Deviled fish(Sri Lankan chilli fish stir-fry).

Deviled fish, a Sri Lankan style, fish stir fry with chunks of tuna or sailfish combined in a spicy sauce.

Also mixed into this are wedges of onion, capsicum and tomatoes, stirring this fish fry recipe extra crunch.

If you are looking for a good seafood appetizer or as we call it bites/starter then you can give this deviled(devilled)fish a try.

Not only is it a great side dish but this spicy fish stir-fry with a sweet and spicy sauce makes it easy to serve simple weekend lunches as well.

Meal ideas with deviled Fish.

• Rice dishes to serve with the devil fish stir fry.
  • BASMATI COCONUT RICE(Indian rice recipe)
  • HOW TO COOK RICE ON THE STOVE.
  • SRI LANKAN YELLOW RICE(TURMERIC RICE)

• Side dishes you can serve with the devil fish stir fry.
  • SRI LANKAN GREEN BEANS AND POTATO.
  • green beans-garlic stir-fried in browned butter.
  • TERIYAKI MUSHROOM STIR FRY.
  • SRI LANKAN WAMBATU MOJU(eggplant/brinjal pickle).

• You can serve as a dinner option with pol roti, naan or godamba roti. make sure to make deviled fish with extra to go with the flatbreads.

• Make the devil fish a little dry by reducing the sauce and you can stuff it into tortillas or parathas to make quick wraps.
• Do not take it to work though, the wraps will be a little messy to eat at your workplace but home sweet home, who cares right?

tips on making deviled fish(chilli fish).

• Type of fish to use.
  • Use firm fish cubes that will not break into pieces as they are tossed around. I am using tuna cubes.

• The sweet and spicy sauce- adjust the sauce to suit your taste.
  
• You can make it extremely spicy by adding extra green chillies, and red chilli flakes.
  
• I make the devil fish a little sweet as the kids love the sweet and spicy combo.

• Type of sauce to use.
  • I am using regular tomato sauce also known as ketchup which makes a great base. you can vary the type of sauce(garlic tomato sauce, chilli garlic sauce, etc to suit your needs as well.

• Making the saucy gravy.
  • I like making extra sauce to mix with the rice.
  • For this purpose, I used some thick coconut milk to make the sauce thicker and creamier.
  • If you are unable to find coconut milk, substitute with cooking cream or a little cornflour mixed into water. 

Ways to fry the fish for the devilled fish.

• Shallow frying the fish chunks
  • When you use this method of frying, there is less oil used.
    The downside of this method of frying is that you have to constantly turn the fish chunks to give each side an even golden fry which also takes more time than deep frying as well as hovering over the pan so that one side doesn’t fry too much than the other sides.

• Air fryer– for a healthier option you can air-fry the fish chunks.

More devilled recipes

• Devilled chicken recipe
• Devilled sausages.
• Devilled potato curry.
• Devilled prawn curry.

Utensils and appliances needed.

• Chopping board/knife 
• Two Medium-sized bowls
• Kitchen paper towels.
• Deep frying pan to fry the fish.
• Medium-sized wok to make the fish stir-fry.

Storing

Use glass containers or an old container to refrigerate as ingredients will leave stains.
Use within 48 hours. please be aware that the longer you keep them, they tend to become hard in texture.

Reheating

Can be reheated over a stovetop or microwave. make sure to use a microwave cover to avoid splattering.

Freezing

Not advisable to freeze.

Stop food waste by

Only make as much as you need. there are never any leftovers when I make this devilled fish but if there are, it will probably be over the next day.

RECIPE DIFFICULTY- EASY

Ingredients Sri Lankan for devil fish stir fry

Ingredients mentioned below use standard measuring cups and spoons.

500f fish chunks(yellowfin tuna or sailfish also known as thalapath are ideal)

To wash the fish

1/8 teaspoon(a pinch) of turmeric powder

To marinate fish

1 tablespoon of pepper

2 teaspoon of chilli powder(increase or decrease as per your need)

Salt to season

2 cups of oil to deep fry the fish(less oil is needed if you choose to shallow fry(1/2 a cup).
Read the notes above for other ways to fry the fish.

To make the deviled fish sauce

3 tablespoons of oil

2 medium-sized onions cut into thick wedges

1 tablespoon of minced garlic(about 3 cloves of garlic)

1 tablespoon of minced ginger(a 2″ inch piece to be grated or chopped)

4 capsicums cut lengthwise or sliced in two(substitute with bell peppers if you are unable to find these green peppers)

2 tablespoons soy sauce

3 tablespoon tomato sauce(also known as tomato ketchup)

2 teaspoon of red chilli flakes(increase or decrease as per your need)

Optional ingredients

1/4 cup thick coconut milk(only add if you need extra sauce or gravy, skip if you want the devil fish as a dry dish)

1 tablespoon of sugar(only add if you want to give the fish stir fry a sweet and spicy element)

How to cook Sri Lankan deviled fish.

Please make sure to read the recipe instructions carefully to avoid mistakes.

Have all the ingredients you need ready.

Preparing and marinating the fish.

Cut the tuna into cubes(500g), if you are unable to do this, you can get them precut from fish stores or your fishmonger. 

Place in a bowl, and add a pinch(1/8 tsp)of turmeric.

Mix well and rinse the fish twice. drain any excess water completely. the tuna cubes need to be dry.

Place the fish cubes in a bowl. add pepper(1 tbs), red chilies powder(2 tsp), salt to season(1/2 tsp should do).

How to fry the fish for the spicy stir fry.

As mentioned earlier in the post, you can either deep fry, shallow fry or use an air fryer for a healthier option.  deep fry to a golden brown.

• Deep frying

Pour oil(2 cups)into a deep frying pan and gradually bring the oil to low-medium heat. avoid oil from smoking. fry the marinated fish in small batches.

You might also want to keep your windows open or the exhaust fan over your stovetop on high. 

• Shallow frying

I chose this method. a longer time was needed as I had to constantly turn the fish pieces individually to give all of them an even fry.

• Air-fryer.

Follow the instructions given on the appliance.

Place the fried fish over some paper towels to absorb any excess oil.

Making the devil fish sauce.

Onions(2 medium), tomatoes(3 medium), and capsicum(4, substitute with bell peppers)need to be cut into thick pieces.

Place a wok over low-medium fire. add oil(2 tablespoons), add garlic(1 tbs) and ginger(1 tbs), green chillies(2). cook for a few seconds until they release their aroma.

Add the green peppers, cook for 3 minutes and then add the onion and tomato wedges.

Cook over medium heat for 2-3 minutes until they soften.

Add tomato sauce(1/4 cup), soy sauce(2 tbs), red chilli flakes(2 tsp)

Only add thick coconut milk(1/4 cup)if you need extra gracy, skip this ingredient if you want a dry deviled fish stir fry.

Cook for 3-5 minutes over low medium heat.

Taste and adjust the seasoning as per your need.

This could mean adding more tomato sauce, more red chillies flakes, and salt to make it a sweet and spicy variation.

Once you have the deviled fish sauce ready, add fried fish to the sauce.

Combine the sauce with the fish and cook over low heat for 2-3 minutes.

Serve warm.

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