Snakehead & Tomato-Coconut Curry

This spring, we finally decided to get serious about gardening. We’ve always had a few things going, but until this year, we didn’t put a whole lot of time or effort into it. We had a strong start early in the season, despite a few extremely late frosts- there were greens everywhere- but as the weather finally warmed up, we skipped early summer and went straight into an almost apocalyptic drought. Everything wilted, and growth was stunted as the plants struggled to survive our inconsistent and never quite sufficient watering. Everything but the tomatoes, that is.

The tomatoes not only survived, they are thriving. We have enough plants for an overabundance of fresh tomatoes, but not enough to can in large batches. We've had to step out of our wheelhouse a bit to use all the tomatoes before they spoil. 

This tomato and coconut milk curry was the perfect midsummer answer to the heat and surplus of fruit. The curry is rich without being heavy, a well balanced, hearty meal fit for 100+ degree days. Snakehead and cobia are perfect for this dish, but you can use any firm fish for this recipe. You could use any white meat, for that matter.

A few key points to this recipe: fry the curry powder, it makes a difference. And use a decent curry powder. We used Laxmi in this recipe, which is widely available, but feel free to experiment with different brands or make your own. As for the other spices- they’re optional but add a good deal of depth. The galangal is a little gingery, but more floral and intense. And the kala jeera can be a little bit of an enigma to track down online, as it is often confused with nigella sativa and jeera (regular cumin seed). It, too, adds a unique floral character that pairs well with the coconut and thai basil in the dish. Also, you are going to basically make the sauce, then poach the fish in the sauce. If you decide to make this with a protein that needs a long time to tenderize (like turkey or pheasant thighs), I'd recommend cooking it ahead of time, shredding it, and then warming it in the sauce.

Snakehead & Tomato-Coconut Curry

Prep: 10 minutes

Cook time: 45-55 minutes

Ingredients:

1-2 snakehead fillets or other firm white fish (pheasant or turkey breasts would work great as well) cut into 1” chunks

1 ½ medium onions, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 jalapenos, seeded, minced

2 ½ tbsp ginger, fresh, minced

1 ½ tbsp hot curry powder

4 cups fresh tomatoes, diced

1 can coconut milk

1 tbsp brown sugar

½ tsp ground coriander

⅛ tsp kala jeera (optional)

⅛ tsp dried galangal (optional)

salt

Method

In a wide, high-sided pan, liberally cover the bottom with oil and warm to medium heat. Add in onion, jalapeno, garlic and ginger. Stir and cook for 3-5 minutes until fragrant and onions are almost translucent. 

Scrape all the contents of the pan to one side and tilt the pan so that the oil drains to the opposite side. Add curry powder to the oil side, then level the pan back out and stir spices to prevent burning. You want the curry powder to darken in color and intensify in aroma but be careful not to burn it. After about a minute, stir the fried curry powder and the contents of the pan together.

Add in the tomatoes, stir to mix. Add in ~½ cup of water and bring to a simmer, allow to cook and reduce for 5-10 minutes, stirring often and breaking up large chunks of tomatoes as they soften.

Add in the coconut milk and stir. Add in brown sugar, kala jeera and galangal. Taste, add salt and adjust seasoning. 

Adjust the heat to barely simmering and add in fish. Stir to coat with sauce and cover loosely with a lid. Cook for 4-5 minutes, rotating fish as needed until cooked through.

Serve with thai basil, chili peppers, and rice.