Description
Black Pomfret — Karuppu Vavval in Tamil, Karutha Aavoli in Malayalam, Halwa in Hindi — is a flat, silver-black fish with sweet, tender flesh and a single flat bone, a celebration favourite across India.
Loved across communities
Prized in Bengali, Gujarati, Tamil, Malayali and Konkani kitchens alike. Pomfret is special-occasion eating — the fish that appears at weddings, festivals and Sunday feasts, often served whole as the centrepiece.
Popular dishes
The showstopper is a whole pomfret fry (vavval varuval), scored and shallow-fried crisp, alongside a rich pomfret curry, tandoori pomfret, and Bengali-style preparations.
Recipe ideas
Cook it in a Goan fish curry or bake it as Fish Nirvana. More in our seafood recipes.
Prepared your way, packed fresh
We clean it to order — whole and scored ready to fry, or cut for curry. Every order is prepared by hand, then vacuum-packed in an individually sealed bag and dispatched fresh on the day it leaves us, at £17.99 per kg.
Good to know
Is Black Pomfret the same as Vavval or Halwa?
Yes — Karuppu Vavval in Tamil, Karutha Aavoli in Malayalam, Halwa in Hindi. It’s the sweet-fleshed black pomfret.
What does black pomfret taste like?
Sweet and tender with a rich flavour — one of the most-loved fish for a reason.
Does it have many bones?
It has one flat central bone and very few small ones, which is part of why it’s so popular and easy to eat.
What’s the best way to cook it?
Score it and shallow-fry it whole, or cook it tandoori or in a rich curry — it takes bold flavour wonderfully.
How is it packed for delivery?
Cleaned to order, vacuum-packed in a sealed bag and sent chilled, so it arrives fresh and clean with no leaks in the box.
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