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Vegan Fish Curry

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This Vegan Fish Curry made with banana blossoms is mind-blowing! The ‘fish’ is crispy on the outside and soft and flaky on the inside.

Vegan Fish Curry made with Banana Blossoms

You guys! I made Vegan. Fish. Curry. Yes! Crispy vegan fish using banana blossoms in a rich and creamy curry sauce.

I am SO excited to share this recipe with you for many reasons:

  • the first recipe using banana blossom as vegan fish was super popular and is now one of my most shared recipes.
  • working with banana blossoms is new and exciting and amazing and mind-blowing!
  • before I went vegan in 2012, I was going to this Indian buffet all the time and they had a delicious fish curry and I haven’t even tried to recreate it and now I have – and now I am obsessed with my vegan version.
  • when I made banana blossom vegan fish, I stocked up on canned banana blossoms, and now I have another, delicious way to use them up that doesn’t involve frying.
  • I just love the crispy, flaky ‘fish’ with the rich and creamy curry combo in this dish. The textures are simply amazing!

What are Banana Blossoms?

Bananas on trees grow in clusters and at the end of the cluster, there’s a purple flower growing – this is known as the banana blossom (or banana blower or banana heart).

The petals are fleshy and soft and therefore PERFECT for vegan fish! For the recipe, we are using canned banana blossoms in brine.

Canned Banana Blossoms
Banana Blossoms in brine

Where to buy Banana Blossoms?

Usually, I buy canned banana blossoms in Asian grocery stores but not all of them carry them. Most owners are really nice and stock up on them when there’s a demand, so it’s worth asking for them!

Until now, I’ve found canned banana blossoms in brine from three brands: AROY-D, CHAOKOH, and COCK BRAND. I’ve found that the banana blossoms from AROY-D are in better shape (bigger pieces) and therefore better for making vegan fish but if you can only find the CHAOKOH ones, that’s okay, they will work too! The banana blossoms in the COCK BRAND can are huge and there are usually only 4 pieces in the can, which can be hard to work with but they do make really beautiful large fish pieces.

For this vegan fish curry recipe I actually used the banana blossoms from the COCK BRAND because I loved the look of the huge banana blossom fishy pieces in the curry. Of course, you can also use smaller ones and just make more fishy pieces per serving.

You can also order banana blossoms on Amazon.

How to make a Vegan Fish Curry

The ingredients

You’ll need:

  • banana blossoms (for this recipe I am using banana blossoms in brine from the COCK BRAND)
  • marinade: water, salt, apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, nori
  • flour coating: flour, salt, curry powder
  • curry sauce: tomato puree, cashew cream (or full-fat coconut milk), onion, ginger, garam masala, salt, and oil

The basic steps

banana blossoms in fishy marinade
Step 1: Drain and rinse the banana blossoms. Then combine the ingredients for the marinade and cover the banana blossoms with it for at least 20 mins (meanwhile we can prepare the curry).
onions and ginger in pan
Step 2: In a pan with oil, cook the onion until soft, then add the ginger and garam masala, stir and let it cook for another minute.
tomato puree and cashew cream
Step 3: Add the tomato purée and cashew cream.
curry sauce
Step 4: Stir, add salt and set aside.
banana blossoms in flour
Step 5: Give the marinated banana blossom a light coating of flour, salt, and curry powder.
grilled banana blossoms
Step 6: In a grill pan with oil, cook the banana blossom fish on all sides until crispy and it should have nice grill marks.
grilled banana blossoms and curry
Step 7: Reheat the curry if you need to and combine the vegan fish curry on a plate.
Vegan Fish Curry made with Banana Blossoms
I’ve served the banana blossom fish curry with basmati rice and this quick yeast-free naan (minus the garlic).

Do you see all the different layers? Banana Blossoms are perfect to make vegan fish! The fish has a crispy outer layer thanks to the flour coating and is soft inside.

More Vegan Fish Recipes

Love it? Rate it!

I hope you will enjoy this ‘fish’ curry as much as I did! Let me know if you give it a try!

And don’t forget to rate the recipe if you like it, this helps other users figure out if it’s worth a try! 

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Cheers, Bianca

Vegan Fish Curry made with Banana Blossoms

Vegan Fish Curry made with Banana Blossoms

Bianca Haun | Elephantastic Vegan
This Vegan Fish Curry made with banana blossoms is mind-blowing! The 'fish' is crispy on the outside and soft and flaky on the inside.
3.8 from 10 votes
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 mins
Cook Time 20 mins
Total Time 30 mins
Course Main Course
Cuisine Vegan
Servings 2 people
Calories 326 kcal

Ingredients
 
 

banana blossom marinade

  • 1 cup water
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
  • 3 teaspoons lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon nori cut into small pieces

flour coating

  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon mild curry powder

curry sauce

  • 1 onion diced
  • 1 teaspoon oil
  • 1/4 teaspoon garam masala
  • 1 teaspoon ginger minced
  • 1 cup tomato purée
  • 1/2 cup cashew cream (or full-fat coconut milk)
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt and more to taste

Instructions
 

  • Drain and rinse the banana blossoms. Combine the ingredients for the marinade (water, salt, apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, and small pieces of nori) and cover the banana blossoms. Let them soak in the marinade for at least 20 minutes, meanwhile, we're making the curry.
  • In a pan over medium heat with oil, cook the onion until soft. Then add the garam masala and ginger and let it cook for another minute. Then turn the heat down and add the tomato purée and cashew cream. Give it a stir, add salt and more to taste and set it aside once warm.
  • In a bowl for the flour coating, combine the flour, salt, and curry powder.
  • Bring a grill pan to high heat, add a bit of oil. Dip the marinated banana blossoms into the flour on all sides, then add them to the grill pan. Once they have nice grill marks on one side, flip them around so that they will get those nice marks on all the sides.
  • Reheat the curry if it has cooled down by now, and add it to plates. Lay the crispy banana blossom fish on top of the curry. It's best served with basmati rice and naan.

Notes

*If your banana blossoms are smaller, you can use these, of course, just make more per serving!

Nutrition

Calories: 326kcalCarbohydrates: 27gProtein: 5gFat: 24gSaturated Fat: 13gSodium: 1073mgPotassium: 813mgFiber: 5gSugar: 11gVitamin A: 668IUVitamin C: 23mgCalcium: 46mgIron: 4mg
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Recipe Rating




Stella

Friday 21st of August 2020

The companies you list that sell these are charged by PETA for using monkeys as slave labor to harvest coconuts. Crazy right? But it’s true. And they probably pick banana flowers the same way. Check it out: https://investigations.peta.org/monkeys-abused-coconut-milk/

Andrea

Thursday 18th of February 2021

@Stella, Not all coconut milk is harvested that way you have to check the particular brand. Natures harvest for instance does not harvest with monkeys. I doubt(but uncertain) they use them to harvest banana flowers because they tend to eat them. Plus most banana trees are not that tall though some do grow to great heights. But it is very good to be conscious of what we choose. Thanks, Andrea