Blackened grilled tilapia with pineapple salad

Ingredients to serve 4

4 x 400g tilapia, cleaned

For the tamarind glaze:

1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1 teaspoon fennel seeds
6-8 garlic cloves, sliced, deep-fried in hot oil until golden and then crushed
4 tablespoons tamarind pulp
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 heaped teaspoon red chilli powder
1 teaspoon ginger blended with a touch of water
A pinch of sea salt and freshly ground pepper

For the pineapple salad

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon mustard seeds
200g pineapple, diced
1 red chilli, sliced
A pinch of ground turmeric
Juice and grated zest of 1 lime
10 large mint leaves, chopped
A pinch of sugar
A pinch of sea salt and freshly ground pepper

Tilapia farming has recently started in the UK, making it more readily available. Alternatively, you could use red snapper, John Dory, plaice or lemon sole.

Tamarind is the long, dark brown pods of the tamarind tree and is popular in Indian cooking as a souring agent. Pre-prepared tamarind paste is available but it can taste bitter. Prepare your own from the dried blocks of tamarind pods available in Asian shops. Break up a 200g pack, put it in a bowl and soak in about 400ml of hot water for 20 minutes, until softened. Using your fingers, mix the pods with the water, which will thicken to a pulp. Strain through a sieve into a bowl, pressing to extract as much flavour as possible. If you want a milder tamarind flavour, dilute the pulp with water.

First make the tamarind glaze. Toast all the seeds in a dry frying pan then grind them to a powder. Put the seeds in a pan with all the remaining glaze ingredients and bring to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture becomes a thick paste and is shiny on the surface.

For the salad, heat the oil in a pan over a medium heat and add the mustard seeds. When they start to pop, add all the rest of the ingredients and cook for a couple of minutes. Remove from the heat and leave to cool.

Make three diagonal slashes on both sides of each fish and then brush with the glaze. Place under a very hot grill and cook for two to three minutes on each side, until just done. Serve with the pineapple salad.

From 'Fish, Indian Style' by Atul Kochhar (Absolute Press, £20)

Sommelier's choice

Rioja Tinto 2004, Spain

This youthful Rioja has an abundance of fruit to balance out the paprika, and lots of tannin to cut through the fat in the chorizo.

Berry Bros & Rudd, £16.95, bbr.com; 0870 900 4300