Rooted in bold flavour and effortless cooking, the fish tikka recipe from Damn Good Food by Fehmida Jordaan captures everything her cooking philosophy stands for—vibrant, accessible, and deeply comforting. Known for turning everyday meals into “flavour bombs,” Fehmz’s approach is all about creating dishes that feel joyful, achievable, and full of personality.
In this recipe, she brings her signature flair to a classic, layering warm spices and punchy marinades over tender fish to deliver a dish that feels both indulgent and easy to recreate at home. It’s the kind of meal that honours her heritage while embracing modern, fuss-free cooking, perfect for weeknight dinners, relaxed entertaining, or even as a standout centrepiece over the Easter holiday. With seafood often taking the spotlight during Easter, this fish tikka offers a fresh, flavour-packed alternative to traditional preparations.
Like many recipes in Damn Good Food, this dish is less about rigid rules and more about confidence in the kitchen, trusting your palate, adjusting flavours, and making it your own. Ultimately, it’s not just about cooking fish, it’s about capturing that unmistakable Fehmz energy: colourful, comforting, and, as she would say, simply damn good.
FISH TIKKAMAKES 6 SKEWERS
This tikka recipe can be made with ingredients from your local grocer or Indian grocer (kashmiri chilli powder should always come from an Indian grocer, not a big chain supermarket, trust me).This is one of the easiest and simplest tikka recipes. You can certainly up the ante with more spices and other pastes. But first make it once, as is, just like this. I adapted the recipe from my friend Asima and added it to fish to make these fish tikka wraps, and they’re so so damn good! You can use this same marinade on prawn meat for prawn tikka wraps. With a little adaptation, you can use it on chicken too. As with all my recipes, just have fun with it, make it your own, grill it in the air fryer, throw it on to the braai, or pop it in the oven.
INGREDIENTS
1 x 600 g box of hake fillets, cut into large cubes
3 limes, halved
Tikka marinade
1 tsp crushed garlic
1 tsp salt
½ tsp turmeric
½ tsp black pepper
1 tsp egg yellow colouring
2 tbsp plain yoghurt
1 tsp chilli flakes
1 tsp lemon pepper spice
2 tsp tomato paste
Juice of 2 lemons (or 6 tsp lemon juice);set aside
METHOD
1. Tikka marinade: Mix all the marinade ingredients together.
2. Coat the fish well with the marinade. Leave to absorb the flavours for at least 1 hour or, preferably, overnight.
3. To assemble: Thread half a lime onto the skewers, followed by pieces of fish.
4. Drizzle with some oil and place into a preheated oven on 200 °Cf or about 8 minutes, turning halfway through the cooking time.
5. Squeeze the reserved lemon juice over the fish skewers just before serving.
6. Serve on fresh naan wraps
VARIATION
You can use the same marinade to make chicken tikka:
• 1 x 500 g chicken fillets, cut into large cubes; or•
1 x 700 g chicken pieces; or
• 5 chicken quarters, with slits added to the chicken.
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