Fish Moilee (Kerala style Fish Stew with Coconut Milk) – Guest post by Dhanya Samuel

by Shaheen Ali

Last month i started a new column for my blogger friends where i can share my space with them and show case their amazing culinary and photography skills to my viewers and followers as well. In addition to the chain of guest posts, today it gives me immense pleasure and happiness to share a beautiful post contributed by the very talented, stunning, head turner and an amazing blogger/photographer Dhanya Samuel. I have been knowing Dhanya since almost a year, since then i had been following her blog and specially all her fish and sea food recipes. Her cooking and photography skills need no introduction as it all speaks for itself. She is one gifted person who is not just humble and grounded but also loves to share her knowledge with friends and colleagues.


The Spice Adventures , well that’s the name of Dhanya’s blog through which you can get a chance to know her well. I would request you all to spare some time and drop in to her blog to check out all her amazing recipes and spectacular photographs. I am fortunate to have her on my blog today and i genuinely thank her for accepting my request and writing up a post for me. Its been quiet a time i noticed that my blog didn’t had enough of fish or sea food recipes. Though it’s a halal blog, hence i requested Dhanya to give me her traditional fish curry recipe that is non-alcoholic and super delicious. She was happy enough to hear the subject as she masters in it, hence i was rest assured that something amazing was going to come. Fish Moilee came as a pleasant surprise to me, the moment i went through the recipe and saw these amazing pictures i was literally blown away. So happy to share this recipe by Dhanya Samuel with all my readers today. So let us now just quickly move on to the description and recipe of Fish Moilee that is Kerala style Fish stew with coconut milk. And yes, don’t forget to check out these amazing pictures of the ingredients and the curry and drop in your feedback below in comments.

Over to Dhanya Samuel ….

Let me begin with a huge thanks to Shaheen for this opportunity. It is a great feeling when a fellow blogger invites me to her personal space to share my kind of food with her readers. So when Shaheen requested for a seafood recipe, this is the dish that first came to my mind. Fish Moilee also known as Fish Moily or Fish Molly (ahem, I don’t know where this version came from), a classic fish stew from God’s own country!

Fish Moilee is quintessentially Kerala. It is a celebration of two ingredients that the state is famous for – fresh seafood and coconuts. With an enviable coastline, there is no dearth for amazing seafood in Kerala and there is such a huge range of dishes that celebrates this produce. And of course coconuts, that sweet creamy lush fruit that has taken the world by storm.
The origin of this dish is heavily speculated; while some say it is influenced by the Portuguese cuisine, many others believe it was created to suit the mild palates of the British officers. I lean towards the latter theory as Fish Moilee uses very few spices and has a subtle and creamy flavor.

It is an extremely simple dish to prepare, one that can be made in less than 30 minutes. Best paired with steamed rice or appams (also known as hoppers); you need something soft to soak up all that delicious gravy. Get your hands on the freshest seafood for this dish. Any kind of white fish can be used but I found some amazing Spanish mackerel (king mackerel or king fish) at the market which does absolute justice to the flavours of this stew.
And of course don’t forget the second star ingredient – fresh coconut milk, both thin and thick. If you are new to cooking with coconut milk, the first extract that you get without adding any water is called the thick milk and the second extract (with added water) is the thin one. While cooking, you always add the thin milk first to avoid splitting and add the thick milk only right at the end. If you are using store bought coconut milk, then you will need to thin it out with water before using. There is another version of this dish in which the fish pieces are shallow fried first and then cooked in the coconut milk gravy. But I like it better without that added step as it keeps the fish moist and succulent.

So let’s get cooking this deliciously spiced, creamy and lush Fish Moilee!

Print Recipe
FISH MOILEE (Kerala style Fish Stew with Coconut Milk) - Guest post by Dhanya Samuel
Course side dish
Cuisine kerala
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Servings
helping
Ingredients
To temper:
Course side dish
Cuisine kerala
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Servings
helping
Ingredients
To temper:
Instructions
  1. (Make sure that all the ingredients are kept ready before starting to cook as the dish comes together fast)
  2. Heat the coconut oil in a large pan (use an earthenware pot if you have one as it adds flavour to the dish). Add the mustard seeds and allow to crackle.
  3. Next add the ginger, garlic, curry leaves and green chillies; sautxe9 for a minute on medium heat and then add the shallots. Sautxe9 till softened and the onions just start to take colour (remember not to brown it).
  4. Once the onions are softened, add the turmeric powder; mix well to combine and add the thin coconut milk. Season with salt and bring to boil. Then cook covered on low heat for a minute.
  5. Add the fish pieces carefully and cook on medium heat till about half done. Then add the tomatoes, mix well to combine. Taste and season if necessary. Continue to cook till the fish pieces are tender and cooked well.
  6. Then add the thick coconut milk, mix gently and remove from heat.
  7. For the tempering, heat coconut oil and add the green chili, curry leaves and ginger. Pour over the fish curry and keep covered for at least 15 minutes before serving.
  8. Best paired with steamed rice or appams. Note u2013 Tempering the fish stew at the end is optional. But I love the extra flavour that this adds to the whole dish.
Recipe Notes

That was Dhanya Samuel from The Spice Adventures sharing her Fish Moilee recipe with us. If you liked the recipe, kindly spare a moment and drop in your valuable feedback and suggestions in comments below. And do not forget to rate stars to the recipe. We promise you to bring some more authentic regional veg/nonveg recipes by us and also our guest bloggers in near future.

Thanks for stopping by!

Love : Shaheen

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3 comments

Tanaz Bulsara August 2, 2016 - 9:54 am

Lovely

Reply
Shaheen Ali August 2, 2016 - 9:59 am

Thanks for stopping by Tanaz. Happy u liked it ☺

Reply
Seafood Near Me August 15, 2019 - 8:14 pm

I am really satisfied with this posting that you have given us. This is really nice work done by you. Thank you and looking for more posts.

Reply

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