While in London a couple weeks back, I got my hands on some super fresh, line caught horse mackerel (probably the most sustainable way of eating fish besides catching it yourself) at a fish co-op called Fin and Flounder on Broadway Market in London. (Big ups to them for their responsible practices, supporting a very unstable and unsustainable industry). Back at the house, I decided to section it up and make a fish rendition of my Burmese Chicken Curry, which has been by far the most popular recipe here at Ponytail Journal.

I learned how to make this recipe from a side-of-the-road curry shop in Northern Myanmar on my trip with our pal Yvan Rodic. So I urge you to experiment with different local line caught fish, it’s a google away to find out, and a delight to test out. Or why not go catch it yourself? We’ve got plenty of fishing tutorials right here!

Burmese Fish Curry

You will need:
1 whole fish, gutted and scaled
3 stalks of lemongrass, chopped into 2″ pieces
a thumb of ginger, peeled and chopped
3 sticks of fresh turmeric, peeled and chopped (this stuff stains!)
2 cloves of garlic, peeled
1 whole brown onion, peeled and chopped
masala curry powder
cayenne chilli powder
turmeric powder
4 large potatoes, halved
1 large zucchini, chopped into 2″ chunks
1 whole large red chilli, chopped into 1cm chunks (seeds can be removed to reduce heat)
water
fish sauce
sea salt
rice bran or coconut oil for frying

Cut your whole fish into 2 inch chunks with a sharp cleaver or chef’s knife, and toss with 2 tsp turmeric powder in a bowl to leave aside for 15-30mins.

In a food processor, add the lemongrass, ginger, garlic, onion, 1 heaped tsp masala curry powder, 1tsp cayenne chilli powder (or however much you prefer), and 1 tsp turmeric powder to pulse into a paste.

Heat a large casserole dish with about 2 tbsp oil until smoking hot and add the paste to stir fry. Add the vegetables, chilli, then the fish pieces to saute until just sealed and then add water to just cover the ingredients. Cover with the lid and lower the heat to low for simmering 20mins.

Taste for seasoning, then add fish sauce and sea salt until it’s salty enough for your taste. Serve with white rice or rice vermicelli, and you may want to eat the dish with sticks of fresh carrot and cucumber to cool your mouth in between bites.

Fin and Flounder Fishmongers
71 Broadway Market
London Fields
Hackney
E8 4PH

The Fin and Flounder offer the highest quality fish which we will always try to source on recommendations from leading bodies on sustainability: MCS, Pisces Responsible, and Seafish. They hope to provide all our customers information on where and how our fish is caught, and they source the best quality fish from sustainable boats.