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Fiery Fables: Fish Head Curry

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Food

2 September 2026

Fish head curry is one of Singapore’s most iconic dishes—but it didn’t exactly come from India.

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In Singapore, fish head curry is associated with Indian restaurants. Oddly enough, the dish itself isn't from India, where whole fish heads are rarely eaten. So how did the dish come about? Culinary consultant and spice queen Devagi Sanmugam explores its origins and how to make the dish, from choosing the best fish to tempering the spices for the curry.

This episode is part of From Book to Cook, a cooking show on Singapore’s food history. Other episodes can be found here (opens in new tab).

In India, whole fish heads aren’t usually used when making fish curry.

Recipe

Devagi was never particularly fond of fish curry until she first learnt to make it at around 10 or 11 years old—especially after discovering how to adjust the amount of ginger to her liking. Her recipe also uses grated coconut instead of coconut milk, which is ground to a paste. Like many Indians, the fish curries she grew up with typically didn’t feature whole fish heads, but rather chopped pieces, if the head was included at all.

Devagi’s ingredients and instructions

For the curry paste:

150 g shallots, peeled

150 g coconut, skinned and grated

2 tsp. cumin seeds

1 tsp. fennel seeds

300 ml water

90 g fish curry powder

50 g chilli powder

1/2 tsp. salt (to taste)

Other ingredients:

4 tbsp. cooking oil

1/2 tsp. mustard seeds

1/2 tsp. cumin seeds

1 tsp fenugreek seeds

1 medium onion, peeled and sliced

10 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced

2 cm ginger, peeled and sliced

2 springs curry leaves

200 g tamarind pulp

1,750 ml water

300 g lady’s fingers, left whole or cut into 5 cm pieces

4 medium tomatoes, quartered (or 2 green mangoes, quartered)

1-1.5 kg fish head, cleaned and halved

1. Clean the fish head and set aside.

2. Macerate the tamarind in 1,750 ml water and strain. Set aside.

3. Prepare the curry paste: Place shallots, grated coconut, cumin seeds, fennel seeds and water into a blender and process until very smooth.

4. Pour into a mixing bowl. Add curry powder, chilli powder and salt and mix well to form a curry paste.

5. Heat oil in a pan or clay pot and fry mustard seeds until they stop popping. Add cumin seeds and fenugreek and fry over low heat until aromatic.

6. Add onion, garlic, ginger and curry leaves. Sauté until onion is light golden brown.

7. Add tamarind water and boil for 5 to 10 minutes or until the raw smell is gone.

8. Add lady’s fingers and tomatoes (and mangoes, if using) and boil until lady’s fingers are tender.

9. Gently lower the whole fish head into the boiling gravy. Cook over medium heat until the fish head is cooked through.

10. Serve hot with rice or bread.

Fish head curry is a popular (and expensive) restaurant dish today, but this wasn’t always the case. Spice queen Devagi Sanmugam remembers when only poor people ate it. She delves into how the dish came about, spells out why fish head curry uses different spices from meat curries, and explains how a clay pot makes all the difference.

Fish Head Curry (opens in new tab)
Fish head curry is a spicy, curried dish unique to Singapore. Blending the spices of a typical South Indian fish curry with the fish head, the dish has become a favourite among the Chinese. (Infopedia)

Spicy Nation: From India to Singapore
From fish head curry to Indian rojak, Indian food in Singapore has evolved over time, drawing influences from the various local cultures, and finding its place in the hearts of Singaporeans. (BiblioAsia)

Indian Migration into Malaya and Singapore
Hailing from the Indian subcontinent – which comprises India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan and the Maldives – Indians have played an important role in the historical, economic, cultural and political development of Singapore. (BiblioAsia)

Related Books

Devagi Sanmugam, Indian Heritage Cooking (opens in new tab) (Singapore: Marshall Cavendish Cuisine, 2011).

Devagi Sanmugam, Tricks & Treats And Other Childhood Tales (opens in new tab) (Singapore: Ate Media, 2011).

Resources from NewspaperSG

“Man Who Created Fish Head Curry (opens in new tab),” Tabla!, 8 December 2017, 12. (From NewspaperSG)

“Hot and Robust Curries Carry On a Famous Name (opens in new tab),” The Straits Times Annual, 1 January 1974, 86. (From NewspaperSG)

“Kerala-Style Food… (opens in new tab),” New Nation, 14 April 1973, 7. (From NewspaperSG)

“Fish-Head Curry on a Platter (opens in new tab),” The Straits Times, 2 November 1986, 4. (From NewspaperSG)