The first fish tacos I ever had were in our fish class at the New School of Cooking. I was easily talked into trying one — they were beer-battered and deep-fried for goodness’ sake! And once I’d bitten into one, I knew I’d be hooked for the rest of my life. The combination of that fish (hot, moist, flaky) against both the lime-y mayonnaise (cool, creamy) and the shredded cabbage (crunchy, fresh)… all within a neat package of a toasty corn tortilla…

My tummy just growled in an extraordinarily impolite fashion.

A product of my mum’s healthy cooking ways, I don’t deep fry anything at home (there’s the mess to clean up and all that oil to dispose of somehow!). So I came up with another way to enjoy fish tacos, amping up the flavour with a cumin-mint-garlic mayo and a smoky coriander-chili fish. It’s so easy, and a lovely way to feed friends: you can have them make the mayo and shred the cabbage, whilst you cook the fish and warm up the tortillas. Then bring the whole lot to the table and eat family style! There’s nothing like eating communally and getting your hands dirty together! (A little cold beer doesn’t hurt either).

I posted this recipe earlier this month, as a doff of the hat to my friend McQueen. It’s so good that I HAD to make it on the show, and so here’s this week’s Aarti Paarti:

Looking for the recipe? It’s here.

A little post-script: be mindful about purchasing your fish. We’re all watching our pennies these days, but in order to eat both the freshest and the healthiest fish (both for you and the environment), you might need to spend a little more. Check out the Monterrey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch list; based on careful study of fishing/farming practices and scientific-things-I-don’t-understand like mercury levels, it suggests which fish to avoid, which ones to eat on a limited basis and which ones are good alternatives for that Chilean Sea Bass you just can’t live without. The site offers a Pocket Guide that you can print out and carry with you and I’ve heard that there’s even an iPhone app so you never have to question what to buy!

If you are buying whole fish, check for bright, clear, glassy eyes (not sunken, smoky ones)… bright red or pink gills (not grey ones)… moist shiny skin… wet fins and tails (not dry and shriveled).

Also, when you buy your fish, rather than asking whether the fish is fresh, ask them whether it was been previously frozen — know that if the answer is yes, then the quality of the fish has been compromised. That doesn’t necessarily mean that you’ll get sick from that fish, but it won’t taste all that great.

-x-
aarti

Anyway, I know you all are tired of vegetables and chicken recipes. It’s time for dessert! And what better dessert to reflect my heart than an Indian one, with a twist of England: Earl Grey Kulfi.

Kulfi is the Indian version of ice-cream, and the coolest thing about it is that you don’t need an ice cream maker to whip up a batch. Traditionally, if you want to make kulfi, you better set aside an afternoon sister, because you’ll be taking a gallon of milk, and slowly cooking it down until it thickens to just the right consistency.

Don’t get me wrong — it’s not like making it the old-fashioned way is keeping me away from any fancy festivities or anything. It’s just that it’s a lot easier to watch TV when you’re not chained to the stove, nursing a pot of steaming milk, and sore arm muscles.

Call me crazy!

So here’s a tried and true kulfi-in-a-jiffy method, using cans of evaporated milk and sweetened condensed milk, as well as a carton of heavy cream.

The upside: it’s done in just a matter of minutes (plus freezing time of course).

The downside: if you’re concerned about only consuming organic, hormone-free milk from cows that have been massaged and manicured, whose self-esteem is propped up with a daily barrage of compliments… you’re out of luck. You’re using canned milk here, people.

Also, you should know that this is a very sweet kulfi, because of that sweetened condensed milk. I tried to find unsweetend condensed milk — I swear I thought it existed. But to no avail. So, if you are very concerned about your sugar intake, I suggest you make it the old-fashioned way. However, I don’t like desserts that are too sweet, and I loved this… it’s just shy of being overly sweet, perhaps because the bitter, tanniny tea cuts into the sugar just so.

Let’s just put it this way: I had one kulfi popsicle for breakfast, and I’m planning on having one to finish off my dinner. I have no complaints about bookending my day that way. You’ll find me at the gym tomorrow morning though. Ha!

In fact, the only downside was having to wait for the pops to freeze overnight! I had such a hard time falling asleep that I had to have someone sing me a lullaby…

Earl Grey Kulfi Pops

1 12oz can evaporated milk
4 earl grey tea bags
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1 14oz sweetened condensed milk
1 cup heavy (whipping) cream
Handful of finely chopped pistachios

1) Heat evaporated milk over medium heat until small bubbles form around the circumference of the pot. Meanwhile, snip the tops of the tea bags. Once the milk is hot, whisk to make sure nothing is sticking to the bottom. Turn the heat off, and add the contents of the tea bags. Cover. Let it sit and steep for 30 minutes.

2) Strain the evaporated milk into a big bowl. Add cardamom, condensed milk, heavy cream and pistachios. Whisk together. Either pour into popsicle moulds, small bowls or one large bowl (cover bowls with a piece of plastic wrap to avoid freezer burn and formation of a “skin”). Pop into the freezer overnight.

3) When you’re ready to serve, run the popsicle mould under hot water to loosen it. You can do the same thing for the smaller bowls if you’d like to serve it as a little kulfi half dome. Sprinkle with more nuts if you like. Enjoy the icy, creamy goodness and tip your hat to the next Indian person you meet.

-x-
aarti