"Tallele Mothyale/ Silver Fish Fry" ... a delicious crisp fried fish from GSB Konkani Saraswat Cuisine served during meals ... fishitarians love fish fries and it has always taken a prominent place in meals … Mothyale (in Konkani) known as Bolanjeer/ Nethili/ Silver Fish/ Anchovy in other languages is a small sized fish that tastes great fried crisp to be served with dal- chawal; one of the best combos … this one is only for fish lovers, others please do excuse … Yummilicious …
** Mothyale in konkani is known as Bolanjeer/ Nethili/ Silver Fish/ Anchovy in other languages is a small sized fish say about maximum 3-4 inches in size. You can prepare both curry as well as fries and they both taste awesome. Over the years deep frying has slowly taken a back seat making way to tava fry, grilling, baking, air- frying etc. that saves on oil and I too like others try my best to switch over to new methods, however some fries turn out the best when deep fried and I just love to keep it that way.
** Fish is good for health having healthy nutrients (refer to google) and Doctors/ Nutritionists these days advice against discontinuing eating fish if it has been a part of your food in growing up years unless you have a proper replacement veggie meal. Going vegetarian is great, but then certain substitutes needs to be taken care of as body usually adapts to what you eat through childhood and that food is what it is the most comfortable with; however, if you can afford a dietitian for guidance that’s great.
** Fish curry/ fries both are a favorite of fish lovers and Sunday meals are always eagerly waited for when these delicacies are prepared, served and enjoyed with whole family sitting together along with guests/ relatives if any. There is nothing tastier than crisp fried fish pieces and while children usually love either surmai/ rawas/ pomfret/ prawns as they have less thorn in them, elders also enjoy relishing along with the above mentioned ones sardines, mackerels etc. that have plenty of thorns that need caution.
** This is one piece of info. I always try to include in my Fish dish posts to clarify my point to those objections I unnecessarily recive. Unlike some people thoughts amchies do eat fish more so the one’s living in and around coastal region especially the Konkan belt. The story dates back to centuries back about how GSB’s came about eating fish and is a long story running back to more than 500 yrs which I will avoid more of here. However, you can always find it in the history of GSB’s for more info.
** I guess for a small post of Mothyale/ Bolanjir/ Silver fish fries I have penned down a lot of my thoughts here and I guess I should now move over to the part of recipe before I bore my readers. As mentioned above Mothyale Gashi/ Ambat (Bolanjeer/ Anchovy/ Silver Fish Curry) are small in size and have a thorn within with some finer thorns too and young children are at times reluctant to eat them, though these thorns are not harmful and if handled carefully, so do guide them to do so, through young age.
** Here is my recipe for "Tallele Mothyale/ Silver Fish Fry" ... My style ...
** Wash and clean about 25-30 Mothyale (Bolanjeer/ Nethili/ Anchovy/ Silver Fish). Trim off head portion and fins, scrap the back for scales, give a slit in the side, cut of the tail, clean the stomach etc. You can always watch any You Tube channel for method if required or ask you friend/ fish vendor to teach you same.
** Wash in plenty of water gently and drain all water. Pat it dry with absorbent tissues or thick kitchen towel and keep it aside ready.
** In a bowl add 3-4 tblsp of Kashmiri red chilly powder (mirsange pitti/ mirchi tikkat) salt (namak/ meeta) to taste, pinch of hing (asafoetida) powder, ½ tsp haldi (turmeric) powder, pinch of dhania (kothimbir/ coriander) powder, 1 tblsp of tamarind (chinchama/ Imly) paste or (1/2 tsp amchur powder/ 1 tblsp of vinegar).
** Mix all the ingredients into a thick paste without lumps adding water as is necessary only. You can increase or decrease the amount of red chilly powder depending upon your family preference. I also suggest using Kashmiri Red chilly powder as it is less pungent, gives out a good color and gives extra bulk to the paste.
** Apply the paste all over the Mothyale/ Silver fish covering it on all sides evenly. Add them all into a airtight container and keep it in fridge to marinate for at least 30-45 minutes. This helps in the masala getting absorbed well to fish.
** In a flat plate add 3-4 tblsp of Rice (Tandul/ Akki) powder, 1-2 tblsp of chiroti/ fine Rava, 1/2 tsp of Kashmiri Red Chilly Powder, 1/2 tsp of Salt and mix well. Now dust the marinated fish with it taking care to see that it covers on all sides.
** Heat plenty of oil/ tel/ tela in a thick bottomed kadai to smoking point, lower the heat and wait for a few minutes to bring the oil to required heat. Now gently add the dusted fish pieces one by one into the oil and let fry for a few minutes.
** After frying for a few minutes with a ringed spatula gently flip over the fish pieces to fry all over evenly to a crisp and deep red color. When done remove and place it on a absorbent paper and let drain off the excess oil.
** Note : Here I have deep fried them to crisp texture, however, if desired you can tava fry, shallow fry, air fry, bake, grill or steam them too. You will find a few of the mentioned methods in my Blog, which you may browse through if need be. I am sharing a common link to them at the bottom of this recipe, do check them out.
** Do not add all the fish pieces in one go for frying, you should not crowd the kadai, there should be enough place for even frying of the fish. Continue to fry in batches until all of them are fried or the required number of fish is fried.
** "Tallele Mothyale/ Silver Fish Fry" is done and ready to be served. Always serve fried fish immediately on frying, as they taste best served fresh- crisp and hot. Fish fries go well served along with any dishes of your choice, be it rice, roti or pejja/ porridge. Simply serve it with dal/ saar - chawal during meals for best of taste, it is fantastic combination. Do try these fries if they are available in your vicinity and enjoy with your family and friends. Remember to fry them crisp, sure to be loved by young and old alike.
** Given below are common links for both “Fish Items and Fish Fries” … you may browse through for more choice on equally delicious dishes.
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