Deep Fried Sardines - Chala Varuthathu

Deep fried sardines are a treat - and I am yet to see a Malayali who will say no to it!  I like my sardines fresh from the market, I clean them myself and I like to keep the head and tail intact - and remove just the gills and the guts.  Then I like to crunch them up one by one.....ha ha!!!!  Seriously, they are lovely with a glass of white wine or a beer.

Sardines are a very rich source of omega 3 and in Kollam, where I am from, during the sardine season they are everywhere, fresh and almost jumping out of the fisher woman's basket.  

Ingredients

1 kg sardines – gutted, scaled and scored

2 teaspoons chilli powder

1 teaspoon turmeric powder

Salt to taste

Oil to fry

Method:

Make a smooth paste with salt, turmeric and chilli powder and a little water.  The paste must not be runny.  Rub this paste well on the sardines inside and out and along where you have scored the fish.

Heat oil in a wok – something like bran oil works really well as it has a high smoking point.

Fry the fish in batches and set aside on absorbent paper towels to get rid of excess oil.

Serve hot with rice and dal – or on its own with a glass of chilled beer.

This recipe is gluten free and you can adjust the chilli to your liking.  You can even add black pepper and a teaspoon of ginger garlic paste to the paste if you want to.

Tip:  You can marinate the fish and leave it in the freezer to be fried later.  I often leave them in bags of 12 and fry them on the day they are used.