Isipingo Fish Curry

Isipingo is a predominantly Indian town south of Durban on the Kwazulu Natal Coast, named for its meandering river, the Siphingo, at the mouth of which there is a magnificent beach frequented by many fishermen, especially during the sardine run.

Kingklip is an elongated fish of the eel family found off the coast of South Africa, although it doesn't much resemble an eel as it is compressed on the sides like a normal fish, but still fairly rotund. It has firm, succulent white meat, delicious in flavour, normally cut into steaks, which lends itself to almost all methods of preparation, but especially to curry. Although it is caught mostly by deep sea fishing off the west coast of the Cape, it may also be caught up the east coast as far as the north of Kwazulu Natal and is a favourite fish in restaurants in the province. If you are lucky, you may even catch one off Isipingo Beach.

Ingredients:
For the fish masala:
40ml coriander seeds
15ml cumin seeds
5ml fennel seeds
2-3ml fenugreek seeds (methi)
2 inch stick of cassia (tuj)
3-4 cloves
2-3 green cardamom pods
6-8 whole black peppercorns

For the fish curry:
1 inch cube of tamarind pulp
100ml boiling water
4 x 225 g kingklip steaks
30ml sunflower oil
2 medium onions, finely chopped
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
8-10 curry leaves
2 dried bay leaves
2-3ml turmeric
5ml hot chilli powder (tandoor masala)
30ml Fish Masala
tin of plum tomatoes, drained, deseeded and chopped
400ml can coconut milk
5ml salt

Method:
For the Fish Masala, simply grind everything together to a fine powder in a spice grinder or by hand with a pestle and mortar. Usually the seeds are roasted for a masala, but for fish curry I don't roast them as the unroasted spices give a more delicate flavour to the dish. Store in an airtight container.

Put the tamarind pulp in a bowl and cover with the boiling water. Leave to soak until the water is cool enough to put your hands in, then work the tamarind pulp with the fingers until the pulp has broken down and the seeds are released. Strain the liquid through a fine sieve into a cup and discard the pulp remaining in the sieve.

Rinse the fish steaks under cold water and dry on kitchen paper. Heat the oil in a large shallow pan. Add the onion, garlic and curry leaves and fry gently over low heat for 8-10 minutes until the onion is soft and lightly coloured.

Add the bay leaves, turmeric, chilli powder and 30ml of fish masala and fry for 1-2 minutes until the aroma begins to build from the spices. Add the tomatoes, tamarind liquid, coconut milk and salt and simmer gently over low heat for about 15 minutes.

Now your sauce is made and it;s time to put in the kingklip steaks. Gently transfer them into the pan and spoon over the sauce. Simmer gently for 5 minutes, then cover the pan and set aside in a warm place for half an hour. The fish should now be sufficinetly cooked, but if not, return it to the heat for a few minutes.

Serve with steamed rice, chutneys, sambals and naan bread.