Bhapa Mach- Steamed Fish in Mustard sauce

After experiencing terrible heat for the last few days, today the wind is whistling outside, the sky dark and looming with a streak of lightning flashes once in a while. The stage is set for the rain. The wind, the rain, the thunder and the lightning ... all dance in perfect sync. And I watch outside like a curious child waiting for an answer.As I sit to pen down this recipe which I learnt a long time ago from my old Bengali neighbor who was a fabulous cook herself. Memories come flooding, how she makes me understand  this recipe in her characteristic motherly way. Wish I could meet her now to tell her how grateful I am for this as I don't know where she is now. 

Bhapa refers to a dish of fish or vegetables, steamed with spices. Steamed fish is a traditional Bengali delicacy where Ilish /Hilsha Or Bhetki is steam cooked in a tangy mustard sauce. Mustard oil is used for an authentic taste and flavour. It is best enjoyed with hot steamed rice.But I have made this dish using Rohu, which is a freshwater fish as my son is averse to eating hilsa for its numerous bones. I still remember her advice to saute the fish lightly in oil before steaming it , when we use fresh water fishes such as Rohu or Katla.

Cuisine: Bengali

Prep time: 30 mins

Cooking time: 20 mins

Serves 2

Ingredients:

•  4 pieces Rohu Fish 
• 2 tbsp Mustard Oil (for frying fish) + 1 tsp
• 1 tbsp. Black Mustard seeds
• 1 tbsp Yellow Mustard seeds  
• 1 tbsp.Poppy seeds
• 4 nos Green chillies
• 1/2 tomato thinly sliced
• 2 tbsp Curd/yoghurt 
• Salt to taste
• Fresh Coriander leaves, chopped

 

Let's Learn How to make this recipe:

•  Marinate the rohu pieces with turmeric and salt for half an hour.

• Meanwhile soak the black, yellow mustard and the poppy seed in a little water for about 30 minutes.  After 30 minutes grind the soaked mustard and poppy seed along with 1 green chili and a little salt to a fine paste.

• Fry the fish in hot mustard oil. Make sure you do not deep fry the fish. The fish should just be fried lightly to get rid of the rawness.

• In a bowl, take yoghurt, above prepared paste , salt to taste. Mix together and keep aside.

• First take a steel tiffin box or any steel vessel with tight-fitting lidin a single layer (not one on top of the other). Place the fish pieces as well as the gravy in this vessel and drizzle a little mustard oil over the bowl. Drop 1-2 slitted green chillies and thinly sliced tomatoes. Sprinkle some chopped coriander leaves. close the lid tightly and  steam it for 10-15 minutes.

• Alternatively you may even bake in the fish in a preheated oven at 200 degrees C for about 15-18 minutes.

• Remove from the steamer (or oven if used) and serve with steaming hot rice.