If you haven’t heard of dried fish (nungel meen) chutney before, it is a tangy and spicy chutney, made from dried fish, usually a shrimp, mackerel, anchovies or shark fish. A popular side dish with fish-eating communities across India, fish chutney is made by slow roasting dried fish in a bit of oil and coarsely grinding the roasted fish with freshly grated coconut, garlic cloves, and a few other spices. Finally, a tad bit of tamarind is added to bring about the right amount of tanginess in the dish.Pair this meen chutney with yogurt rice (dahi rice) or Ganji dish and it will instantly add that extra bit of flavor to your meal, making it an absolute lip smacker.
Course Accompaniment
Cuisine Mangalorean
Keyword Dried fish chutney
Prep Time 2 hourshours22 minutesminutes
Cook Time 31 minutesminutes
Total Time 2 hourshours53 minutesminutes
Servings 2cups
Ingredients
50gmsdried fish, dried shark fish, anchovies or dried prawns/shrimp
1tspcoconut oil
8-10byadgi chilies, can substitute with Kashmiri chillies
1tbspcoriander, dhania seeds
1/4tspcumin, jeera seeds
a pinch of fenugreek, methi seeds
a pinch of carom, ajwain seeds
8-10whole black peppercorns
1/2tsp turmeric powder
1/4cuponions, roughly chopped
1tsptamarind paste, size of a small marble if using fresh tamarind
4clovesof garlic
2cupsfreshly grated coconut
Instructions
Slowly roast the dried fish over medium-low heat for approximately 10-15 minutes. Turn off the heat when the fish has turned crispy and can easily be broken to pieces. Break them into bite size pieces and discard the tail (if using shark fish or thatte). Set it aside to cool.
Heat a teaspoon of coconut oil in a medium sized pan and over medium heat.
Add chilies to it and roast them till an aroma emanates from it. Remove the chilies and keep it aside.
Roast remaining ingredients (coriander seeds, cumin seeds, peppercorns, ajwain and fenugreek seeds and turmeric powder) for a minute or till it turns aromatic. Set it aside to cool it down (for approximately 10 minutes)
Transfer them to a blender along with the chilies, onions, garlic and tamarind paste and grind them to a fine paste. Add the coconut and pulse 2-3 times. Transfer the coconut-spice powder to a bowl and mix the fried fish.
Store in an air-tight container in a refrigerator and consume within 4-5 days.
Notes
To make your dried fish chutney last for a month or so, do not add onions and instead of freshly grated coconut use dried coconut flakes (copra) in the same ratio. Store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Disclaimer: Approximate Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and can vary depending on the exact ingredients/brands used. If you have health issues, please work with a registered dietician or nutritionist.