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{{#seo:
|title=Spicy basa fish fillets with pineapple an Indian recipe
|titlemode=replace
|keywords=#fish #mustardoil #pineapple #chillipowder #turmeric #fennelseeds #fry #ginger #curryleaves #bayleaves #simmer
|hashtagrev=032020
|description=I have adapted this West Bengal fish recipe to use basa. It can be made with any similar firm fish fillets such as haddock, pollock or mackerel
}}

I have adapted this West Bengal fish recipe to use [[basa]]. It can be made with any similar firm [[Fish|fish]] fillets such as [[Haddock|haddock]], [[pollock]] or [[Mackerel|mackerel]]. I halved the amount of oil used in the original recipe, however, you can see from the frying picture, the dish is still quite oily.

When I first tasted this dish I wasn't sure about it as it is a little unusual, by the end though I wanted more and it's been requested again for next week!

Authentic dishes like this are served together with all of the leaves and whole spices. It is for the diner to either eat or remove the spices from the plate. It's quite fun and once you get used to it you won't ever bother picking all the spices out before serving.

The original recipe: [[Illich maachh annanas]] ([[Hilsa]] (''shad'') with [[Pineapple|pineapple]]) is from Mr Pushpash Pent's wonderful "[[India]]" recipe book: ISBN 978-0714859026, a worthy addition to any cook's bookshelf.
{{recipesummary
|TotalCalories = 1517
|PortionCalories = 379
|DatePublished=13th November 2013
|Author=Chef
|ImageComment = Served with plain rice and naan bread
|Servings = Serves 4
|Difficulty = 2
|TotalTime = 1 hour, 25 minutes
|PrepTime = 1 hour
|CookTime = 25 minutes
|Image = [[Image:Basa fish fillets with pineapple recipe.jpg|middle|none|alt=Electus]]

}}
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====Best recipe review====

''Basa is The Best''

5/5 

A great recipe and basa is better tasting than cod and less than half the price.

 [[User:PSmith|Paul R Smith]] 
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{{RecipeIngredients

| 600 g (1lb 5 oz) [[Basa fillets|basa fillets]]
| 1.5 teaspoons of [[Ground|ground]] [[Turmeric|turmeric]]
| 1 thumb-sized piece of fresh peeled [[Ginger|ginger]], [[Grated|grated]]. I now use my [[Home made lazy ginger|home made lazy ginger]] for recipes like this
| 1 tablespoon of whole [[Fennel seeds|fennel seeds]]
| 75ml [[Mustard oil|mustard oil]]
| 4 [[Curry leaves|curry leaves]] or 2 [[Bay leaves|bay leaves]]
| 2 whole [[Cloves|cloves]]
| 4 [[Green cardamom pods|green cardamom pods]]
| 1 [[Stick of cinnamon|stick of cinnamon]] about 2.5 cm (1 inch) long
| 1 teaspoon [[Chilli powder|chilli powder]]
| 6 slices of drained canned [[Pineapple|pineapple]], chopped
| [[Sea Salt|sea salt]]

}}
<gallery widths=250px heights=250px perrow=5>
Image:Lock and lock cheat.jpg|thumb|300px|right|The easy way to coat the fish - see Chef's notes
Image:Frying the fish curry.jpg|thumb|300px|right|Frying the fish (qty: 2 people)
</gallery>
===Method===

{{RecipeMethod

| Cut the fillets into even sized pieces
| Place in a shallow dish and rub with the [[Turmeric|turmeric]] and a few pinches of [[Sea Salt|sea salt]]
| Pop in the [[Fridge|fridge]] and leave for 40 minutes to [[Marinade|marinade]]. It won't hurt if it's left for longer
| In a [[Mortar and pestle|mortar and pestle]], make a paste with the [[Grated|grated]] [[Ginger|ginger]]. Add a little water (or the [[Vinegar|vinegar]] from the [[Lazy ginger|lazy ginger]]) if it needs a thinning a little
| Add half of the [[Seeds|seeds]] and pound to a paste (or use a [[Spice|spice]]/[[Coffee grinder|coffee grinder]]
| In a [[Wok|wok]] or [[Frying pan|frying pan]], heat a few tablespoons of the [[Mustard oil|mustard oil]] and [[Fry|fry]] the [[Fish|fish]] pieces for about a minute a side. Do this in small batches, removing the cooked [[Fish|fish]] and keep to one side while the [[Rest|rest]] is being cooked
| In the same pan, with all of the [[Fish|fish]] removed, heat the remaining [[Mustard oil|mustard oil]], the [[Curry leaves|curry leaves]] or [[Bay leaves|bay leaves]], [[Cloves|cloves]], [[Cardamom pods|cardamom pods]], [[Cinnamon|cinnamon]] and the remaining whole [[Fennel seeds|fennel seeds]]
| [[Stir-fry]] these for a few minutes
| Add the [[Ginger paste|ginger paste]] and the [[Chilli powder|chilli powder]] and [[Stir-fry|stir-fry]] for another 3 minutes, stirring now and then
| Put in chopped [[Pineapple|pineapple]] and season with a pinch of [[Salt|salt]] then add 125 ml (4,5 fl oz) of water, bring to the [[Boil|boil]], reduce the heat and [[Simmer|simmer]] for 5 minutes
| Add the [[Fish|fish]] pieces, cover and [[Simmer|simmer]] for a further 15 minutes. Shimmy the now and then to ensure the fish does not stick.
}}
===Serving suggestions===
Serve hot with [[Plain boiled rice|plain boiled rice]].
===Chef's notes===
A really quick way to coat the fish evenly with [[salt]] and [[turmeric]] is to add them to a [[Lock & Lock]]-style box together with the fish. Close the lid and shake well. As you can see from the photograph it gives the fish really good even covering. It is similar to Jamie Oliver's 'plastic bag' method - only better!

Instead of mustard oil, a - At a push you could use [[Olive oil|olive oil]] / [[Vegetable oil|vegetable oil]] and [[Fry|fry]] a tablespoon of [[Black mustard seeds|black mustard seeds]] in the [[Oil|oil]], then use as [[Mustard oil|mustard oil]]t a push you could use [[Olive oil|olive oil]] / [[Vegetable oil|vegetable oil]] and [[Fry|fry]] a tablespoon of [[Black mustard seeds|black mustard seeds]] in the [[Oil|oil]], then use as [[Mustard oil|mustard oil]]

Although not authentic for an Indian recipe, I used 1 teaspoon of [[chipotole]] [[chilli powder]] which is quite hot (7/10 [[Scoville heat scale]]). It was spicy but bearable for others who may not be used to hotter curries.
{{Template:PeelingGinger}}
{{RecipeLine}}
[[Category:Recipes]]
[[Category:Indian recipes]]
[[Category:Main courses]]
[[Category:Spicy recipes]]
[[Category:Chilli pepper recipes]]
[[Category:Fish recipes]]
[[Category:Freshwater fish recipes]]
[[Category:Sea fish recipes]]
[[Category:Pan fried]]
[[Category:Stir fried]]

<code 'hashtagrev:12032020'>[[Special:Search/fish|#fish]] [[Special:Search/mustardoil|#mustardoil]] [[Special:Search/pineapple|#pineapple]] [[Special:Search/chillipowder|#chillipowder]] [[Special:Search/turmeric|#turmeric]] [[Special:Search/fennelseeds|#fennelseeds]] [[Special:Search/fry|#fry]] [[Special:Search/ginger|#ginger]] [[Special:Search/curryleaves|#curryleaves]] [[Special:Search/bayleaves|#bayleaves]] [[Special:Search/simmer|#simmer]]
</code>

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