Hilish Macher Mata diye Kochur saag / Taro Stem with Hilish Head

 

Taro stem is a popular ingredient in Bengali cuisine… each part of Taro plant is consumed in Bengal… the roots, the stem, the leaves and the stolons… it can be cooked with either fish head, prawns or made vegetarian. Some taro varieties produces a slime that can cause irritation - itching, pain, burning or swelling in the mouth and throat or even vomiting. While cutting the taro stem if the skin is too itchy then you must avoid eating that taro,  it’s best to boil the taro stem with salt and turmeric and drain the water out completely and add little lemon juice at the end.. 

Cooking the taro stem with hilsa fish head is a delicacy. This dish is served with steamed rice. 

Wet Paste 

Ingredients 

1 small piece of Ginger 

4 Green Chillies 

10 Garlic cloves 

1 tsp Cumin seeds 

1/4 cup Water 

Ingredients 

Grind all the above ingredients together into a paste. 

Hilish Maacher mata diye Kochur saag 

Ingredients 

1 Taro stem

1 Hilsa Fish head 

2 Green Chillies slit 

Wet paste 

Salt to taste 

1 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder 

1/2 tsp Sugar 

1/2 tsp Chilli powder 

1/2 tsp Cumin seeds 

1 Bay leaf

1 Red dried Chilli 

1/4 cup Mustard Oil 

Method 

The outer part of the taro stem or the outer fibre is pulled out and then it’s cut into small pieces. It is then boiled with a cup of water, salt to taste and 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder. We can cook the stem in a pressure cooker, give 1 or 2 whistles. Once the pressure releases, open the cooker and drain / squeeze all the water out completely. Clean and rub the fish head with little salt and 1/2 tsp turmeric powder. Take a wok, add mustard oil, let the oil heat up. Reduce the flame to medium and add the fish head into the wok. Fry the fish head until golden brown from both the sides. Remove the fish head and keep it aside. In the same oil, add the cumin seeds, bay leaf and dried red chilli. Sauté for few seconds. Add the wet paste. Add the salt, remaining turmeric powder, chilli powder and green chillies. Stir and cook for a minute. Add the fish head, cook the fish head for a minute and break the fish head into small pieces. Add the boiled taro stem into the wok, stir, add sugar and cook for 2 to 3 minutes or until the water evaporates completely and the dish becomes mushy. Enjoy the dish with steamed rice. 

#bengalicuisine #Hilsa #tarostem #delicacy #nonvegetarian #sidedish 

Amara Diye Ilish Macher Tok

 Amara Diye Ilish Maacher Tak 

This is one of the recipe made Ilisha fish that is sour in taste.. the sourness is made either tamarind pulp, dried raw mango or the fruit of the season that is hog plum.. (Amara). I have added a tbsp of poppy seed paste too to enhance the taste of the curry… and to create new recipe from my kitchen with love.. Serve this curry with steamed rice. 

Ingredients 

4 slices of Hilsa / Ilish 

4 small size Hog Plum peeled 

2 Garlic cloves crushed 

3 to 4 Green chillies slit

1 Dried Red Chilli

1/2 tsp Mustard Seeds 

Salt to taste 

1 tsp Turmeric powder 

1/2 tsp Red Chilli powder 

2 tbsp Jaggery powder or Sugar

1 tbsp Poppy seeds paste 

3 tbsp Mustard oil 

Method - 

Marinate the fish with 1/2 tsp turmeric powder and salt for 10 minutes. 

Add oil in a pan, fry the fish on both the sides until light brown in colour… or we can just use the fish without frying them. 

In the same pan, add mustard seeds and dried red chilli. Let the mustard seeds crackle. Add the hog plum. Stir for a minute, add the green chillies and garlic. Stir for few seconds, add 2 cups of water, poppy seed paste, salt, turmeric powder, red chilli powder and jaggery powder. Cover the pan and let the gravy simmer for 2 to 3 minutes on medium - low flame. Add the fish and let it simmer further for another 2 to 3 minutes. Once done serve the Hilsa curry with steamed rice. 

Komro Pata Diye Ilish Macher Bhorta

 Komro Pata Diye Ilish Macher Bhorta 

Ilish Macher Bhorta is one of the favourite in our house… from the time my husband visited Bangladesh… mostly head and tail of the fish is used… one of the dish made with the head of the fish is chorchori… 

We had some pumpkin leaves growing in our balcony pot… we have used pumpkin leaves to make Macher paturi.. and chorchori… but the leaves weren’t enough to make either of the dishes… since Bhorta is one of our favourite.. used the pumpkin leaves in the Bhorta… 

Patients is the key word for Bhorta… as lots of fine fish bones  have to be removed .. but once made.. it will just vanish from your plate…: 

To marinate the Fish 

Ingredients 

Head and Tail of Ilish/ Hilsa fish 

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder 

1/4 tsp Chilli powder 

Salt to taste 

Method 

Apply salt, turmeric powder and chilli powder on the fish head and tail.. 

To make the Bhorta 

Ingredients 

Marinated Fish head and tail 

Handful of Pumpkin leaves (can add more)

2 medium size Onion sliced 

2 or more Green Chillies 

2 Garlic cloves

2 Dry Red Chillies 

1/4 tsp Nigella seeds

Salt to taste

2 to 3 tbsp of Mustard oil

Method 

Take oil in a pan.. let it heat, fry the fish head and tail.. until golden brown in colour… remove the fish head and tail and keep it aside. Add sliced onion, garlic, green chillies and dried red chillies into the remaining oil in the pan. Sauté until light brown in colour, add the pumpkin leaves.. stir once.. move the sautéed onions and the leaves on one side of the pan, add the Nigella seeds, spread the onions in the pan, place the fish head and tail over the sautéed onions… cover and cook for a minute, open the lid and turn the fish and cook for another minute. Switch off the flame, let it cool a bit, take a grinding jar, add the head, tail, garlic cloves, green chillies, one dried red chilli, pumpkin leaves into the grinding jar. Don’t add any water.. use the pulse button and grind the ingredients coarsely… 

Remove the Bhorta on the plate.. here comes the test of your patients… time to remove the bones… once done add the sautéed onions and salt.. mix all the ingredients together.. the Bhorta is ready to be savoured with some hot rice… 

Ilish Macher Mathar Bhorta / Ilish fish Head Bhorta

 

This time my travel to Delhi was a bliss, as we could enjoy Hilsa to the fullest. My sister in law’s cook, belongs to a village in Sundarbans, where the Bangladesh border is very close by.  They make Bhorta with fish head at their home. This recipe has been shared by her.. 

We at home normally make Ilish head with malbar spinach / Pui Saag and vegetables or with kotchur loti / Taro Stolon or with Laau Saag / Bottle Gourd stem or with Cabbage etc. We as urban inhabitants don’t know many rustic dishes that are cooked in the villages. 

 It’s so scrumptious that just one plate of rice is required to finish the meal. 

Ingredients 

2 Hilsa fish head cut into 2 halves 

1 Big Onion sliced 

2 to 3 Garlic Cloves 

2 Green Chillies chopped as per your ability to eat spices 

Handful of Coriander Leaves chopped 

2  Dried Red Chillies 

Salt to taste 

1 tsp Turmeric powder 

1/2 tsp Nigella seeds

Mustard Oil to fry the fish 

Method 

Apply some salt and turmeric powder to the fish head. Take a wok, add and heat up the mustard oil. Add the fish head and fry the fish head until golden brown in colour from both the sides. The fish head has to be crispy fried. Remove the fish head and keep it aside. Reduce the oil and keep only 1 tbsp of mustard oil in the wok. Add the nigella seeds and dry red chillies, once the nigella seeds crackles and the red dry chillies are roasted well, remove the dry red chillies and keep it aside.  In the same wok add the onions and the garlic. Meanwhile once the red chillies have cooled down, crushed them. Sauté the onions until golden brown in colour. Once done, remove the Onions and garlic in a bowl,  add the crushed red chillies, chopped green chilli, coriander leaves and salt in the bowl, mix all the ingredients well. Take a mortar and pestle, add the fried head and crush them well into a paste. I have used a grinder to grind the fish head. Add the ground fish into the bowl, take out the thorns as much as you can, now mix all the ingredients very well with hand. Serve this dish with rice. It’s best eaten during lunch. 

Ilish Macher Lejar Bhorta / Hilsa Fish Tail Bhorta

There were 5 tail pieces of Hilsa fish left in the freezer. Usually as the tail part of the fish is thorny many people avoid eating the tail part. In Bangladesh they make various types of Bhortas. I had this recipe in my bucket list as I had heard from my husband about the Ilish  Bhorta when he had travelled to Bangladesh and I had randomly seen some few recipes on YouTube. It’s delicious, you can actually finish one whole plate of steamed rice with Ilish Bhorta. 

So here it is... 

Ingredients 

5 Tail pieces of the Hilsa Fish

2 medium size Onion sliced 

2 Garlic Cloves

2 or more Whole Dried Red Chilli 

Few Coriander leaves chopped 

Salt to taste 

1 tsp Turmeric powder 

1/2 cup + 1/4 tsp of Mustard Oil 

Method 

Take the fish tails, apply salt and turmeric powder. Heat 1/2 cup oil, fry the fish tail until golden brown in colour. Remove the fried fish and keep it aside to cool, in the same oil now fry the onion and garlic until golden brown in colour. Remove the onion and garlic and keep it aside. In the same remaining oil fry the dried red chillies until brown in colour. Remove the chillies and keep it aside. Now very carefully remove the thorns from the fish tail and keep the fish meat aside. Now take the fried onion, garlic, red chillies, salt to taste and coriander leaves on a plate, mash all the ingredients together well, add the fish meat and mash the ingredients together. Transfer the Bhorta into a serving plate, drizzle with the remaining mustard oil and a fresh red chilli, serve it with hot steamed rice. 

Ilish Macher Bhappa

After a long time we managed to get Ilish from an online cold storage. We were very thrilled, after all it’s called the Macher Raja... King of Fish in Bengal, as it’s the tastiest fish. The fish was delivered whole, we had to clean and cut the fish... and I love cutting the fish. So quickly got into action, geared up with the cutting tools, cut the fish and made Bhappa Ilish - one of the classic traditional dish made with Ilish. 

 

Ingredients 

6 pieces of Ilisha Fish

1 Garlic Cloves

4 to 6 Green Chillies as per the spiciness you require 

Salt to taste

1 tsp Turmeric powder 

1/2 tsp Chilli Powder - Optional 

1 tbsp Fresh or Desiccated Coconut  -  optional 

2 - 3 tbsp Mustard seeds 

1 tsp Poppy seeds - optional

2 tbsp Curd 

1 1/2 tbsp + 1//2 tsp Mustard Oil 

Method 

To make a paste, add mustard seeds, poppy seeds, coconut, 2 green chillies, garlic, salt and curd in a grinder and grind all the ingredients with little water into a paste. Strain the paste. Take fish pieces and apply salt chilli powder and turmeric powder on the fish, pour the paste and mustard oil on over the fish and coat the fish well with the paste. Add slit green chillies. Close the container and steam the fish for 10 - 15 minutes or add water in the pressure cooker, place the cooker stand and place the closed container inside the cooker and pressure cook with 2 whistles. Once done, drizzle the remaining mustard oil and serve it with hot steamed rice. 

Aloo Begun diye Ilish Marcher Jhol Hilsa with Brinjal and Potatoes

Aloo Begun diye Ilish Marcher Jhol
Hilsa with Brinjal and Potatoes
Ingredients
6 pieces of Hilsa
2 Potatoes cut into thick strips
2 Brinjal cut into strips
1 Tomato cut into strips
4 Green Chillies slit
1 small pieces Ginger
1 tbsp Mustard paste
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp Cumin powder
1/2 tsp Chilli powder
1/2 tsp Panch Phoren
1 Bay Leaf
Mustard Oil for fry
Coriander leaves for garnishing
Method
Marinate the  fish with salt and turmeric powder, let it rest for 15 minutes. Heat the oil. Fry the fish in mustard oil till brown on both the sides. Keep it aside. Remove the excess oil from the wok. Add Panch Phoren, bay leaf and green chillies, let the Panch phoren crackle. Add the vegetables, sauté it for 2 minutes. Add mustard paste, salt, turmeric powder, chilli powder, and cumin powder. Stir and cook for 2 minutes more. Add 2 to 3 cups of water as per the gravy required. Cover and boil till the vegetables are tender. Add the fish and cook for 2 minutes. Add coriander leaves for garnishing. Serve hot with rice.