Recipe: Tin Fish Curry

Tinned fish gets a bad rap. Some people say it’s bad quality, cheap fish or at worst: smells strange. I disagree with all these things.

When cooked properly, tinned fish (or just “tin-fish”) as we call it, tastes damn delicious.

Agreed – it is cheaper than fresh fish – but that’s a good thing! It is an excellent source of protein, and full of healthy omegas! Don’t knock it until you try it.

Tin-fish that I refer to here, is canned pilchards. In South Africa, there are a number of varieties – here I used canned pilchards in a tomato sauce.

It is my go-to meal on a busy weeknight, when I want to cook before rushing off to the gym. Incidentally, this is one of my husband’s favorite meals. I specifically cook it when he is on-call, as it is guaranteed to immediately put a smile on his face when he (eventually) comes home. When the hospital is keeping you busy until midnight, tin-fish is an excellent source of energy and cheer 🙂

Here’s the recipe for my tin-fish curry. Give it try. The cost is absurdly cheap, and the reward is ridiculously high.

Ingredients

1 can (400g) tinned pilchards (in tomato sauce)

1 tomato grated

1/2 onion chopped

3 tablespoons of vegetable oil

2 chillies

2 cloves garlic

1 teaspoon chilli powder*

1 teaspoon mixed masala*

1/2 teaspoon tumeric*

1/2 teaspoon garam masala*

1/2 teaspoon jeera*

salt – to taste*

3 eggs – boiled and sliced in half

coriander (garnish)

Recipe

In a separate pot – boil eggs until almost hard-boiled. Fry onion, chillies and garlic on a medium heat in oil. Once onions are a little brown, add in all dry spices (marked with an asterisk* above). Let your spices warm through for a few seconds and then add the tomato. Let this cook for about a minute.

In a bowl, decant your can of tin-fish. Separate the fish into halves, and remove the centre bone. (Some people leave this in – but I am not a fan). Rinse out the can with a few tablespoons of water – and keep this tomatoey-water (you will use it shortly in the curry).

Add the (cleaned) tin fish and a bit of water to the curry. Let this cook for about 10 minutes on a low heat. The fish is already cooked, so you are basically cooking the tomato here and letting the flavors all blend together. When the curry is done, top it off with the boiled eggs. And finish with coriander.

Tastes amazing with rice.

Enjoy