Indian cooking
Indian cooking / Dishes / Tandoori Masala Fish
Tandoori Masala Fish ()

Tandoori Masala Fish

Non-vegetarianOrigin India

Whole sea bream is coated in a spiced yoghurt-cashew marinade and baked until the coating forms a crust. It tastes tangy, gently hot and rich, with a turmeric-lemon edge.

Turmeric rub

3 gRubbed over the fish before the marinade (step 1)
01
3 g1 teaspoon
spice
Rub into the skin with the lemon juice and salt.

Marinade spices

9 gStirred into the yoghurt-cashew marinade (step 4)
Stir into the marinade with salt to taste.

Everything else

01
Sea bream · Machhliscaled and gutted
1000 g2 breams
fish
02
31 g2 tablespoons
souring agent
03
~0.3 gpinch
salt
04
to taste
oil/fat
05
to taste
fruit
06
9 g3 cloves
aromatic
07
12 g3 cm
aromatic
08
Cashew nut · Kajusoaked in hot water for 20 minutes
50 g
nut/seed
09
30 g2 tablespoons
dairy
10
2 g1 teaspoon
flour
11
14 g1 tablespoon
oil/fat
12
2 g2 tablespoons
herb
13
to taste
salt

Method

  1. Rub the turmeric rub — 3 g ground turmeric — with 30.6 g lemon juice and 0.3 g salt over the 1000 g sea bream, working it into the skin. Set aside.
  2. Pound 9 g garlic and 6 g ginger root to a paste.
  3. Drain the 50 g cashew nut after soaking for 20 minutes in hot water, then blend with 7 tbsp water until smooth.
  4. Put 30 g greek yoghurt, 2 g chickpea flour, 13.5 g vegetable oil, the garlic-ginger paste and the cashew paste in a large bowl. Stir in the marinade spices — 2.6 g kashmiri chilli powder, 1.2 g ground white pepper and 5.4 g ground coriander — plus salt to taste, then fold in 2 g chopped coriander leaf.
  5. Spread the marinade over the fish, inside and out. Leave for 1 hour.
  6. Heat the oven to 210°C fan (450°F/gas 8). Line a baking tray with foil and set a wire rack on it.
  7. Lay the fish on the rack and bake for 20–25 minutes, brushing with smoked butter or ghee to taste halfway through.
  8. Transfer to a platter when the flesh is cooked through and the marinade has set to a crust. Serve warm with grilled lemon to taste.

Don't have something?

Sea bream
  • Sea bass

    Use the same weight; reduce cooking by 1–2 minutes.

  • Pomfret

    Use the same weight; similar firm flesh, and score the skin if cooking whole.

  • Firm white fish fillet

    Use the same weight; reduce cooking by 2–3 minutes and handle gently.

Ground turmeric
  • Ground ginger

    Use 50% of the weight. Mimics turmeric's warm, earthy, rhizome background, but provides none of the golden-yellow colour.

  • Saffron

    Steep a tiny pinch (0.1 g per 2 g turmeric) in 2 tbsp warm water; use to match the rich golden hue. Contributes an aristocratic, honeyed floral flavour rather than earthy bitterness.

Lemon juice
  • Lime juice

    Use equal volume or weight; delivers almost identical sharp acidity with a faintly more aromatic, bitter-edged profile.

  • Dried mango powder

    Use 25% of the weight (about 1 g amchoor for 4 g juice); provides clean fruity tartness without thinning the sauce.

  • White vinegar

    Use 75% of the volume; gives direct sourness without any citrus floral fragrance.

Smoked butter or ghee
  • Ghee

    Use the same weight; pure fat, so use as directed. Add a pinch of paprika for colour; no smoke.

  • Butter

    Use the same weight; lower smoke point, so keep the heat moderate. Add salt if unsalted.

  • Vegetable oil

    Use 90% of the weight; neutral and will not burn, but lacks butter or ghee flavour. Add paprika for colour.

Grilled lemon
  • Lemon

    Use the same weight of lemon slices and grill in a dry pan until charred; closest match.

  • Lemon juice

    Use juice to taste; it gives acidity but not the smoky grilled aroma.

  • Lime

    Use the same weight; more floral acidity, and grill the same way.

Garlic
  • Garlic paste

    Use equal weight. Fry gently in oil or ghee with the ginger; incorporates smoothly into curries without visible minced bits.

  • Garlic powder

    Use 15% to 20% of the weight (about 1 g for every 5 to 6 g fresh cloves). Whisk into sauces; gives a savoury, toasted garlic flavour without raw pungency.

  • Shallot

    Use 1.5 times the weight, very finely minced. Sauté until golden; provides savoury allium sweetness, though it lacks garlic's pungent sulphur bite.

Fresh ginger
  • Ginger paste

    Use equal weight. Sauté in hot fat until the raw allium smell disappears; slightly wetter, but provides identical warmth and pungency.

  • Ground ginger

    Use 20% to 25% of the weight (1 g for every 4 to 5 g fresh). Stir into the gravy; adds peppery heat and warmth, though it misses the crisp, zesty kick of raw root.

Cashew nut
  • Almond

    Use 100% of the weight. Soak in boiling water and slip off skins before frying or grinding; gives a lighter, slightly less sweet richness to curries.

  • Poppy seed

    Use 60% of the weight for gravies. Soak in warm water and grind into a fine paste to thicken royal kormas without adding heavy oiliness.

  • Shelled peanut

    Use 100% of the weight. Roast, skin, and grind; creates a thicker, earthier texture typical of Maharashtrian and western Indian curries.

Greek yoghurt
Chickpea flour
  • Yellow split pea flour

    Use 100% of the weight. Many commercial gram flours are milled from split peas; performs identically in pakora batters and kadhi.

  • Cornstarch

    For crisping batters or binding cutlets: use 50% to 60% of the weight. Produces a very crisp shell but lacks the earthy, roasted nutty flavour of besan.

Vegetable oil
  • Peanut oil

    Use 1:1 by weight. Handles high-heat frying identically and introduces a very subtle, pleasant nuttiness.

  • Ghee

    Use 1:1 by weight. Yields a much richer, authentic aroma and a glossy, heavier mouthfeel.

  • Mustard oil

    Use 1:1 by weight. Heat until smoking, then cool slightly before cooking to temper its intensely pungent, sharp mustard kick.

Kashmiri chilli powder
  • Dried kashmiri chilli

    Grind deseeded dried pods to an equal weight of powder; gives identical vivid red colour and gentle warmth.

  • Red chilli powder

    Use 25% of the weight mixed with sweet paprika for colour; straight red chilli powder is substantially hotter and will make the dish fiery.

  • Chilli powder

    Use one-third of the weight; the sauce will be less intensely red and notably sharper in heat.

Ground white pepper
  • Ground black pepper

    Use 80–100% of the weight. Darker and sharper; reduce slightly if you do not want extra heat.

  • Black peppercorn

    Grind the same weight fresh; same darker, sharper result.

Ground coriander
  • Coriander seeds

    Dry-roast lightly in a pan and grind to a fine powder; use equal weight (1:1). Offers a noticeably fresher, brighter citrus note.

  • Ground cumin

    Use 50% to 75% of the weight. Lacks the floral, citrusy profile of coriander and turns the gravy heavier, earthier, and darker.

  • Garam masala

    Use 50% of the weight and stir in near the end of cooking. Adds warmth and depth since it contains ground coriander, but introduces stronger spices like clove and cinnamon.

Coriander leaf
  • Coriander

    Use equal weight finely chopped; this is the exact same fresh herb.

  • Mint

    Use half the weight finely chopped; provides vibrant green freshness, though the flavour profile becomes noticeably cooler and sharper.

Similar dishes

Bharleli Paplet
Spicy Bream Stuffed with Onions, Garlic & Tomatoes
Bharleli Paplet tastes rich and tangy from lemon, tomato and raisins with gentle chilli heat, while this dish tastes tangy and gently hot with a turmeric-lemon edge and a yoghurt-cashew richness.
  • Same: Bharleli Paplet shares whole sea bream, turmeric, Kashmiri chilli, ground coriander, garlic, ginger, lemon and vegetable oil with this dish.
  • Different: Bharleli Paplet stuffs the fish with onion, tomato, tomato purée and raisins and roasts it for crisp skin, while this dish bakes it under a yoghurt-cashew marinade with chickpea flour and smoked butter or ghee and has no onion-tomato stuffing.
Whole Roasted Sea Bream with Black Pepper, Curry Leaves, Tamarind & Chilli
Fish Pollichathu
It tastes tangy, spicy and aromatic with a soft, steamed texture, while this dish tastes tangy, gently hot and rich with a baked crust and a turmeric-lemon edge.
  • Same: Whole Roasted Sea Bream with Black Pepper, Curry Leaves, Tamarind & Chilli shares sea bream, turmeric, lemon, garlic, ginger, Kashmiri chilli powder and ground coriander with this dish.
  • Different: It adds banana leaf, white onion, curry leaves, tamarind paste, coconut oil, black pepper and sugar, and lacks this dish's yoghurt, cashews, chickpea flour, vegetable oil, smoked butter or ghee, white pepper and coriander leaf; it is roasted in a banana-leaf parcel rather than baked with a yoghurt-cashew crust.
Bangda Masala
Crispy Fried Mackerel with Tamarind & Curry Leaves
Bangda Masala is sharper from tamarind and crisper from the semolina crust, while this dish is richer and tangier from yoghurt-cashew marinade with a turmeric-lemon edge.
  • Same: Bangda Masala shares garlic, ginger, Kashmiri chilli powder, turmeric, ground coriander, salt and vegetable oil with this dish, and both coat fish in a spiced paste before cooking.
  • Different: Bangda Masala uses mackerel with tamarind paste, curry leaves, coarse semolina and rice flour and is fried, while this dish uses sea bream with yoghurt, cashew, chickpea flour and smoked butter or ghee and is baked.
Tandoori Fish Tikka with Turmeric, Carom Seeds & Chaat Masala
Ajwain Fish Tikka
Tandoori Fish Tikka with Turmeric, Carom Seeds & Chaat Masala tastes tangy, savoury and warm with carom and a bright chaat masala sprinkle, while this dish tastes tangy, gently hot and rich with a turmeric-lemon edge and cashew-rounded marinade.
  • Same: Tandoori Fish Tikka with Turmeric, Carom Seeds & Chaat Masala shares a yoghurt marinade with garlic, ginger, Kashmiri chilli powder, turmeric, chickpea flour and salt, so both dishes are tangy and spiced.
  • Different: Tandoori Fish Tikka with Turmeric, Carom Seeds & Chaat Masala uses cod loin and is grilled, with mustard oil and ghee, carom seeds, garam masala and a chaat masala finish, while this dish uses whole sea bream, bakes it, and adds cashew nuts, lemon juice, vegetable oil, ground coriander and ground white pepper.