Pairing wine and Indian seafood

Indian seafood dishes showcase a rich variety of flavors, from creamy coconut-based curries to smoky tandoori preparations and fiery regional specialties. Pairing wine with these dishes can be tricky due to the interplay of spice, acidity, and umami, but the right wine can elevate the experience. Here are 10 popular Indian seafood dishes with wine pairing suggestions to help you find the perfect match:

Goan Fish Curry (Xitti Kodi)

A tangy and spicy coconut-based curry with tamarind and red chilies.
Wine Pairing: Off-dry Riesling or Gewürztraminer – the slight sweetness balances the heat and complements the coconut.

Meen Moilee (Kerala Fish Curry)

A mild, coconut milk-based curry with mustard seeds and curry leaves.
Wine Pairing: Aromatic Viognier or Chenin Blanc – both work well with the creamy texture and delicate spices.

Machher Jhol (Bengali Fish Curry)

A mustard-infused fish curry with turmeric and potatoes.
Wine Pairing: A crisp Sauvignon Blanc or Albariño to cut through the mustard’s pungency.

Tandoori Prawns

Jumbo prawns marinated in yogurt, garlic, and spices, then roasted in a tandoor.
Wine Pairing: A lightly oaked Chardonnay or dry Rosé – both complement the smoky, charred flavors.

Fish Tikka

Boneless fish chunks marinated in mustard oil and spices, then grilled.
Wine Pairing: Medium-bodied Pinot Noir or Grenache – light enough for fish, but with enough structure for the spices.

Bombil Fry (Bombay Duck Fry)

Crispy, deep-fried Bombay duck (a soft fish) from Mumbai.
Wine Pairing: Sparkling wine (e.g., Brut Prosecco or Champagne) – the acidity and bubbles cut through the fried richness.

7. Karimeen Pollichathu

Pearl spot fish wrapped in banana leaves and grilled with a spicy marinade.
Wine Pairing: Grüner Veltliner or Fiano – both have fresh acidity and subtle spiciness to match the dish.

Patrani Machhi

A Parsi dish where fish is steamed in banana leaves with coconut and coriander chutney.
Wine Pairing: Vermentino or Sancerre – bright, citrusy, and perfect with herbaceous flavors.

Hilsa Paturi

Hilsa fish wrapped in mustard paste and banana leaves, then steamed.
Wine Pairing: Chablis or Sauvignon Blanc – high acidity to contrast the mustard’s intensity.

Sungta Sukka (Mangalorean Spicy Prawns)

A dry prawn dish cooked with coconut, tamarind, and red chilies.
Wine Pairing: Off-dry Rosé or Zinfandel – both balance the heat while enhancing the dish’s bold flavors.

See also my six drinks you might not thought of pairing with Indian food. 

A story from a food and wine tasting at Trishna in London

This story was originally published in March 2009.

It’s less common to come across Indian-spiced seafood dishes than it is fish and vegetable-based ones so what sort of wine works? Yesterday I had a chance to find out.

The meal was at Trishna, London’s latest high-end Indian restaurant which specialises in seafood. It’s an interesting venue which I’ll write about separately but for now I want to concentrate on the pairings which were devised by their Austrian general manager and sommelier Leo Kiem.

Each dish on the menu comes with an accompanying wine and/or beer. On the whole the pairings were very successful and even those that missed the mark (in my opinion) were interesting.

Squid with spiced rice flour, lime zest and chilli
A version of salt and pepper squid with a very light rice flour batter. Despite the description it wasn’t too spicy - you could really taste the squid The conventional pairing would have been a champagne or sparkling wine but the smooth dry Rotgipfler from Reinisch in Austria’s Thermenregion Kiem had chosen worked perfectly.

Hariyali Bream, mint coriander and green chilli masala, charred tomato kachumber
My favourite dish and my joint favourite pairing. A marvellous dish of grilled bream that had been smothered in a coriander-based wet paste, served with spiced cherry tomatoes - a quite unpredictable pairing with a very attractive crisp Dr Burklin-Wolf Riesling 2007 (It was probably the herby paste that made the wine kick in)

Isle of Wight Plaice, fried with coastal spices served with crushed pea and mint
A great indian riff on fried fish and mushy peas. Slightly less subtle than the other dishes with the odd effect of making the accompanying 2004 Pinot Blanc Auxerrois Vielles Vignes from Domaine Schoffit in Alsace taste slightly sweet. Something like an Alto Adige Pinot Grigio would have been marginally better I felt. (The accompanying peas by the way were wonderful)

Isle of Shuna Mussels simmered in a coconut and turmeric masala
Kiem brought out a biodynamic Chasselas from Alsace with this dish which I didn’t think worked. It was too funky - almost slightly sherried in character. I’m not sure what I would have matched with this - the coconut flavour was quite pronounced. Possibly an Alsace Pinot Gris or a Viognier though I liked the idea of an Erdinger weiss bier which is also an option. (The current pairing is a 2008 Chenin Blanc from Sula Vineyards in Nashik, India)

Cornish brown crab with butter, pepper & garlic
We tried this as an extra as it was one of their signature dishes. It was fantastic - and fantastically rich - swimming in butter. It was a bold move to pair it with a heavyweight Argentian red a 2005 Cuvelier Los Andes ‘Collecion’ and I didn’t feel it worked which isn’t to say that another less tannic red wouldn’t have fared better - possibly a Merlot. Personally though I’d have gone for a barrel-fermented Chardonnay.

We also tried a couple of desserts which also proved great foils for the accompanying sweet wines

Mango Kheer - Mango rice pudding with a sweet chilli coulis
Already a candidate for one of my pairings of the year with a glass of 2003 Chateau Filhot, Sauternes. A wonderful idea mixing fresh mango puree with warm, gently spiced rice pudding and it showed off the Sauternes in all its luscious glory. One of those pairings that’s more than the sum of its parts.

Carrot halwa with pistachio ice cream
An adventurous dessert - subtly spiced but not very sweet which allowed the accompanying citrussy 2007 Iona Noble Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc from the Elgin region of South Africa to really shine.

Image credit: Asit Naskar

Sweet Bordeaux and savoury food

Last week, the Union des Grands Vins Liquoureux de Bordeaux, the body that represents Bordeaux sweet wine producers, hosted a tasting of wines from six of the appellations they represent to partner savoury and sweet dishes at a lunch at le Cercle restaurant in Chelsea.

Sauternes and Barsac are the best, and best-known, Bordeaux appellations for sweet wines, but there are in fact eleven, producing vins liquoreux (sweet wines) and vins moelleux (medium sweet wines) from Semillon (60-80%), Sauvignon blanc (20-40%) and, in the better wines, Muscadelle (2-5%). The Semillon provides roundness, the Sauvignon Blanc light, fresher notes, and the Muscadelle an aromatic fruitiness.

An essential element to producing a good sweet wine is botrytis, or noble rot. Late in the autumn, the spores of a tiny fungus attack very ripe grapes, high in sugar content, shrivelling and discolouring the fruit, and in the wine enhancing the aroma and flavour and increasing viscosity. Sweet wines without botrytis lack distinction; wines that have noble rot have a clear aromatic profile, lusciousness, and in the best examples, complexity and longevity.

Our first wine, a Premières Côtes de Bordeaux NV, was served as aperitif with crudits and a yogurt dip. This simple, medium sweet wine was agreeably refreshing and pleasant with the vegetables and dip.

At table we moved to a Premiers de Loupiac, 2004 to partner fennel confit, orange vinaigrette and rocket salad. The slightly botrytised wine, easy and light, matched both rocket and caramelised fennel well. The chef had, for me, introduced too much orange into the vinaigrette and that did not enhance the wine. Other vegetables with a sweet note, such as asparagus, fresh young peas or in winter a dish of braised parsnips would go well with a Loupiac.

The next course, foie gras confit, fruit jelly and lemon granite was accompanied by Château de Cérons, 2001 and Château Crabitan-Bellevue, Ste-Croix-du-Mont, 2001. The two wines were markedly different in style: the Crons was full-bodied, luscious, apricotty on the nose and quite long; the light, minerally Sainte Croix du Mont was stylish, but had a harshness on the finish. Both accompanied the foie gras well; the granite was not, in my view, a good addition to the dish, and did not go well with either wine.

A salt cod roulade with carrot and tarragon, accompanied by a Château Peyruchet, Cadillac, 2000 came next. For me, this was the most successful pairing. The wine had lusciousness and also good acidity to support the judiciously tarragon-flavoured cod and the sweet note of the carrots.

Next came roast quail, apple and quince puree and grapefruit with a Baron Philippe de Rothschild, Sauternes, 2001. My serving had little apple and quince, and no evident grapefruit, but rather an excess of red capsicum, not usually a good companion to wine. This was no exception, but once the bits of capsicum were set aside, this luscious, honeyed wine, with a fine vein of acidity was a good foil for the quail. Poultry of all kinds marries well with sweet wines; one of the most famous dishes of the region is roast chicken liberally basted with Sauternes, and then served with a bottle of the same wine.

The dessert, mango and coconut rice sushi, served with Château Haut Bergeron, Sauternes 2003 was a disappointment. The coconut rice was quite mismatched with the wine, and the lime flavours were too strong to match its gentler citrus notes. The lightly botrytised, luscious wine, concentrated and full-bodied, would have gone better with an apple tart or a ripe peach. A subtly flavoured oriental chicken or fish dish could also have accompanied this wine at an earlier stage of the menu.

This might seem a startling suggestion, but with some thought and experiment, the sweet wines of Bordeaux can provide unexpectedly successful partners to savoury dishes from Asia and from closer to home. In the 19th century it was common for a Sauternes to be served with a fish our poultry course in the middle of an extensive dinner. Our palates may be unaccustomed to such combinations, yet the overall success of this lunch shows that the pairing of sweet wines with savoury food does work, and with good quality wines, there is no danger of palate fatigue as you move through the menu.

Le Cercle is at 1 Wilbraham Place, Chelsea, London, SW1X 9AE. Tel: 020 7901 9999. All the wines mentioned cost under £20 and are available in the UK.

Jill Norman is as acclaimed as an editor as she is as a writer. She created the Penguin Cookery Library in the 1960s and 1970s, worked with Elizabeth David for many years and is literary trustee of her estate. She has since become a Glenfiddich trophy winner in her own right, and is a leading authority on the use of herbs and spices as well as having a long-standing interest in food and wine matching. Her most recent books are Herb & Spice (Dorling Kindersley) and Winter Food (Kyle Cathie)

Photo by Ramon Perucho

The 10 best wines for spring and early summer drinking

The last two days have been quite, quite beautiful, starting mistily, basking midday in an unseasonally warm sun and finishing with an extended dusk that announces that spring is finally here. I immediately want to eat lighter meals: the new season’s vegetables are not quite in yet but I can at least plan for summer and that means a spring clean of the cellar, pushing the full bodied reds to the back and assessing what whites, lighter reds and rosés I still have lurking in the racks.

Now is the time to drink up any lighter wines from last year that may have slipped my notice and make a shopping list for the weeks ahead.

The idea of changing the wine you drink with the season, just as you change your diet and your wardrobe still meets some resistance. People tend to ‘like what they like’ when it comes to wine, drinking the same bottles right through the year. The more pronounced acidity and palate weight of lighter wines may not be to your taste. But try them with the right kind of food and you’ll see how perfectly tuned they are to the flavours of spring.

Sauvignon Blanc and Sauvignon blends
What more is there to say about Sauvignon Blanc? Only that there is much more variety than ever before and that quality seems on an unstoppable upward curve. Try those from South Africa if you’re not familiar with them. And revisit white Bordeaux and other Sauvignon-Semillon blends.
Best food pairings: goats’ cheese, asparagus, grilled fish and other seafood, dishes flavoured with coriander and dill

Grüner Veltliner
No sign of the Grüner bandwagon slipping off the rails. It’s still every sommelier’s darling - less demanding than Riesling, more sophisticated than Pinot Grigio (though see below). Drink young.
Best food pairings: Light Asian flavours e.g. Asian accented salads and noodle dishes, Vietnamese spring rolls

Albariño
Another fashionable option, Spain’s feted seafood white, which comes from Galicia in the North West of the country, has the intensity to cope with most light fish preparations. A good wine to choose in fish restaurants.
Best food pairings: shellfish, light fish dishes, spring and summer soups e.g. gazpacho, tomato salads

Chablis and other unoaked or lightly oaked Chardonnays
If you’re a Chardonnay drinker, time to change the register from oaked to unoaked or at least subtly oaked. (Those rich buttery flavours will overwhelm delicate vegetables and seafood unless they’re dressed with a rich butter sauce.) Faced with competition from the new world, Chablis is better quality than ever and a good own brand buy from supermarkets. Watch out for offers.
Best food pairings: oysters and other seafood, poached chicken, creamy sauces, fish and vegetable terrines, sushi

Dry Riesling
Like Marmite Riesling tends to polarise wine drinkers - some love it, some hate it. There’s no denying though that its crisp, fresh flavours and modest levels of alcohol it makes perfect spring sipping. If it’s the sweetness you’re not sure about stick to Alsace Riesling, German kabinett Riesling or Clare Valley Riesling from Australia. If it’s the typical kerosene flavours it can acquire with age, stick to younger wines.
Best food pairings: Smoked fish especially smoked salmon, crab, trout, smoked chicken, salads,Cantonese and lightly spiced south-east Asian food

Pinot Grigio
The tide of insipid, cheap Pinot Grigio has given the wine a bad name but the best examples (mostly from the Alto Adige) are elegant minerally whites that deserve a place in your cellar.
Best food pairings: antipasti, light seafood pastas and risottos, fresh tomato-based pasta sauces

Prosecco
The Veneto’s utterly charming sparkling wine, softer and more rounded than Champagne. It mixes fabulously well with fresh summer fruits such as peaches and raspberries as in the famous Bellini
Best food pairings: A perfect spring aperitif or to sip with panettone

Light rosé
I say light because so many rosés now are little different from reds in their levels of alcohol and intensity. Not that that style doesn’t have a place (it’s a great wine to drink with barbecues, for example) but it can overwhelm more delicate flavours. At this time of year try the lighter, less full-on styles from Provence and elsewhere in the South of France or from the Rioja and Navarra regions of Spain.
Best food pairings: Provençal-style dishes such as salad Niçoise and aioli (vegetables with a garlic mayonnaise), grilled tuna, mezze

Light Loire reds
Well, actually not so light if you look at the 2005 vintage but in general Loire reds which are mostly based on the Cabernet Franc grape are light and fragrant, perfect served cool. Examples are Chinon, Bourgeuil and Saumur-Champigny.
Best food pairings:
Seared salmon and tuna, grilled chicken, goats' cheese

Young Pinot Noir
I stress young because you want that bright, intense, pure raspberry fruit rather than the slightly funky notes you can get with Pinot (especially red burgundy) that has a couple of years’ bottle age. The most reliable place to find it currently is in the Marlborough region of New Zealand. Chile, California and Oregon have some appealingly soft, fruity Pinots too, though again, watch the alcohol and serve lightly chilled.
Best matches:
Seared duck breasts, salads that include fresh or dried red berries or pomegranate seeds, seared salmon or tuna.