Loading...
Loading...
Street vendors along Lahore's food streets deep-fry this in huge woks, but the tawa (flat griddle) version shallow-fries the same gram-flour-battered fish in a fraction of the oil while still delivering a proper golden crust. Coarsely ground toasted coriander and cumin seeds - rather than pre-ground powder - are what separate a genuinely good Lahori fish batter from an average one.
Prep Time
30 min
Per serving
Cook Time
20 min
Servings
4 people
Difficulty
medium
320kcal
Calories
28g
Protein
14g
Carbs
17g
Fat
3g
Fiber
1g
Sugar
Follow step-by-step with voice guidance.
Cut the fish into large cubes or strips. Rub with the lemon juice, ginger-garlic paste, and a pinch of salt, then set aside to marinate for at least 20 minutes (up to 2 hours in the fridge for deeper flavor).
Dry roast the whole coriander seeds and cumin seeds in a pan over medium heat for 30-60 seconds, until fragrant. Let cool, then coarsely crush using a mortar and pestle.
In a large bowl, combine the gram flour, crushed coriander-cumin, red chili powder, chaat masala, ajwain, black pepper, and salt.
Add the egg and a splash of water to the dry mixture, whisking until a thick, smooth batter forms.
Dip the marinated fish pieces into the batter, coating thoroughly.
Heat a generous layer of oil on a flat griddle (tawa) or wide skillet over medium heat.
Place the battered fish pieces on the hot tawa and shallow-fry for 3-4 minutes per side, until deeply golden and cooked through.
Remove and drain briefly on a wire rack. Sprinkle with extra chaat masala while hot.
Serve immediately with mint chutney or tamarind chutney and lemon wedges.
Toast and Crush Your Own Spices: Freshly toasted and coarsely crushed coriander and cumin seeds give a far more aromatic, textured batter than pre-ground powder, which is a key difference in authentic Lahori fish. Don't Skip the Marination: Even 20 minutes lets the ginger-garlic and lemon penetrate the fish, though marinating longer in the fridge develops noticeably deeper flavor. Keep the Tawa Well-Oiled: Since this is shallow-fried rather than deep-fried, make sure there's enough oil pooling on the griddle surface to properly crisp both sides of the batter, adding more between batches as needed.
Traditional street-vendor Lahori fish is deep-fried in a wok, while the tawa (flat griddle) version shallow-fries the same battered fish in far less oil, giving a similarly crispy result with less mess and oil usage.
0 reviews • 0.0 / 5 Average Rating
No reviews yet. Be the first to review this recipe!
More Like This
Baking salmon in foil traps steam alongside the fish, essentially poaching it in its own garlic butter as it cooks - the result is consistently moist, never dry, with almost no chance of overcooking if you stick to the timing. This is about as hands-off as salmon gets, ready to go from oven to table in under 25 minutes total.
Meunière simply means 'in the style of the miller's wife,' referring to the light dusting of flour the fish is coated in before it hits the pan - just enough to help it brown without masking the fish's own delicate flavor. Butter cooked until it turns a deep nutty brown, then finished with lemon juice, is the whole sauce; nothing about this classic French preparation needs to be complicated.
Reserving a cup of starchy pasta water before draining is the step that makes or breaks this dish - that cloudy water is what emulsifies the butter, garlic, and white wine into a sauce that clings to every strand rather than pooling at the bottom of the bowl. Shrimp cooks in about four minutes total, so this entire dinner comes together faster than the pasta itself.
Classic chip-shop fish and chips relies on deep frying, but a crushed cornflake coating in the air fryer gets remarkably close to that shatter-crisp exterior using a fraction of the oil. Thick-cut chips roast alongside in the same basket, so the whole plate comes together without a vat of hot oil anywhere in sight.