Prepare Fish Balchao

Ingredients :

6 fillets or steaks of any firm fish
1 onion
oil for shallow frying
2 tblsp balchao paste

Masala mix :-
20 dry kashmiri chillies
5 peppercorns
10 cloves garlic
1/2 inch piece turmeric (or 1/2 tsp ground)
3 cloves
small piece of cinnamon bark (about 1/2 inch)
1 tsp coriander seeds
1/4 tsp cummin seeds


Preparation :

Grind together the masala mix in enough vinegar to give a thick paste.

Fry the onions until brown, add the masala and fry for about 5 minutes over
a low heat. Add the balchao and continue to cook.

In a separate pan fry the fish slightly.Add the masala/onion mixture to the fish, adding a little water if the paste is too thick.

Simmer until the fish is cooked. Serve with plain boiled rice.

We recommend you to look at our other Seafood Recipes

Most goans would agree that their favourite dish is fish curry and rice, where there is a good mix of ingredients in every mouthful. Seafood forms an important part of the goan diet as it is high in protein. Goa has a beautiful coastline which yields plentiful supplies of fish all year round. The goans skills in preparing and serving fish are legendary and this is amplified by the variety of fish available; kingfisher pomfret, doumer, tuna, mackerel, crab, prawns, tiger prawns, shark, lobster squid and mussels, the list is endless. Goans are extremely adept at preparing fish in a wide variety of fish. Very fresh fish is sliced thinly and served raw; this is desirable and adds a bit of zest to any goan recipe.

Fish can also be marinated, normally in a rashard but this is no means the only way it is prepared. Fish is also poached, battered, fried, grilled and cooked on skewers. For the sake of our little taste buds many beach shacks and restaurants present seafood lightly spiced, or without spices at all. Fish should be served as fresh as possible and it is usual for diners to choose their fish from tanks in restaurants.