I grew up in a joint family with about 25 members living under the same roof. I had plenty of aunts who were in charge of the kitchen and never allowed my cousins and me to enter. So I never learnt how to cook until I was married and sent to Bengaluru to start a new life.
I was so bad at cooking that I didn’t know how to even boil rice. But my mother gave a diary full of recipes for me to try and I slowly attempted to make something or the other. My husband knew the basics of cooking; he helped me out occasionally as well. I also took a lot of help from cookery shows on television channels. Now, 11 years later, I’m proud to say that my cooking has definitely improved and I don’t need my husband’s help anymore.
The first dish that I ever tried to make is ‘Goan fish curry’. Hailing from Goa, fish is an integral part of my life. Surprisingly, my first attempt didn’t fail. That’s when I knew that I could get better at this.
When my daughter was born, I had some free time to myself. Until then, I would write all my recipes in the diary that my mother had given. I then decided to start blogging my recipes, just to have a digital version for the future. Little did I know that it would take me places. The blog, ‘Rakshas Kitchen, started off as a hobby and it slowly grew to be a part of who I am now.
My seven-year-old daughter has also started taking an interest in cooking these days. She often comes to me and asks what I’m making. She volunteers to be my assistant by helping peel vegetables, whisk and egg and more. She also learnt how to make an omelette recently.
It’s great to be appreciated by your family because of your cooking. My daughter often tells me that ‘the best restaurant is at home’ and that’s all the compliment I need to keep creating something delicious each time.
The recipe shared today is of ‘Goan Mackerel Uddamethi’ which is a traditional Goan recipe. It’s made differently as compared to the regular ones. One must be careful in using the ingredients — a little mishap can leave you with a bitter taste. But it’s easy to make and is a dish that everyone will love to have with some rice.”
Raksha Kamat
Goan mackerel uddamethi
Ingredients
For marinating mackerels
n Mackerels, 2 large
n Red chilli powder, 1 tsp
n Turmeric powder, 1 tsp
n Salt, ½ tsp
For the curry
n Grated coconut, 6 tbsp
n Onion, 1 medium sized
n Turmeric powder, 1 tsp
n Rice, 1 tbsp
n Fenugreek seed, ¼ tsp
n Urad dal, 1 tbsp
n Dry red chillies, 4
n Peppercorns, 10
n Tamarind (lemon size ball), 1
n Oil, 2 tbsp
n Salt to taste
Method
n De-scale, clean and cut the mackerels into three pieces. Discard the head.
n Marinate them by applying red chilli, turmeric powder and salt and keep it in the fridge for 30 minutes.
n In a kadhai, heat one tablespoon oil. Stir fry rice till it turns it is brownish, remove and keep it in a separate plate.
n Then in the same oil, stir fry urad dal till it turns brownish, remove and keep it aside.
n To the same oil, add fenugreek and peppercorns together. Stir fry till fenugreek changes colour, remove and keep it aside and switch off the gas.
n After this cools, using a mortar-pestle coarse or powder rice and black gram and keep it aside.
n Coarse fenugreek seeds and peppercorns in the same mortar-pestle and keep it aside.
n Chop half the onion lengthwise, switch on the gas and stir fry in the same oil till it turns pinkish. Add grated coconut to this and fry on low flame till it turns brownish and switch off the gas. Let this cool down.
n After cooling, add the fried onion and coconut mixture from the kadhai to a mixer jar along with tamarind, turmeric powder and dry red chillies and grind it into a thick gravy by adding sufficient water. Ensure that all the ingredients are ground well.
n Now cut the remaining half of the onion and fry it in the same kadhai which will now be empty. Add oil if needed. Pour the gravy from the mixer to the kadhai and mix well. Add one cup water.
n Add marinated mackerels and stir. Now add the coursed black gram, rice, fenugreek and peppercorn to the gravy. Simmer for 10 minutes.
n Serve hot.