Maneet’s Kerala Fish Fry 🤩

Frying a whole fish is a total showstopper! It gets sooo crispy on the outside and flaky on the inside.

Get Maneet’s recipe👇

Kerala Fish Fry
Recipe courtesy of Maneet Chauhan
Level: Intermediate
Total: 1 hr 5 min (includes marinating time)
Active: 35 min
Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients

2 tablespoons store-bought ginger-garlic paste
1 small shallot, finely chopped
1 tablespoon distilled white vinegar
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon Kashmiri or other red chile powder
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Salt
1 whole red snapper, cleaned (about 1 pound)
Coconut oil, for deep-frying
Vegetable oil, for deep-frying
1/4 cup rice flour

For Serving:
Thinly sliced red onions
Finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves
Lime wedge

Directions

Special equipment: an instant-read thermometer

In a food processor, combine the ginger-garlic paste, shallot, vinegar, turmeric, chile powder and black pepper and process until smooth but still slightly chunky, about 45 seconds. Season with salt.

On each side of the snapper, make 3 to 4 shallow cuts in the skin about 2 inches long and 1/2 inch apart. Slather the marinade over the fish, ensuring that it covers all of the nooks and crannies. Place in a bowl and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Line a plate with paper towels. Add about 1 inch of coconut oil to a Dutch oven or other large heavy pot, then pour in enough vegetable oil so the total depth is about 3 inches. Heat over medium-high heat to 350 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer (or until hot enough that a pinch of flour flicked onto its surface sizzles).

Add the flour to a shallow bowl. Dredge the fish in the flour, then shake off any excess. Reduce the heat to medium and carefully add the fish to the oil. Fry, turning the fish carefully halfway through, until golden brown all over, 12 to 15 minutes total. Take care to prevent being burned by the sputtering oil and marinade. Transfer the fish to the paper towels to drain and season with salt.

Serve the fish hot, garnished with onions and cilantro, with a lime wedge on the side.

Adapted from and reprinted with permission from "Chaat" by Maneet Chauhan and Jody Eddy, copyright © 2020. Published by Clarkson Potter, a division of Penguin Random House, LLC.

Read More