Picture of Thalassery Style Sardine Fry

Thalassery Style Sardine Fry

in easy, Main Course, seafood, Starters

This Thalassery style sardine fry involves slow-cooking the fish by frying in a base of grated coconut, rice flour, red chillies, green chillies, ginger, and curry leaves.

Many of my friends who tried the chicken perattu recipe reached out to me to say that it came out well and everyone loved it. If you remember the chicken perattu post, you’ll know that I got this recipe from my brother-in-law. The success of that recipe prompted me to go back to him for another family favourite recipe of his – the special sardine fry – this one from where they live now, Thalassery.

Thalassery, a town in the Kannur district along the Malabar coast, is famous for its culinary heritage. This coastal town is renowned not just for the eponymous Thalassery Biriyani, but also for many of their seafood delicacies made with the fresh seafood they have in abundance!

Image of Thalassery Style Sardine Fry
Thalassery Style Sardine Fry

Sardines are a popular fish along the coasts of South India. They are used to make curries and fish fries. But sardines are not for everyone. Compared to a lot of other fish, they have a stronger smell and a strong taste. But they are probably the healthiest fish and an economical seafood choice for many. They are a source of omega-3 fatty acids known to combat cardiovascular diseases. They are also rich in vitamins, minerals, and calcium. The lower amount of contaminants like mercury makes them a safer seafood choice as well.

About this Thalassery style sardine fry

If you like sardines, you are going to love the Thalassery style sardine fry. This Thalassery style sardine fry is totally different from the conventional Kerala fish fry. The biggest difference is in the marinade. The marinade used in this preparation is not just to coat the fish. It adds volume to the dish and forms the base of the fish fry. So the end result is not a crispy fish fry. Instead, it is succulent fish with a firm texture on the outside and a lot of flavours coming from the grated coconut and chilli paste cooked in oil.

Picture Thalassery Style Sardine Fry
Thalassery style sardine fry is served

If you liked this recipe, don’t miss out on checking out the following recipes as well.
Thalassery Biriyani
Crab Curry
Chicken Perattu

Print Recipe
 Thalassery Style Sardine Fry Yum
Thalassery style sardine fry involves slow-cooking the fish by frying in a base of grated coconut, rice flour, dry chillies, ginger, and curry leaves.
Picture of Thalassery Style Sardine Fry
Course main course, Main Dish, side dish
Cuisine Kerala
Keyword fish fry
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Passive Time 15 minutes
Servings
people
Ingredients
Course main course, Main Dish, side dish
Cuisine Kerala
Keyword fish fry
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Passive Time 15 minutes
Servings
people
Ingredients
Picture of Thalassery Style Sardine Fry
Instructions
  1. Soak the Kashmiri chillies in lukewarm water for 10 minutes.
    Thalassery Style Sardine Fry Steps - Preparing the ingredients
  2. Drain the water and keep it aside.
  3. Pulse the Kashmiri chillies in a blender.
  4. Add the green chillies, shallots, ginger, curry leaves, salt, and blitz again.
  5. Now add the grated coconut, and rice flour, and grind to a thick paste.
  6. You can add water, that was kept aside, as required while grinding with the grated coconut.
  7. Add more salt if required
  8. This is our marinade and it also forms the fish fry base.
  9. Clean and score the sardines.
  10. If the marinade is too thick, add some water (or coconut milk for an even better result).
  11. Coat the sardines with the marinade.
    Thalassery Style Sardine Fry Steps - Sardines coated with marinade
  12. Heat some coconut oil in a pan. A cast iron pan works well.
  13. There should be enough oil to cover half the height of sardines when placed.
  14. Once the oil is hot, reduce to a low flame. We don't want the fish to be crispy fried.
  15. Gently place the sardines. You will have to fry them in batches (unless you have a big pan).
    Thalassery Style Sardine Fry Steps - Sardines are placed on the frying pan
  16. Add some extra marinade also in the gaps between the sardines in the pan.
    Thalassery Style Sardine Fry Steps - Extra marinade added to the pan
  17. Slow fry for 5 minutes. Turn over the sardines and fry the other side as well.
    Thalassery Style Sardine Fry Steps - Fry on both sides
  18. Take them out of the pan using a slotted spoon and transfer to a serving plate.
  19. You can use paper towels to soak up some of the extra oil.
  20. Fry the marinade in the pan for a couple more minutes and extract them too.
  21. Repeat for the remaining sardines.
  22. If there is any marinade remaining, fry that too in the pan and add it to the top of the fried sardines.
  23. Serve hot. Tastes great with rice and curry.

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4 Comments

  1. Usha Devi
    January, 2019 at 11:03 am  ·  Reply

    I tried this recipe. It was a hit. The fried marinade was extremely delicious.

    • The Take It Easy Chef
      January, 2019 at 6:34 pm  ·  Reply

      Thank you very much, Usha Devi! 🙂
      I am happy to hear that the sardine fry was a hit.
      Yes, the fried marinade is the highlight of this dish. We love it too!! 🙂 🙂

  2. Rag
    January, 2019 at 7:05 am  ·  Reply

    What kind of fish is equivalent to sardines in USA? Yummy recipe

    • The Take It Easy Chef
      January, 2019 at 10:31 pm  ·  Reply

      Thank you very much Rag! 🙂
      There is no like-for-like replacement for sardines. But seer fish, cobia, or red snapper will work well with this recipe.

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