The Nellore Fish Pulusu is a humble, Andhra fisherman’s fish curry. It is hot and tangy and eaten with a mound of plain, steamed rice. But don’t let that description fool you. Albeit, the Nellore Fish Pulusu is made with simple, everyday ingredients, but it is comfort food that is not shy about its bold, some would say, even gaudy colour and punchy flavour.
What is a pulusu?
A pulusu is a staple of the Telugu table. It is essentially a thin, runny curry with a base made of tamarind, sour local tomatoes, ground red chillies and coriander seeds and a generous scattering of curry leaves. Vegetables / meat / fish are added to this sauce. The best way to eat a pulusu is to pour it over steamed rice dolloped with ghee. The rice offsets the heat and helps mop up the runny curry. Papads and fried vadiyalu ( crunchy, sun-dried lentil nuggets) are perfect accompaniments to this meal. This Nellore Fish Pulusu is a beloved, old-school recipe, made with inexpensive, local, fresh-water fish such as rohu, catla (varieties of carp) and sometimes pulasa (much prized local hilsa).
Tips to perfect your Nellore Fish Pulusu
- Cook your fish pulusu in cold-pressed gingelly oil (also known as sesame oil in India) for that authentic Telugu taste.This is different from the dark sesame oil used to dress salads, noodles etc in East Asia. That oil is extracted from toasted sesame seeds and is not used for cooking.
- Do not stinge on curry leaves. Dark, slightly older leaves (as opposed to tender, light green ones) have the strongest aroma. Add curry leaves in the tempering and more when your pulusu is cooked.
- Temper your Nellore Fish Pulusu with a combination of black mustard (rai), cumin (jeera) and fenugreek (methi) seeds. Add a ground masala powder of mustard, cumin, fenugreek, coriander seeds and pepper at the very end, like you would add garam masala, to enhance the fragrance and flavour of the pulusu.
- Use both tomato puree and tamarind to add sourness to the curry. If you prefer less tang, reduce the tamarind paste by a bit. Ripe, red, desi tomatoes are the best since they impart the quintessential, deep, red colour to the pulusu (The red colour in the photos is not enhanced).
I think this Nellore Fish Pulusu tastes it’s best one day after it is made. It’s a no-fuss, everyday fish curry, organic and true to the land it hails from. This is what makes it an icon of Andhra cuisine.
Nellore Fish Pulusu
Ingredients
- 4 fillets fresh-water fish such as rohu, catla (carp) or roopchand (commonly called Chinese pomfret), hilsa (a type of herring), catfish or white saltwater fish such as surmai (kingfish)
- 2 tbsp store-bought tamarind paste or a walnut-sized ball of tamarind soaked in a little water to extract a thick paste.
- 4 ripe, red tomatoes, coarsely pureed
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 1½ tsp garlic paste
- 1 tsp ginger paste
- 2 fresh green chillies slit halfway lengthwise
- ½ tsp turmeric powder
- 1½ tsp red chilli powder (cayenne)
- 1 tsp coriander powder
- 1½ tbsp gingelly (sesame) oil
- ½ tsp black mustard seeds
- ½ tsp cumin seeds
- ¼ tsp methi (fenugreek) seeds
- 400 ml water
- A large handful of curry leaves
- Salt
For the masala powder
- 1 tsp black mustard seeds
- ½ tsp cumin seeds
- ¼ tsp methi (fenugreek) seeds
- 1 tsp black peppercorns
- 2 tsp coriander seeds
Instructions
- Season the fish fillets with a little salt and turmeric and set aside.
- Toast the spices for the masala on low heat for a minute at most and grind to a fine powder.
- Heat the oil in a pan on medium heat and add the tempering of mustard, cumin and fenugreek seeds. Allow them to crackle and take care not to burn them or they'll turn bitter.
- Tip in the chopped onion and a few curry leaves and sauté on low flame till the onion is soft and very lightly golden.
- Add the garlic and ginger pastes and continue to sauté, (scraping the pan intermittently to prevent burning) till the smell of raw garlic and ginger disappears and the mixture is golden.
- Now add the chilli powder and coriander powder mixed in a tbsp of water. Cook for 20 seconds before pouring in the tomato puree. Add salt and green chillies and let the tomatoes cook till the oil starts separating on the sides
- Put in the tamarind paste and enough 400 ml water. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 5-7 min till the sauce is cohesive and cooked. Add more water if needed.
- Slide in the fish and cook for 4-5 minutes till they're opaque. do not stir too much else the fillets may break.
- Sprinkle the ground masala and remaining curry leaves over the curry, gently shake the pan to incorporate them, cook for 20 seconds turn off the heat. Serve hot with steamed rice.