Natholi/Anchovy is one of my favorite sea food. It is quite available in my home town- a small village adjoining trivandrum. Now in US the situation is different. I couldn't find it on any fish market. Luckily we visited a new fish market last week and i saw something similar to anchovy/natholi. Hurrraayyyy. It is called as "smelt fish". Of course its a member from anchovy family but not exactly the same. The size will be some what bigger than natholi. I was planning to make curry but due to shortage of some needy things i ended with fry and here is my recipe. Its a simple and easy recipe. NATHOLI ORU CHERIYA MEENALLA :)
Updated:Click Netholi Fry-Kerala Style
Ingredients:
| Anchovy fish/Smelt fish | 40 |
| Red chilly powder | 4 tspoon |
| Small Onion | 4 |
| Turmeric Powder | 1/4 tspoon |
| Salt | to taste |
| Oil | to fry |
Preparation:
(1) Wash and clean the fish. I removed the head and tail part using hand. Also there will be a thin coating(skin) over the body of smelt fish (it will not be there on anchovies). You can easily remove it using hand. Knife is not necessary for cleaning anchovies or smelt fish. I prefer cleaning the entire fish. It can be cooked without removal too. Handle as per your convenience.
(2) Now peel the skin of onion and grind it in a mixer. Add chilly powder and turmeric powder to it. Grind it again and make a fine paste by sprinkling 1 tspoon of water to it.
(3) Take the paste in a bowl. Add salt to it. Add one tspoon of water to it and make thick masala. Don't add too much of water . Now add the cleaned fish to it and mix well so that the masala will coat well with the fish. If you have time leave it for marination about 30 minutes. You can also cook without marinating.
(4) Heat oil in a pan and add fish to it. Let it fry for 2 minutes. Now turn over the sideand cook for another 3 minutes. Your yummy and crispy fish fry is now ready.
(2) Now peel the skin of onion and grind it in a mixer. Add chilly powder and turmeric powder to it. Grind it again and make a fine paste by sprinkling 1 tspoon of water to it.
(3) Take the paste in a bowl. Add salt to it. Add one tspoon of water to it and make thick masala. Don't add too much of water . Now add the cleaned fish to it and mix well so that the masala will coat well with the fish. If you have time leave it for marination about 30 minutes. You can also cook without marinating.
(4) Heat oil in a pan and add fish to it. Let it fry for 2 minutes. Now turn over the sideand cook for another 3 minutes. Your yummy and crispy fish fry is now ready.
Enjoy...
Tips:
- The whole fish is edible. You can have its bone too.
- Since anchovy is a small fish, it tends to break easily while mixing and cooking. Handle with care.
Wow! It’s amazing that even though you didn't find authentic anchovy, you still managed to compensate for it and whip up your favorite dish. Anyway, that looks really delicious and tasty. Thank you for sharing the ingredients and procedures of your very own Natholi Oru Cheriya Meenalla. That’s a must try! All the best to you!
ReplyDeleteChris Carpenter @ Domenicos Monterey