Kola Karuvadu – Dried Flying Fish

What is Kola Karuvadu – Dried Flying Fish?

Kola Karuvadu is a traditional Rameshwaram karuvadu — fish that's salted and sun-dried whole or in cut pieces, with a moderate number of bones. It's commonly known in English as dried flying fish. It's known for a rich, distinctive flavor and a texture that's firm and slightly oily.

Like all our karuvadu, Kola Karuvadu comes from the day's catch on the Rameshwaram coast: cleaned by hand the same day, lightly salted with sea salt, and dried in the open sun with no chemical whiteners or preservatives. How we make our karuvadu

Product details

Category

Daily Essentials

Texture

firm and slightly oily

Bone note

a moderate number of bones

Ingredients

Fresh Kola Fish, Sea Salt

Preparing Kola Karuvadu – Dried Flying Fish

Remove any unwanted portions, rinse away surface salt and loose particles, and drain thoroughly. A short soak can help with thicker or tougher pieces; small fish often need only a careful wash. Taste a cooked piece before adding extra salt to the recipe. Step by step: how to clean karuvadu and how to reduce the salt.

Soak for 15–20 minutes. Its firm flesh holds its shape in a spicy kuzhambu or thokku, and it also fries well.

Firm flesh that holds its shape well, so it stays intact in a spicy gravy instead of breaking apart. It works especially well for fry, kuzhambu, thokku.