Begun diye ilish (Hilsa with brinjal)

Begun diye ilish

It would be an understatement to say i love ilish mach. Unfortunately, i never knew this fish existed till i came to Calcutta as this fish is not available in Imphal (i have been told that you can get it nowadays in the fish shops that sell imported fish). But it was love at first taste for me.

Hilsa – known as ilish in bengali – has to be the king of fish. Did you know that this fish lives most of its life in the sea and migrate to the rivers to spawn -pretty much like salmons? Well, now you know!

Despite the tiny bones which you have to be skilled at picking, i cannot have enough of ilish mach. Since it is easily available in the Bangladeshi stores over here, i am not deprived of of the joy of relishing ilish. What would we ever do without these stores?

My emaibem cooks the best ilish ever.  Apart from mustard seeds, she cooks ilish with brinjal, sometimes with kochu (colocasia), at times with karon (kakrol in bengali)..Whichever way she cooks it, i love it. It is from her that i learned how to cook ilish. One of the first thing she told me is that onions, ginger or garlic are a no-no with ilish. Apart from panch phoron (literally means five spices: fenugreek – methi; nigella – kalonji; cumin - jeera; fennel -saunf and mustard seeds -shorshe) and a pinch of coriander powder, this fish needs little else in the seasoning department as it is tasty in itself.

This delicious recipe is taken from my emaibem and is surprisingly easy to cook.

Begun diye ilish

Things you need:

7-8 pieces of ilish

1 medium brinjal - diced into cubes

1 medium tomato – diced into cubes

1 teaspoon panch phoron

1 teaspoon turmeric

2-3 green chilly slit lengthwise

A pinch of coriander powder

Mustard oil for frying and cooking (you could use vegetable oil for frying)

Salt to taste

What you have to do:

Wash and clean the ilish pieces. Pat dry and smear with turmeric and salt and keep aside for about 1/2 hour.

Heat the oil in a wok. When it is hot, put in the ilish pieces and fry till golden brown. Drain and keep aside.

Fried ilish

Now, heat some mustard oil -well, you can use the same wok! When it is hot, put in the panch phoron. When the seeds start spluttering, put in the diced brinjal and tomato. Add the turmeric  and coriander powder. Fry till the tomato starts getting mushy.

Add water. When it starts bubbling, add the fried ilish pieces. Season with salt. Cover and simmer for about 5-10 minutes. i usually add the green chillies 5 minutes before i take it off the flame so that they retain that lovely fresh green colour.

Garnish with chopped coriander and serve hot with boiled rice. Heaven on a plate.