Tray-bake Trout Curry ready to cook
I am never one to shy away from washing up, but even I like to make meals which only require one pan. This curry could equally be made with chicken or just vegetables, or maybe lamb fillet or pork chops. I am in the habit of making it on a Friday night, as I love a curry, and making it in the oven means that the fish does not have to be stirred in a pan and potentially spoilt. Friday for us is nearly always fish, as old habits die hard! It is also the day we tend to do our shopping, and I like to have fish as fresh as possible. Plus, Waitrose has a 20% off fish offer on Fridays!
Tray-bake Fish Curry for 4 people
Ingredients
Fish pieces weighing about 1 1/2 lbs (600g) – I used trout, but you could use salmon, cod, hake or other white fish. Something chunky works well
3 Portobello mushrooms
4 medium-sized tomatoes, quartered
1 can of chickpeas
A few handfuls of spinach – about 4oz (100g)
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
3 medium-sized new potatoes, cut into big slices or chunks
1 large onion
Half a 400g of chopped tomatoes
2 tsp coriander seeds, crushed
2 tsp cumin seeds
1 fresh chilli, deseeded and sliced
small piece of fresh ginger
1 tsp turmeric or a lump of fresh turmeric if available
2 tsp garam masala
Half a large can of coconut milk
3 tabs full-fat Greek yoghurt
Oil such as rapeseed or sunflower
Tray-bake Trout Curry
Method
Put your sweet potatoes, onions and potatoes into a large roasting tin – mine measures 30 x 22 x 6cm (length, width, depth). Scatter over the spices. I bash up the ginger and turmeric in a pestle and mortar. Mix in some oil and coat well. Season with salt and pepper. Roast in a pre-heated oven at 200 degrees for 20 minutes. The vegetables will not be fully cooked – all the other ingredients cook more quickly, so you need to give the potatoes and onions a head start. Take the tin out of the oven and add the mushrooms, chickpeas and fish. You can cut the fish into four pieces or leave it as one big piece. Sprinkle over some more oil and roast for another 20 minutes.
By this time, everything should be more or less cooked and smelling good. Add the canned and fresh tomatoes, spinach and coconut milk and mix them gently into the vegetables. Leave the fish exposed. Roast for another 5 minutes. It should all be cooked by now, but do check that everything is soft. Mix in the Greek yoghurt.
I served this with beetroot raita (a grated, raw beetroot mixed with 3 tabs yoghurt and a tsp of cumin seeds) and a freshly cooked poppadum.
Tray-bake Trout Curry with Poppadom and Beetroot Raita
