Blue-eye, tomato, potato and ginger curry
This light and fresh curry highlights the freshness of ginger, the spicy crackle of mustard seeds and the unique smoky, citrus character of curry leaves.
Ingredients
800g whole piece blue-eye trevalla, from the thickest part of a single fillet, skin on (or 4 x 200g fillets)
100ml extra virgin olive oil
salt flakes
1 brown onion, sliced in rounds
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
8cm piece of ginger, julienned
1 tbsp yellow mustard seeds
2 potatoes, peeled and sliced in 0.5cm discs
6 large ripe tomatoes, in chunky dice
5 stems curry leaves
1 lemon
Method
Slice the fish lengthways down the middle of the fillet, along the line of the pin bones. Then run your knife right down the other side of the bones to remove them and the blood line; discard. You will now have two portions of fillet (from one side of the fish). Cut these across into three-centimetre-thick slices. If you have four 200-gram fillets, simply cut them in half crossways.
Place a large wide-based frypan over high heat. Add half the oil and heat for one minute. Season the fish with the salt and fry, skin side down, for a minute or two to crisp the skin. Remove from the pan and set aside.
Add the remaining oil to the same pan and heat through. Add the onion, garlic, ginger and mustard seeds and cook, stirring, until the onion starts to soften (about one minute).
Add the potato slices and cook for a few more minutes, stirring until they begin to soften. Add the chopped tomatoes, stir, season and cook for a few more minutes until the tomatoes break down and start to form a sauce.
Add 200 millilitres of water and the curry leaves (still attached to their stems) and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 10 minutes. The potatoes should be just cooked and the sauce will have thickened.
Check and adjust the seasoning. Make sure the sauce is on the drier side as the fish will release water and moisten it. Add the fish, skin side up and cook for four to six minutes, or until cooked, with the lid on. Squeeze over the lemon juice and serve with steamed rice.
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