Fish Fry (Indian-Bengali style)

When I started this blog a couple of weeks back, I had received a request for this recipe. That was really helpful since it drove me to standardize my measurements. “Fish fry” in Kolkata, India is a typical appetizer item for most weddings and other such occasions. Although globalization has infused some western culture into the common man’s food-habit, fish-fry still seems to hold its position as one of the favorite dishes among the Bengalis from Kolkata.

Ingredients:


• Fish fillet- ¾ lb (approx.) of Tilapia/Catfish
• Onion- ½ of a medium
• Garlic- 2-3 cloves
• Ginger Paste- 1tsp
• Green Chillies (Thai or Indian )- 4-5 small
• Bread Crumbs- as needed
• Eggs- 5 large
• Cilantro - 1 bunch
• Lemon Juice- ½ cup
• Salt to taste
• Ajwain (Carom seed) powder – ½ tsp
• Amchur (Dried Mango) Powder- 1tsp

Method:

• Make a fine paste of onion, garlic, ginger, green chillies and cilantro. Keep aside

• Take the fish fillet and cut them thinner by running the knife (preferably the deboning knife) horizontally. You can accomplish this by holding down the thickest part of the fillet and gently running the knife through. You will get 2 thin layers approximately.
• Now cut each of the thin layers into 2”x 3” rectangles. You may not get perfect rectangles due to the original shape of the fillet, but this is to give you an approximate idea of the size.
• Mix the lemon juice, ajwain powder and salt into the cilantro mixture and marinade the fish pieces in them for about 1 ½ hours.
• Whisk the eggs along with some salt and keep aside.
• Divide the bread crumbs into two areas and keep them separately. Now it is time to prepare the cutlets.
• Step 1- Dip the marinated fillet into the 1st bread crumb plate and just pat the fillet with the crumbs to lock in the flavor of the marinade.

• Step 2- Dip the above fillet into the egg wash.
• Step 3- Roll the above fillet into the 2nd bread crumb plate and make sure that the fillet is fully coated with it. Try to make the shape as rectangular as possible.
• Repeat the 3 steps mentioned above for all the pieces.
• Heat oil in a frying pan and fry the breaded fish fillets.
• Serve them hot with tomato ketchup, hot sauce of any kind or ideally with kasundi (a typical Bengali condiment which you could find only in Bangladeshi stores in US). Additionally, one can also have a side of julienned cucumber and onions.

• This is an excellent starter and also a great accompaniment for tea.

Notes:

• Kasundi is what one can describe as a pickled mustard paste. Widely available in local food market in Kolkata, India
• The accompanying salad could be made of julienned onions, cucumber and beetroot all mixed in a dressing of lemon juice, kasundi and salt. In that case you might choose not to serve the kasundi separately.
• You can prepare these fillets ahead of time if you are preparing for a party and just fry them when guests start arriving.
• Ajwain or carom seeds are excellent for digestion and hence it is ideally used for appetizers traditionally.