Fish Ambul Thiyal

Ingredients

• 700g tuna steak, cut into 4cm cubes
• 8 pieces dried goraka, or 3 tbsp tamarind paste plus 1 tsp lime juice
• 1.5 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
• 1 tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 1.5 tsp salt
• 6 garlic cloves, crushed
• 4cm piece ginger, crushed
• 20 fresh curry leaves
• 1 pandan leaf, 10cm piece
• 5cm cinnamon stick
• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 250ml water

Before you cook

• Soak the goraka pieces in 100ml of hot water for 20 minutes until softened.
• Cut the tuna into even cubes and rinse them in lightly salted water.
• Crush the garlic and ginger to a rough paste in a mortar.

Steps

1. Pound or blend the softened goraka with its soaking water to a thick, almost black paste.
2. Put the goraka paste in a bowl and stir in the cracked pepper, chilli powder, turmeric, salt, garlic and ginger.
3. Add the fish cubes to the bowl and turn them over gently with your hands until every piece is coated in the dark paste.
4. Tip the coated fish into a clay pot or heavy pan and spread it into a single layer.
5. Tuck the curry leaves, pandan and cinnamon in among the pieces.
6. Pour the water down the side of the pot rather than over the fish, so the coating stays put.
7. Set the pot over a medium heat and bring it to a simmer without stirring.
8. Cover and cook for 15 minutes, holding the lid and swirling the whole pot every few minutes instead of using a spoon.
9. Uncover and cook for a further 15 to 20 minutes, until almost all the liquid has gone and what remains is a thick dark coating on the fish.
10. Drizzle over the coconut oil and swirl the pot once more.
11. Take the pot off the heat and leave the ambul thiyal to stand for at least 30 minutes, because the sourness settles and deepens as it rests.
12. Serve at room temperature with red rice, dhal curry and a coconut sambol.