Shorshe Ilish Recipe | Hilsa Mustard Gravy
The recipe I am sharing today is known as the gem of Bengali
cuisine and it is very popular all over the country. The name of the dish
itself gives an essence of mouthwatering feels to the taste-buds. Yes, it has
the power to pull the fish lovers from a very long distance and create a
magical moment in every meal we have it. This recipe is pride of Bengal, our
very own traditional recipe with a royal name ‘Shorshe Ilish’. Hilsa fish is
considered as one of the tastiest fish due to its distinctly soft oily texture,
mouthwatering flavor and superb mouthfeel taste. It is popularly known as ‘Maacher
Raja’ in Bengal which means ‘King of Fish’.
Shorshe Ilish or maybe better also called as Hilsa Mustard
Gravy is a traditional Bengali dish, is absolutely a worth try recipe for every
chef or home cook who loves fish. Or even if they don’t love fish, they will
probably fall in love with ilish maach (=Hilsa Fish) once they have it. Nothing
is more blissful than a plate of hot steamed rice with pieces of Hilsa with
mustard gravy to accompany with the scrumptious meal. The flavor of mustard and
the taste of Hilsa is just made for each other. What else have you done in your
life being a Bengali, if you hadn’t savoured Ilish Maach in the rainy season.
If you ever ask a Bengali what holds their heart over sweets, they would
unanimously choose Ilish without missing a bit. Whether you’re the spicy loving
bangal or sweet loving ghoti, a Bengali will always celebrate the idea of
having hilsa.
Fish is considered to be very auspicious in Bengali occasions
as they bring positivity, good luck and charm into the house, every ceremonies
and festivals held- fish is compulsorily prepared for the main course. Ilish
Maach is absolutely a quintessential food for a Bengali, it is often bought on
an auspicious occasion in my family to celebrate the meal very grandly because
the addition of Ilish Maach in the menu itself makes it purely inevitable and romanticizing.
Shorshe Ilish has the melting texture of Hilsa and the delicious aroma of
mustard paste in the gravy gives the recipe absolutely a royal touch. Every
Bengali’s love is Ilish Maach and no family in Bengal ever misses out to
prepare Hilsa atleast once in a year, especially in the rainy season because
Hilsa Fish are widely available in the markets during monsoon. The price are a
bit higher as compared to other fishes throught out the year, however there’s a
dip in the price by the end of monsoon, i.e, towards August-September end.
Hilsa Fish is rich with many health benefits, like every other fish, it has omega 3 fatty acids and other essential fatty acids which are good for health. It also helps lower the cholesterol level and develops immunity. It is also believed since the good old times from our ancestors that feeding steamed hilsa fish to a person who is suffering from fever, cold and cough or other normal sickness could help regain a good health. This has happened to me once when I were a nine year old kid, I had a severe asthma attack, I was recommended to avoid oily and spicy food, I would survive on medicine and injections four times a day for a week. Every food that I had felt tasteless and plain food wasn’t helping my sick taste-bud. Hence, Bhapa Ilish Maach ie, Steamed Hilsa Fish with mustard paste came to my rescue, prepared without spices and oil. The strong pungent smell of mustard seeds with the tasty hilsa fish and piping hot steamed rice was pleasantly blissful.
Shorshe Ilish starts off with tempering of some mustard oil with fiery green or red chillies, fenugreek seeds and then goes in the paste of black and golden mustard and then the star lightly fried Hilsa. In this recipe, I haven't fried the fish, instead I've made it a one-pot recipe to retain the delicious flavor of the dish. Head on to the full recipe with step-wise pictures and instructions given below:
Shorshe Ilish Recipe | Hilsa Mustard Gravy Recipe
[Non-Veg]
Author: Paromita.P
Prep Time: 5-10
minutes
Cooking
Time: 20 minutes
Total
Time: 30 minutes (approx)
Course: Main
Cuisine: Bengali/Indian
Ingredients:
- Hilsa Fish- 500 grams
- Turmeric powder- 2 tsp
- Red Mirchi powder- 2 tsp
- Salt to taste
- Tomato- 4
- Green chili- 6
- Onion- 2 large sized
- Mustard seeds (both black and white)- 1 cup (approx. 100 gm)
- Cumin powder- 1 tsp
- Mustard oil- 1 cup
Tips:
I’ve used a pressure cooker for this recipe, because cooking Hilsa fish in a
pressure cooker restores the flavor of fish and binds together with the strong
aroma of mustard paste. However it can also be prepared in a coking wok or
non-stick kadhai, cooking time may accordingly vary.
Method:
How to prepare ‘Shorshe Ilish’ with step by step pictures and instructions-
- Wash the fish pieces thoroughly with normal water.
- Marinade with turmeric powder and salt for 15-30 minutes.
- Heat a pressure cooker, add mustard oil, sliced onion, slit green chili and chopped tomatoes.
- Add salt and saute for 5 minutes until onion turn golden brown.
- Meanwhile, blend pre-soaked mustard seeds to a fine paste. (mustard seeds soaked in room temperature water for at least 30 minutes)
- Once oil start leaving, add turmeric and mirchi powder. Saute two minutes.
- Now add cumin powder just before adding mustard paste.
- Add on the fine mustard paste and stir for two minutes.
- Now add the marinated fish pieces and stir very gently. Coat the masalas and mustard paste properly.
- Now pour in a cup of water (water level just about covering above the fish and masalas)
- Pressure cook with 3-4 whistles and its done as shown in the picture.
