A fishy story from Thalassery in Los Angeles

While everyone is gripped by the festive fever, as a south Indian in Los Angeles, who is not used to freezing winters, it’s impossible for me to step out without being rolled up in thermal wear, like a mummy from head to toe. Recently, I was invited to a fundraised organized by local Indian-born Americans. My daughter was performing and I had to brave the cold to cheer her on.

The dinner menu was quite predictable which included chicken kebabs, palak paneer and dal makhani. The vastness of Indian food, its diversity, cannot be merely represented by three dishes. Nowhere in the world is there such a diverse food culture. Apart from food experts, not many know of the roots and rich history of Indian cuisine.

I was disappointed with the choice of food. However, at dinner, I was pleasantly surprised to hear an old heritage dish from Thalassery, Kerala, being discussed. It was fish moilee, which has its pride of place in menus in many old homes across Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and parts of Karnataka.

Thalassery lies a few towns away from the beach where the Portuguese arrived to discover India. After just a whiff of the local offerings, the Europeans joined in on the spice trade that had been happening in these regions for many centuries between the Chinese, Arabs and Phoenicians.

For all its romantic history, today Kerala is a modern and cosmopolitan society that’s famous for fresh seafood.

Every now and then, however, you can get a glimpse of the past in the Chinese fishing nets, Arabic words sprinkled in the lexicon, the occasional colonial building in town, and the custards and stews that are now an integral part of the local cuisine. Although its beginnings remain a mystery, with some claiming that the name moiley/molee hints at its Portuguese origins, and others arguing that it was a contribution by the Malay, it is now firmly entrenched in the local culinary repertoire.

Meen moilee serves as a tasty introduction to the world of curry, without being overwhelming. Bold spices, ginger, chillis and curry leaves are cooked with pieces of fresh fish, and then gently simmered in coconut milk.

This tames and mellows the flavours, and gives the dish a unique appeal. Although it’s the sort of dish that is so elegant that you’d want to include it in a meal meant to impress food connoisseurs, it’s also one of those curries that is delicious and easy to make on festivals. Traditionally, this curry is eaten with appam or boiled rice.