Pomfret Caldine is one of the heritage recipes of Goa. One of my favourites when it comes to fish curries.
It is a mildly spiced preparation, made with very few spices and freshly extracted coconut milk. An ideal dish for hot summers of India. You can be rest assured that children would love it too. It has a yellowish colour to it, because there is lots of coconut milk, few green chillies, spices and that’s about it. Unlike, other Goan curries this has no red chillies whatsoever.
The taste of an authentic Goan Caldine Curry takes me back to the famous restaurant in Porvorim (North Goa) called O’Coquiero which serves authentic Goan Portuguese cuisine. The food here is absolutely delish and very Goan!
It’s an iconic place which came up in the 60’s. When you visit this place you will find a statue of the infamous Charles Sobhraj. It was at this place that he was nabbed.
The fish used in this preparation is popularly silver pomfret or prawns. Although, you can use king fish or lobsters as per your convenience.
Caldine can be made with vegetables too. Using bottle-gourd or other vegetables like cauliflower, ladyfinger etc. This being a creamy curry and extremely flavourful at the same time, pairs well with steamed rice and some accompaniments to go with it. For instance prawn balchao or raw mango pickle.
Do note that, one needs to be a little gentle while preparing this one, a medium to low flame is advisable. Another important step to keep in mind is, when you add the thick coconut milk – with that I mean the first extract, it is essential to put the flame off immediately after adding it, else the curry will curdle.
Let’s look at this beautiful recipe.
Authentic Goan Pomfret Caldine
Ingredients :
- 500 gm Pomfret medium sized
- 2 cups freshly grated coconut
- 5 cups warm water
- ½ tsp turmeric
- 1tsp cumin seeds
- 10 peppercorns
- 6 cloves
- 1 tbsp coriander seeds
- 6 cloves garlic chopped
- 1 chopped onion + 1 sliced onion
- 1 finely chopped tomato
- 3 green chillies
- Oil
- Salt
- Pinch of sugar
- 1 tbsp tamarind extract
Method :
- Wash the fish, apply some salt and turmeric to it.
To extract the milk with the spices :
- Grind the coconut with ½ cup warm water, and extract the milk. Do this twice or thrice. Do ensure the first coconut milk extract and the thinner extract are both kept in two separate bowls.
- Then grind the spices turmeric, cumin, coriander, black pepper, cloves, garlic, chopped onion and green chillies with the second extract (the thinner extract) of the coconut milk.
- Then pass it through a sieve to get the base for making the curry.
To prepare the curry :
- Heat oil in a pan, add the sliced onion, and tomato and saute till translucent.
- Add the thin coconut milk, salt and sugar and cook partially covered for 10 minutes.
- Add the fish slices and slit green chillies and cook for 5 minutes or till done. Do not mix with a spoon just swirl/shake the pot to mix.
- Add the tamarind extract and give it a boil
- Then on a very low flame add the thick coconut milk and swirl the pan.
- Take care to put off the flame before the curry reaches a boiling point.
- Adjust the seasoning and remove from heat.
- Serve hot with steamed rice.
I hope you will try this preparation and serve your family & guests proudly at your next gathering. Do let me know if you do so, would love to hear your feedback in the comments below.
Handy Tips :
- A little raw rice about ½ tsp, could be added while grinding the grated coconut, to avoid the gravy from curdling and give it a little body (but I don’t think it is required if a little care is taken while adding the coconut milk.)
- Also, since pomfret is a delicate fish and breaks easily, be gentle with stirring the curry and do not stir too frequently.
- This curry tastes best when prepared in an earthen vessel.
