PICKLED FISH WITH A BIT OF CHILLI

For the fish:
1 kg firm fish, sliced into small portions
salt and pepper, to taste
cake flour, to coat the fish
oil, to fry
For the sauce:
250 ml water
500 ml white vinegar, good quality
5 lemon or bay leaves, lemon leaves crushed to release extra flavour
15 – 20 black peppercorns
10 ml coriander seeds
250 ml sugar
salt, to taste
45 ml curry powder
15 ml turmeric
60 ml apricot jam
3 dried chilli’s, crushed, or fresh, sliced
10 ml crushed garlic
10 ml finely diced and crushed fresh ginger
100 ml sultanas, optional but nice
30 – 45 ml cake flour, to thicken the sauce, adjust to personal taste
5 medium onions, peeled and thinly sliced

For the sauce:
Place the water, vinegar, lemon or bay leaves all the spices, sugar and jam in a pot and melt the sugar and jam. Simmer over a low heat for 8 – 10 minutes without a lid.
Place the onions, garlic, ginger and chilies in the sauce and simmer for another 8 – 10 minutes. The onions must still be crunchy as this is a pickle.
Add some warm sauce to the flour, form a paste and stir into the sauce. Be careful to not leave clumps of flour.
Lower the temperature and thicken the sauce.
Stir in the sultanas if you prefer.
Add salt, if necessary.
For the fish:
Heat a thin layer of oil in a frying pan to medium temperature.
Season the fish to taste and coat in the flour, Shake off the excess flour.
Fry the fish in small batches till golden brown but do not overcook. Set aside.
Spoon layers of fish and sauce into a dish, chill completely and leave in the fridge for a day before serving.
Notes:
Leave refrigerated for no longer than five days. This recipe is not for long term storage.
If you prefer extra sauce, like me, double the ingredients but keep the fish portion the same.
In the attached photo, I left out the sultanas.
I prefer a flavorful sauce, not hot. Add some more chilli’s for heat.