Adam Liaw’s fish pakoras plus his beginner’s guide to deep-frying

Name: Adam Liaw’s fish pakoras plus his beginner’s guide to deep-frying
Cook time: 1 h
Yield: 4-6
Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients: 400g firm, white fish (such as blue-eye or ling) cut into 2½cm cubes; ¾ tsp turmeric powder; 2cm ginger, grated; 3 garlic cloves, grated; 1 tsp garam masala; ½ tsp Kashmiri or Korean chilli powder (optional); 2 tbsp yoghurt, plus ½ cup extra to serve; 1 egg; ½ cup chickpea (gram) flour; ½ cup cornstarch; 10 curry leaves, roughly chopped (optional); 1 small green chilli, sliced; a few coriander stalks; 600ml vegetable oil, for deep-frying; lime wedges, to serve

Adam Liaw

June 11, 2024

Fish pakoras with turmeric yoghurt and lime.William Meppem

Time:30 mins - 1 hourServes:4-6

Choose a firm, white-fleshed fish for this. If you can find curry leaves, do include them. They are one of my favourite ingredients.

Ingredients

400g firm, white fish (such as blue-eye or ling) cut into 2½cm cubes
¾ tsp turmeric powder
2cm ginger, grated
3 garlic cloves, grated
1 tsp garam masala
½ tsp Kashmiri or Korean chilli powder (optional)
2 tbsp yoghurt, plus ½ cup extra to serve
1 egg
½ cup chickpea (gram) flour
½ cup cornstarch
10 curry leaves, roughly chopped (optional)
1 small green chilli, sliced
a few coriander stalks
600ml vegetable oil, for deep-frying
lime wedges, to serve

Method

Step 1
Combine the fish and ½ teaspoon of the turmeric in a large bowl, season well with salt and pepper and mix to combine. Stand for 5 minutes, then add the ginger, garlic, garam masala, chilli powder, yoghurt, egg, flours, curry leaves (if using) and green chilli. Finely chop the stems of the coriander
and add to the mixture. Mix to coat the fish in the thick batter. You can add a couple of tablespoons of cold water to thin the batter if necessary.
Step 2
Combine the remaining yoghurt with ¼ teaspoon turmeric and season well with salt and black pepper.
Step 3
Heat the oil to 180C in a medium saucepan and cook the fish in batches for about 4-5 minutes until browned (see tips below). Drain well and serve with turmeric yoghurt and lime wedges.

Deep-frying 101

Deep-frying at home is nothing to be scared of. Here’s how I do it.

I use vegetable oil or canola for deep-frying and only half-fill a small saucepan with about 500-600ml of the oil. This allows me to deep-fry in batches rather than having to use lots of oil and fry in big batches.
I use an infrared thermometer to check the temperature, and I highly recommend them. A rougher measure is the cube-of-bread test, in which a small cube of white bread will brown in 15-20 seconds at 180C.
Always fry in small batches and skim off any batter or crumb bits in the oil. This will stop those bits burning and help to keep your oil fresh.
Drain what you’re frying on a wire rack rather than paper. A rack allows more oil to drip off and for air to circulate so that your fried food crisps. If you don’t have a wire rack, you can use paper.
After frying, keep your oil covered and you can reuse it for about a week. When it becomes too dark or starts to smell stale, it’s time to throw it out.
The best way to discard old frying oil is to pour it into a sealed container such as an old jar or bottle and drop it in the bin. Don’t pour it down the sink!