Shorshe Ilish

Shorshe Ilish or Hilsha Fish in spicy mustard gravy is a traditional Bengali fish preparation that needs no introduction the fish-living

Bengali population around the world. People who belong to the state of West Bengal and Bangladesh are known as 'Bengali' based on their mother tongue. We, Bengalis love our fish and almost have at least one fish item in our everyday menu. Being geographically surrounded by lots of fresh water bodies, people from Bengal areas got used to eating fresh water fish which differs a lot in taste from their salt water counterparts. One particular exception of this is Hilsha fish. It is one salt-water fish that Bengalis can die for and even call it the 'king of fish'.

Being thousands of miles away from home, we are still lucky to get a good supply of Hilsha or Ilish fish in this part of the world. Shorshe Ilish the most common yet popular preparation that takes very little time and effort to make, yet the taste is to die for. There are many variation of how to make a good 'shorshe ilish' curry; mine is made using the bare minimum ingredients, yet every time it turns out tasty. I hope you will give it a try and enjoy a good meal of fish curry with some hot plain rice as they make the best combination.

Shorshe Ilish

(4 servings)

Ingredients:

Ilish Fish - 4 big pieces

Mustard Paste - 2 tablespoons

Green Chili - 3/4 or according to your taste

Turmeric - 1 teaspoon

Nigella Seeds - 1/2 teaspoon

Sugar - 1/4 teaspoon

Salt - to taste

Mustard Oil - 2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon

Method:

-Clean the fish pieces and pat dry. Marinate them with salt and turmeric powder.

-Soak the mustard seeds in some water and make a smooth paste with some salt and 2 green chills. Adding the salt will prevent the paste from being bitter.

-Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a pan and let it get hot. Fry the fish pieces in hot for 1-2 minutes and take them out. Do not over fry them as Hilsha is a delicate fish and doesn't need much time to get cooked.

-Pour 1 tablespoon of oil in the same pan and sprinkle the nigella seed. Once they start to crackle, pour in the mustard and chili paste in it and add some cold water. Put turmeric power, sugar and salt to taste and mix them well. Let the mixture come to a quick boil.

-Add the fish pieces in the gravy and let it boil for sometime. Once your gra come to your desired consistency, turn off the flame.

-Let it stand for 5 minutes and before serving, pour 1 teaspoon of raw mustard oil over the gravy for the extra kick.

-Serve hot with some steamed hot plain rice. Enjoy.