Ingredients

• 5 big fresh mackerels
• 12 dry red chillies
• 8 fenugreek seeds
• 50 flakes of garlic
• 6 kokums washed and soaked in just a little water
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tbsp coriander seeds
• 3/4 cup oil
• salt to taste

How to Make Mackerels Spiced

• Chop off the heads and the fins of the mackerels.
• Scrape them and clean their insides thoroughly.
• Wash in lots of water and keep them on layers of paper so that no water remains.
• Smear them with a mixture of a little salt and turmeric powder and let stand for half an hour.
• This lessens their strong smell.
• Dry them with cloth.
• Cut each mackerel into two breadth wise.
• Grind chillies, garlic flakes, cumin and coriander seeds to a fine paste.
• Mix enough salt in it.
• Smear the ground paste all over the mackerel pieces.
• Let them remain thus soaked in the paste for at least 15 minutes.
• Heat oil in a broad, heavy-bottomed pan.
• Season the oil with fenugreek seeds and put in the kokums and turmeric powder.
• Stir lightly and arrange the prepared fish pieces in it.
• Pour the left-over paste in which the fish pieces were soaked.
• Pour 1/4 cup of warm water.
• Cover the pan for a little while.
• Then, take away the lid and turn each piece upside down very carefully with a flat spoon.
• Let the pan be on fire till the watery part is almost evaporated.
• Serve with plain rice or phulkas.
• If kokums are not available, then thick tamarind pulp can be used but then no water should be added.