Masala Fish in Banana Leaves

This is an interesting recipe which can be cooked with any kind of a medium sized fish like pomfret, bangda,sardines or silver fish. I used a flat silver fish normally called soundale in the local language. It is coated with a south Indian spiced masala , wrapped in banana leaves and shallow fried. This requires very less amount of oil as the fish is neatly cooked in the extract of the spices and turns into individual parcels grilled to perfection. Requires patience and time but worth the effort and it turns into a lip smacking dish. Ideal for a day when you can cook something different with fish.

Ingredients
Fish - 4-5 cleaned, kept whole marinated with salt, turmeric and lemon juice.
Banana leaves  -  4-5 pieces
For the masala:
Oil- 1/2 tsp
coriander seeds-1 tsp
Saunf (aniseed)- 1 tsp
cumin seeds- 1/2 tsp
dry red chillies-4-5
fresh grated coconut-1 cup
tamarind- 10gms
onion- chopped 1
tomato -chopped-1
ginger garlic paste - 1 tsp
Salt to taste

Method
Heat oil in a flat pan and saute coriander, cumin, saunf, chillies, ginger-garlic paste and add onions. Saute them till brown and add tomatoes and cook till they are soft. Blend coconut ,chillies, tamarind in a mixie  into a coarse paste. Add the paste into the pan, add salt and fry the mixture till thick. Cool to room temperature.

Smear each banana leaf with a few drops of coconut oil. Coat each fish with above masala and wrap them. Fasten with toothpick if necessary. On a flat griddle heat some oil and place the wrapped fishes. Cook on a medium flame till the fish is cooked and grilled impression is seen on the masala. Serve warm with Rice and curry. A green salad made of tomatoes, cucumber, onions and lettuce is a good accompaniment.