Meen Mulakittathu

Spicy red fish stew — whole small fish or fish chunks cooked in a thin, fiery gravy built with generous Kashmiri red chilli (for colour) and local red chilli (for heat), shallots, green chilli, ginger, garlic, and kudampuli, tempered in coconut oil and simmered in the earthen manchatti without any thickening agent. The 'mulakittathu' name references mulaku (chilli); this preparation is the most aggressively spiced fish preparation in Travancore, with the chilli providing both the colour and the dominant flavour note rather than serving as a background heat. Unlike the milder meen curry, the mulakittathu uses the full gamut of both fresh and dried chilli. Made specifically with oily fish (sardines, mackerel) that can absorb the heat; eaten with plain boiled rice or kappa to temper the intensity.