I was so excited to see my curry plant yield berries this summer and this week, they turned a deep purple colour. I researched on the internet and had a chat with Ian Hemphill of Herbie's Spices and discovered that the berries are edible. I promptly picked a couple and sampled them and to my surprise, they had an intriguing mix of curry, pear and mildly bitter flavours. While I wouldn’t rave about the flavour, it was still something to write home about. Oh ha ha, I was already home! Anyway, Please be careful – the centre stone in the berries are highly toxic and this is why the berry is rarely used other than juicing and mixing with lime juice for sting bites and as an insect repellent.
On the other hand, the CURRY LEAVES are beneficial to our health. They work wonders for digestion and help nausea and indigestion symptoms. Simply place a few crushed fresh leaves into a glass, add ½ cup of cold water and a bit of honey and muddle together. They contain iron, Phosphorus and Vitamin C and give amazing flavour to rice and curries. I like to pick them fresh, deep fry them and sprinkle the crispy leaves over a Sri Lankan fish curry.
Here is a recipe from Peter Kuruvita which I love to cook:
Sri Lankan Kingfish Curry
4 tbsp ghee
4 eschalots, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
10 curry leaves
5cm piece ginger, finely grated
1 long green chilli, chopped
5 cloves
5 cardamom pods
1 cinnamon quill
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground paprika
1 tsp ground fenugreek
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp medium-hot curry powder
750ml fish stock
270ml can coconut cream
6 x 160g (3cm-thick) Hiramasa kingfish fillets
Heat two tablespoons of ghee in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add eschalots, garlic, curry leaves, ginger and chilli, and cook, stirring, for five minutes or until eschalots are soft. Stir in spices and cook for two minutes or until fragrant. Add fish stock, bring to the boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes. Increase heat to medium, add coconut cream and cook for five minutes or until slightly thickened. Strain curry sauce through a fine sieve over a bowl, discard solids and return sauce to pan over low heat to keep warm. Season kingfish with salt and pepper. Heat remaining two tablespoons of ghee in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add fish, skin-side up, and cook four minutes each side or until skin is crisp and fish is just cooked.
Serve kingfish fillets with curry sauce.
At Flying Fish, Kuruvita served this with tamarind chutney, fried curry leaves, tomato concasse (tomatoes cut into fine dice), eggplant pickle and coconut.
On the other hand, the CURRY LEAVES are beneficial to our health. They work wonders for digestion and help nausea and indigestion symptoms. Simply place a few crushed fresh leaves into a glass, add ½ cup of cold water and a bit of honey and muddle together. They contain iron, Phosphorus and Vitamin C and give amazing flavour to rice and curries. I like to pick them fresh, deep fry them and sprinkle the crispy leaves over a Sri Lankan fish curry.
Here is a recipe from Peter Kuruvita which I love to cook:
Sri Lankan Kingfish Curry
4 tbsp ghee
4 eschalots, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
10 curry leaves
5cm piece ginger, finely grated
1 long green chilli, chopped
5 cloves
5 cardamom pods
1 cinnamon quill
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground paprika
1 tsp ground fenugreek
1 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp medium-hot curry powder
750ml fish stock
270ml can coconut cream
6 x 160g (3cm-thick) Hiramasa kingfish fillets
Heat two tablespoons of ghee in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add eschalots, garlic, curry leaves, ginger and chilli, and cook, stirring, for five minutes or until eschalots are soft. Stir in spices and cook for two minutes or until fragrant. Add fish stock, bring to the boil, reduce heat to low and simmer for 15 minutes. Increase heat to medium, add coconut cream and cook for five minutes or until slightly thickened. Strain curry sauce through a fine sieve over a bowl, discard solids and return sauce to pan over low heat to keep warm. Season kingfish with salt and pepper. Heat remaining two tablespoons of ghee in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Add fish, skin-side up, and cook four minutes each side or until skin is crisp and fish is just cooked.
Serve kingfish fillets with curry sauce.
At Flying Fish, Kuruvita served this with tamarind chutney, fried curry leaves, tomato concasse (tomatoes cut into fine dice), eggplant pickle and coconut.