Perhaps the most quintessential Bengali dish ever known is ‘mach bhat’ or rice with fish curry. However mach bhat takes altogether a whole new dimension with the recipe, which I share today, known coloqually as ‘muri ghonto’, or the fish pulao. Well to be perfect, it is not exactly the fish pulao, rather the ‘fish head pulao’, where the head of either Rohu or Katla fish is cooked with rice. Does not it sound exotic? The fish lovers know it very well that the fish heads are really juicy stuff. When it gets cooked with the rice, there is no doubt that muri ghonto tastes just out of the world. Interestingly, as my knowledge goes, this dish, being considerably spicy, should be enjoyed with plain white rice, along with the rice it is made of. Enjoy !!!!
Ingredients to serve 4 :
- Fish head (Rohu/Katla) – 2
- Gobindobhog rice – 2 tbspoon
- Pototo (cut into medium size cubes) – 1
- Onion (sliced) – 2 (medium)
- Ginger paste – 1 tbspoon
- Tomato (chopped) – ¾
- Slit green chilli – 2
- Cumin seed – ½ teaspoon
- Bay leaf – 1
- Tuemeric powder – ½ + ¼ teaspoon
- Red chilli powder – ½ teaspoon
- Garam masala powder – ¼ teaspoon
- Salt to taste
- Ghee – 1 teaspoon
- Mustard oil – 3-4 tbspoon
Procedure :
Clean and wash the fish heads. Lengthwise cut them into two halves. Coat with salt and ½ teaspoon of turmeric powder, keep aside for 15-20 minutes.
Rinse the rice twice and spread over a plate.
Heat oil in a frying pan or kadai over medium flame.
Add the potato cubes along with salt and turmeric powder, shallow fry them and keep aside.
Put the fish heads into the remaining hot oil and fry well, remove them and keep aside.
Add cumin seeds and bay leaf, saute for a while.
Add onion and fry till translucent.
Then add ginger paste.
As the onion turns light brown, add tomato, green chillies, red chilli powdr, salt and remaining turmeric powder. Cook till tomato gets soft.
Add the rice and fry for 3-4 minutes.
Add fried fish heads and fry for further couple of minutes. Break the fish heads into medium size pieces through ladle.
Add potato cubes and 1 large cup of hot water.
As the water starts boiling cover the pan with a lid and let it cook on low-medium flame.
As the rice and potato get cooked and all the water dries up, sprinkle over garam masala powder and ghee. Give them a good stir and switch off the flame.
Give it a standing time for 2 minutes and then serve with plain rice.
Note :
- If “Gobindobhog” rice is not available then use any short grain rice.
