What we sell during the monsoon trawling ban
For about seven weeks each monsoon, the big boats stay in. Here is what still reaches our counter, and what does not.
Mathi fry the Kochi way
A simple sardine fry with a marinade you can make in five minutes.
Sardines are the most honest fish on the Kerala coast: cheap, full of flavour and best eaten the day they land. This is how most kitchens in Kochi fry them.
Ask us to scale and gut the sardines with the head on. At home, make two or three shallow cuts on each side. For half a kilo, mix two teaspoons of Kashmiri chilli powder, half a teaspoon of turmeric, a teaspoon of pepper, a teaspoon of ginger-garlic paste, salt and a squeeze of lime. Add a few drops of water to make a thick paste and rub it into the cuts.
Rest the fish for twenty minutes. Heat coconut oil in a flat pan until it shimmers, add a sprig of curry leaves and lay the sardines in without crowding them. Fry four minutes on each side without moving them, so the skin crisps.
Serve with rice and moru curry, or with kappa. If you have any left, flake them into a thoran the next day with grated coconut and shallots.
