curry sauce with ginger, garlic, mustard seeds and curry leaves.
This is what to make on a cold weeknight, when you want a curry that takes under half an hour and still feels like a treat. Monkfish is firm and meaty, and it holds together in a sauce where other fish would fall apart.
Trim off any grey membrane, because it shrinks and turns rubbery. Cut the tail into chunks of about 4 cm. Pop the mustard seeds in hot oil until they stop jumping, then add the curry leaves and onion and cook until golden. Stir in the garlic, ginger, turmeric and chilli, then the tomatoes and coconut milk. Simmer the sauce before the fish goes in. Ten minutes concentrates it and lets the spices settle.
Add the monkfish, cover and cook on a low heat for 6 to 8 minutes, until it is opaque and firm.
Finish with lime juice and coriander, and serve with rice. Ask the fishmonger to trim the tail, which saves a fiddly job at home.
How to Make Monkfish Curry
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Heat the oil and fry the mustard seeds until they stop popping, then add the curry leaves and onion and cook for 8 minutes until golden.
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Add the garlic, ginger, turmeric and chilli for 2 minutes, then the tomatoes, coconut milk and salt. Simmer for 10 minutes.
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Add the monkfish, cover and cook on a low heat for 6 to 8 minutes until opaque and firm.
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Stir in the lime juice and serve.
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A Few Pointers
- Trim the grey membrane.
- Simmer the sauce first.
- Do not overcook the fish.
- Shake the pan rather than stirring.
Changing the Recipe
- If coconut is a problem, a cooking cream (dairy or plant-based) can stand in for the coconut milk in a sauce; the dish will lose the coconut flavour and taste noticeably different.
- Lemon is the everyday swap for lime in this kind of dish — the acidity plays the same role even though the flavour is not identical.
- If you only have ground ginger, a quarter-teaspoon for each tablespoon of fresh is the ratio usually given; it tastes warmer and less bright than the fresh root.
Serve It With
Basmati rice · Naan bread · Cucumber raita · Lime wedges
Sides from the same cuisine on this site: Chapati (Roti), Gluten-Free Naan, Idiyappam.
Storage
Keeps in the fridge for 2 days. Reheat gently so the fish stays tender.
What's in a Serving
Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list with USDA FoodData Central figures (SR Legacy). A calculation, not a laboratory analysis: brands, cuts and how you measure change the real numbers. How the figures are worked out.
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Compiled by Turab
Checked by script for timings, diet labels and nutrition arithmetic. How the recipes are checked. Found a mistake? Tell us.
First published ; last changed .
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