Fish Tikka Recipe with Basa Fish
Fish Tikka Recipe with Basa Fish – When you try this Fish Tikka recipe, you will see, how the flavours come out when the masala is mixed with thick yoghurt as a marinade and then the fish is grilled or pan-fried with so-little-oil.
“Fish Tikka” is a lovely seafood starter which is easy to make, tasty and almost fat-free (if you do not use any butter during grilling).
Do I have to use a tandoor for fish tikka recipe?
Fish Tikkas are normally grilled on open fire/tandoor. In this case, I have made them in a stovetop gas oven tandoor. You can even deep fry these fillets.
However, the next best to a tandoor is an OTG or a grill. Basa a firm fish and stands well on the grill or a tandoor.
Serve these fish tikka the next time you have friends and family coming over. I’m sure they’ll love it.
It’ll be a welcome change from the same old chicken tikka and tandoori chicken. You can serve them as appetisers to get your evening rolling. Needless to say, these go great with a cold beverage.
Fish Tikka Recipe with Basa Fish & Tandoori Doldrums
Learn how to make easy and healthy fish tikka at home with pictures of step by step cooking instructions.
While fish tikka is traditionally prepared in a clay tandoor or on a grill, I love doing this easy version in my kitchen using a gas oven tandoor. It’s quick to prepare and is delicious, perfectly seared outside with the inside soft, juicy, and succulent!
Tandoori spice blend or the Tandoori Masala is not just limited to make Tandoori Chicken or Chicken Tikkas. This spice blend can easily be used to marinate fish or other seafood as well. When you try this Tandoori Fish Tikka recipe, you will see, how the flavours come out.
This is a perfect recipe with tender bass fish marinated in an Indian tandoori masala and crisped to perfection in a gas tandoor oven. In the absence of a gas tandoor oven, you can use an air fryer or even grill or pan fry these delicious bass fish tikka.
Enjoy this low-carb dish with a side of cilantro chutney!
Fish tikka needs to be cooked on high heat. This quickly sears the fish on the outside to a beautiful golden with some charred spots. It is also perfectly cooked through inside, staying succulent and juicy. High heat grilling quickly cooks the fish and prevents it from drying on the inside.
This tikka recipe calls for very few ingredients. Unlike most of the Indian recipes where we need a big list of ingredients, it is still lip-smacking and very easy.
The fish is lavishly coated with everyday Indian spices like coriander, turmeric, red chilli, cumin and garam masala. While, the ginger and garlic make up the aromatics, the tenderizers like yoghurt and lime juice round up the marinade.
After a short rest, it’s time to gas oven tandoor the fish. It’s really like a fake clay oven cooking.
Is Basa the only fish that I can use for fish tikka?
I chose the basa fillets because they are big and bold in size. The other positive of cooking with basa is that it is easy to flavour. The third is that they are readily available around the year.
Lastly, it takes pretty well to all the marinating and grilling involved in the making of fish tikka. That is, whenever you want and not just in winters.
Having said that, basa for fish tikka is not the end of the world, neither they were the beginning. So, feel free to make these tikkas out of any sturdy fish that you may like.
You could use fillets of any fish.
However, the best fish fillet chunks are from fish like Salmon, Sea Bass, Tilapia, Snapper, Surmai and Basa since they are firm and can stand well on the grill/tandoor, especially during baking/grilling.
Cooking fish fillets is so easy and quick that it gives you ample time to try out a lot of varieties at the same time.
Place tikkas on tandoori tray
Recipe Recommendations
| Cooking Tools Recommended | Recommended Ingredients |
Fish Tikka Recipe with Basa Fish | Basa Fish Tikka
Ingredients
- 2 Piece Fish Fillets I used Basa
- 1/4 Teaspoon Turmeric Powder
- 0.5 Teaspoon Salt Do adjust it to suit your taste
- 1/2 Teaspoon Garam Masala Powder
- 1/2 Teaspoon Cumin Powder
- 1 Teaspoon Coriander Powder
- 1/4 Teaspoon Red Chilli Powder
- 1 Tablespoon Garlic Paste
- 1 Tablespoon Ginger Paste
- 4 Tablespoon Curd Hung Curd
- 2 Tablespoon Butter or Ghee For basting
- 1/2 Teaspoon Lemon Juice For garnishing
Instructions
- Get your ingredients ready.
- Hang the curd if it is not a thick one already.
- Wash and dry the fish chunks. If you are working with a big fillet, cut it into smaller chunks of 2.5 inches each.
- Coat the fish in the lime juice and salt. Mix well and leave to marinate in the fridge for 1 hour.
- Add the yoghurt, turmeric, garam masala, red chilli powder and black cumin powder (and optional carom seeds) to a bowl. Mix well until combined.
- Add the marinated fish from 5.
- Mix again and leave in the fridge for approximately 1 hour before placing them on the tandoor.
- Heat the gas oven tandoor on your gas stove and fill up the bottom tank with some water.
- Place the marinated fish tikkas on the tandoori plate.
- Cover it with the lid.
- Turn once after 4 minutes and baste with butter or ghee.
- Cook for another 4 minutes. Once cooked turn off the gas and rest for 2 minutes.
- Once done, sprinkle some lemon juice.
- Serve with sliced onions, mint & coriander chutney and lemon wedges.
Notes
- Ensure fish is fresh and not smelly.
- If using frozen fish, thaw it and dry it totally before marinating it.
- Ensure fish is well covered while marinating it.
How to make Fish Tikka Recipe with Basa Fish (Step by Step)
Marination Variations in For Easy Tandoori Fish Tikka
Carom seeds, though optional, give this tandoori fish tikka a different level. Ajwain is quite healthy for us and is usually used in Punjabi marinades for fried fish. It works well for this recipe too.
Make it more aromatic: You can make your marinade more aromatic by adding fennel or saunf powder.
Spice it low: You can make it less spicy by replacing the usual red chilli powder with Kashmiri red chilli powder.
Serving Suggestions for Basa Fish Tikka Recipe
Pile them up onto a platter and squeeze some lemon juice on this basa tikka. Serve the fish tikka with sliced onions, dhaniya pudina, or mint and coriander chutney, and a finely chopped tomato, cucumber and onion salad steeped in salt and lemon juice on the side.
While these are good to go without but you can also pair them with roomali roti or soft buttered naans.
FINALLY, TO SUM IT UP
Your basa fish tikka are ready
Serve these basa fish tikka the next time you have friends and family coming over. I’m sure they’ll love it. It’ll be a welcome change from the same old chicken tikka and tandoori chicken.
You can serve them as appetizers to get your evening rolling.
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4 comments
I fried the fish with skin and I also made small slits so it doesn’t curl. My problem it tasted fishy. Did I cook it enough
Hi Arpita,
Did you marinate the fish with salt and lemon juice or vinegar? If you do this before cooking, the fish will not be off on taste. Another way is to smear it with crushed ginger+garlic+salt.
Gud one… will try
Thank you, Neelima. Do let me know how you fared with it.