Preparation:

• Wash fish pieces in lots of water two to three times.
• Drain water completely and marinate with turmeric powder, salt, and lemon.
• Lemon and salt give tenderness and turmeric powder helps in removing impurities if any.
• Keep this marination aside for 30mins to 1 hour.
• Peel and chop small onions.
• Soak tamarind in warm water for 15mins and after 15mins extract 2 cups of thick tamarind water. Discard the pulp.
• Make ginger garlic paste(8 garlic & 2 inches of ginger) if you don't have already.
• Rinse and chop tomato.

Recipe to make Chepala pulusu:

How to make pulusu masala:

• In a pan, dry roast pepper corns, cumin(jeera) seeds, and fenugreek (Methi) seeds for five minutes until a nice aroma arises. Transfer these ingredients to a mixer.
• Add poppy(kuskus) seeds with them and grind everything into a fine paste using little quantity of water. Our pulusu masala is ready. Keep aside.

How to make Chepala pulusu:

• Heat another large kadai, add gingelly oil and add mustard, fennel & fenugreek seeds.
• Let them splutter and add Chopped shallots, green chillies and curry leaves.
• Saute the onions nicely to light brown color.
• Put ginger garlic paste and saute well to remove the raw flavor completely.
• Now add Chopped tomato and cook until they become soft.
• Add in the spice powders, turmeric, and chilli powder.
• Pour the tamarind water, mix, cover and cook the tamarind for five minutes.
• After five minutes, the raw smell goes off completely & add the pulusu masala paste and mix well.
• Give the gravy a boil for five minutes.
• You can add the required salt for the Andhra fish curry.
• Drop the marinated fish pieces one by one into the gravy slowly.
• Make space by gently stir with a wooden ladle.
• Do not stir vigorously as fish pieces may break.
• Cover with a lid and cook not more than 5 minutes in low flame.
• Most of the fish varieties need very less time to get cooked.
• Once when you see the color of the meat changes to white color, switch off.
• Allow resting for one hour before serving with hot rice for extra taste.