Erivum Puliyum: Fish Pulao(Rice) | Meen Choru (Step by Step Pics)

Friday, November 26, 2021

Fish Pulao(Rice) | Meen Choru (Step by Step Pics)

Yet another weekend is here !! People in the US are having a long weekend with Thanksgiving and Black Friday. Weekends whether it's long or just the Saturday- Sundays is special. But weekend cooking is something I don't like much and would like to relax and enjoy like all others sitting idle at home and so spend the least time in kitchen. I cook up recipes that need less time to put together but should be a hearty meal as well that all would love too. One pot meals are a great choice then, and I end up making Vegetable pulao, Achari Chana or Chicken Pulao (Quick Version) or erachi choru.

This recipe of Fish Pulao or Fish Rice or Meen Choru is similar to erachi choru and if you have some good firm fish in hand, you can give this a try. The rice gets good flavours of the fish and the only thing to keep in mind is to give this a try using fresh firm fish, else may not taste good. I got a fresh neymeen(seer fish) and so used in this recipe, tasted delicious and all loved it. This recipe is not very spicy, as kids don't eat very spicy pulao. You can always modify the spicy levels as per tolerance. I have used jeerakashala(kaima) rice for the recipe, but you can always use basmati rice or bullet rice. Unlike fish biriyani this hardly takes any time to put together and ghee is not used, and am sure you will love it if you give this a try!!

Preparation time ~ 30 minutes

Cooking time ~ 30 minutes

Author ~ Julie

Serves ~ 5-6

Ingredients

to marinate

neymeen/ ayikoora/ seer fish 500 g

kashmiri chilly powder 1tbsp

pepper powder 1/2 tsp

turmeric powder 1/4 tsp

lemon juice 1 tsp

salt 1/2 tsp

oil 3 tbsp

for cooking rice & masala

jeerakashala rice(kaima rice) 3 cups (600g)

water 6 cups

ghee 2tbsp

oil 3tbsp

onion, 2 medium-sized chopped

tomato 2 large chopped

coriander powder, 1 tsp

hot chilly powder 3/4 tsp

turmeric powder(manjal podi) 1/2 tsp

perinjeerakam(fennel seeds) 1 tsp

fenugreek powders, a good pinch

coriander leaves 1 tbsp

mint leaves 1tbsp

whole garam masala (1' cinnamon, 4-5 cloves,3-4 cardamom, bay leaves 2)

salt to taste

to grind

ginger 1' piece

garlic 10 cloves

green chilli 2

coriander leaves, 1 small bunch

mint leaves 1 small bunch

Method

Wash and clean the fish pieces under running water, rinse 3-4 times. Drain all water and keep aside. Marinate the fish using the ingredients mentioned above, except oil. Leave the marinated fish for 30 minutes-1 hour. Heat oil in a pan and shallow fry the fish lightly so that the pieces don't break easily. Fry both sides, remove to a plate and use the remaining oil to make masala.
Add the ginger, garlic, green chillies and coriander leaves, mint leaves. Wash and soak the jeerakashala rice for 20 minutes in another bowl.

Add oil to another cooking pan, or use the same pan to sauté onions. To this add the whole garam masala pieces. Then add the chopped onions and sauté until it's lightly browned. Then add the ginger- garlic paste and sauté till the raw smell vanishes. To this add the spice powders on low flame and add the ground masala and sauté till the raw smell vanishes. Finally, add tomatoes, mix well and cook covered till the tomatoes mash nicely.
Add 1/ 4 cup water and slide in the fish pieces. Cook covered till oil separates on the surface of the masala.

Then remove the fish pieces on a plate and add water (6 cups). Add salt and bring to a boil. Transfer the soaked rice and cook covered till 3/4th done(about 10 minutes). Then place the fish pieces over the rice in the last few minutes of cooking and simmer on low flame for another 5 minutes or till the water is absorbed.

Garnish with chopped coriander and mint leaves. Leave covered for another 15 minutes and serve warm with cucumber raitha.

NOTES

* Add lemon juice while cooking rice if you feel the rice will stick.

* This is a medium spiced masala, if you like it more spicy add more green chillies to grind or replace the kashmiri chilli powder in marination to hot chilli powder.

Check out these quick one pot meal and try for sure-