Macher Jhol

Macher Jhol this is the first time I have tried this typical Bengali fish curry from a recipe I found in Femina. I also have a Sanjeev Kapoor recipe of this which is a little different and uses potato too. I am sure  there are various variations of this recipe and I would love to try them out.

This is the recipe I followed.

Ingredients

6 pieces of catla fish (I used the head too if you are not using the head here you can use about 8 pieces),

1 medium chopped onion,

Salt to taste,

2 tbsp ginger garlic paste,

1 tsp turmeric powder,

4 tbsp mustard oil,

1 tsp kalonji or onion seeds,

4 tbsp tomato puree,

Red chilli powder to taste,

1 tsp cumin powder,

2 tsp fine coriander powder,

600 ml of water,

3 slit green chillies,

1 tbsp chopped coriander leaves

Method

Marinate the fish in salt, ginger-garlic paste, chopped onion and half the turmeric powder for about half an hour. You can use rohu too.

Heat the mustard oil and season with the onion seeds, then add the fish pieces and fry till golden brown in batches. Ensure you do not add the onion or they will burn. Keep the fish aside. In the same hot oil add the onion with the remaining marinade and fry till brown.

Next add the tomato puree, red chilli powder, coriander powder, remaining turmeric cumin seed powder and salt. Fry this for about 5 minutes. Then add the water and let it boil for 5 minutes. Add the fish pieces and green chillies let it cook on low heat for about 20-25 minutes. Garnish with chopped coriander leaves and serve with rice.