Tomato shorshe baked rui

I promised you more fish recipes from my kitchen in one of teh previous posts and here I deliver, one more delicacy. This for sure is your trick to win over guests at your weekday dinner table post work. Since it promises super less oil into its composition, your friend with a strict diet regime can also enjoy it, guilt free. The best part about this forgiving recipe would be it;s ability to bring in together some of the most loved ingredient of the Bengali kitchen, in a way that isn't much heard of! What I loved the most about this recipe is the fact that it leaves a huge scope of exploring newer flavor profiles every time you make it in your kitchen. Oops bake it!

I know a lot many of you must be raising your eyebrows in anticipation. You are certainly not wrong. Would you believe even I had my share of arguments with the mother before the dish went inside the microwave. Post the baking session of course there was only the sound of chomp-chomp-chomp!! The Indian gastronomical scene has embraced baking as a part of its its millennial culture strongly. Prior to this baking wasn't really much prevalent in most humble middle class households, as in for home cooking!! Since the process of evolution never stops, exploring and enjoying newer avenues is the only way out for foodies of all kinds!!

Without any more stories here is your seven step guide to being a star of the dinner table, even when you are late from work,a and the husband man isn't much of help in the kitchen. Here we go with the ingredients used first!!

1. Soak 1 tbsp black mustard seeds+ 1 tbsp yellow mustard seeds+ 2 tsp khus-khus or posto or poppy seeds (whatever is easier for you to identify), in water for about 30-45 mins.

2. Marinate 250 gm fish steaks or pieces, with 1/2 tsp turmeric powder or paste + generous pinch of salt. And keep aside for 10 mins max.

3. Heat some 2 tbsp mustard oil in a pan and fry the fish pieces for 1-2 mins each side, til they get a glorious brown color on them. Remember we do not intend to cook the fish at this stage.

3. Once done take them off and keep aside in a bowl, covered.

4. Time to grind the spice base: In a small mixer jar pour in the soaked mustard & poppy seed+ 4 fat cloves of garlic+ 1 small & 1 medium tomato + 3 green chilies+ 1 tbsp of the mustard oil (same in which the fish has been fried)+ salt+ splash of water. Taste the spice base to check the quantity of salt.

5. Preheat your microwave at 200 C for 10 mins.
6. Grease the bowl with the same mustard oil, in which the fish has been fried. Place half of the ground spice mix on the base of the bowl. And top with the fish steaks, along with the oil collected at the  bottom of the steaks.

5. Smear the remaining spice mix on top of the fishes evenly. Slice up one small tomato and place on top of the fish. Chop up some green chili and place on top of the fish.

6. Cover the bowl and bake it on full power or micro mode for 10-12 mins. Once it's done, cook it uncovered for  mins. It is the later 5 mins, that thickens the gravy and gives it the distinctive color on top.
7. Once it comes out of the oven, spare a few seconds to have a look it. You do not need to rest it anymore. Spoon a tbsp of raw mustard oil on top at this point for a more authentic and rounded flavor.Eat it scalding hot, with some steamed rice. Once you remove that skin from teh fish, what's waiting beneath is oily, soft flesh, ready to melt in your mouth.

8. Feel free to feed it to your strict  diet observing Bengali friends or relatives in order to earn blessings or to be in their good books.

Do you have questions lurking in your mind?? or anxiety? That is bound to be there till you embark upon the discovery of new-nes. What I am very confident about is the gratitude that will pour in from your end once you eat it. But, generous and loving as I am, here are some tips to make the kitchen experience a more easy one:

1. You can choose to not fry the fish. i do, because I like it that way. In case you aren't frying fish, use raw mustard oil. but only mustard oil!!
2. For the paste a splash of water isn't a much specific measurement. Start with 2 tbsp and then add it necessary. Beware of making it water-y!
3. The amount of chilies in the paste can be increased or reduced absolutely depending upon your taste buds. It is essential to taste the spice base to ensure the perfect salt balance to your dish.
4. In case you are out of Rohu or Rui, Katla can be a good substitute. In such a case you need to increase the cooking time a tad bit more.
5. For the ones who do not own a microwave, no need to worry. Follow the steps mentioned in the recipe & in place of putting in inside a microwave, put the tightly covered bowl in the container when you cook your rice. As the rice keeps cooking, the fish also cooks alongside. And you are sorted.

I have cooked and eaten it a few times now, and we only have love & appreciation for it. The best part, every time it is cooked in differently. At times I add in some fresh coriander stems to the paste, while some other times a tablespoon of yoghurt & some almonds spin magic into the taste.

 I am sure I will try out few more ways and who knows maybe you or me will create another version of this, with different bang on flavors. Till then eat this. feed this. I will see you all on the other side soonest. Chow!!