This Kerala salmon curry is my mother-in-law’s recipe and it’s one of my favorites! It’s made with Indian spices, curry leaves and coconut milk. Roby and I eat some form of seafood at least once a week. Some favorites: shrimp curry, sardine thoran, fish cutlets or this salmon curry. While this salmon curry isn’t quite as quick or easy but it is fantastic. I typically make this on weekends or if I’m not too tired after work then I’ll make it on a weeknight.
what is kodampuli?
One ingredient in this recipe might be new to you – it’s a dried fruit called kodampuli and you can find it in most Indian grocery stores. I know the name sounds different, but think of it like any other dried fruit – a funny looking medjool date, you know? Don’t be afraid of kodumpuli’s strong smell. While it’s very aromatic, it’s flavor is much more subtle. It produces a slight but noticeable tanginess to fish curry, giving it an awesome, complex and unique flavor profile. Kodampuli (or kudampuli) is a sour, smoked and dried Indian fruit – it’s similar to tamarind and is used as a souring agent in Keralite fish curries. It’s also known as fish tamarind or gambooge – and is also often and wrongly confused with kokum (another sour fruit used in Indian dishes). You can most likely find kodampuli at your local Indian grocery store (just ask the owner if they have it). Kokum works too if that’s all they have. After you buy kodampuli, you’ll want to store it in an air-tight glass container. Why? Because it has a strong smell, remember? To prepare it for cooking, rinse the dried fruit and then soak it in water for half an hour before adding it to your curry. Try this curry – I hope you enjoy it. Personally, I think this fish dish tastes better the next day once the flavors have all had some time to marry. It’s a huge hit with my hubby. Like this recipe? Pin it to your favorite Pinterest board now so you will remember to make it later!
