BANANA LEAF FISH

SERVES 2

This is a traditional dish cooked by the Parsi community in India. It is known as Patra ni Macchi and is very popular at weddings and on special occasions. A whole fish or pieces of fish with firm meat is coated with a chutney and baked or steamed after wrapping in banana leaf. I usually like to cook this with the tropical pomfret fish. You can also use halibut, cod or even seabass.

2 Pomfret fish

1 teaspoon Salt

½ tsp turmeric powder

½ tsp red chilli powder (1 tsp if using Kashmiri chilli powder)

Banana leaf , to wrap the fish

For the chutney:

1 cup coriander leaves

1 cup mint leaves

4 green chillies

5 cloves of garlic (you can add more if you want to make it more spicy)

1½ teaspoon cumin seeds

½ cup fresh coconut, grated

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon lemon juice

For garnishing:

2 tbsp chopping scallions (green onions)

Wedges of lime or lemon

Sliced red onions

½ chaat masala (optional)

1 Gut and clean the fish. Make three slits on each side of the fish. Make a dry mixture with ½ tsp salt, ½ tsp turmeric powder and 1 tsp Kashmiri chili powder and rub it on the fish.

2 To make the masala for coating and stuffing the fish, add all the ingredients from the “For making masala” section into a blender and blend into a thick smooth paste. If it gets difficult to blend the ingredients, add about a tbsp of water to help the blending process.

3 Rub the masala on both sides of the fish. Also rub some masala on the interior of the fish. Set aside for about 20 minutes.

4 Place the steamer with on medium high heat. Make sure there is adequate water in the steamer to steam for about 15-20 minutes.

5 Cut the banana leaf into pieces that can wrap the fish. Place the banana leaf on the steamer that is boiling for about a minute on each side and remove. This softens the banana leaf and makes it easy to fold without breaking or tearing. Alternately, you can wet the banana leaf and place it in the microwave for about 30 seconds to soften it.

6 Rub some vegetable oil on the lighter green surface of the banana leaf. Place the fish on the oiled portion of the banana leaf and carefully wrap it to create a parcel. Use a piece of string to tie the parcel so that it does not unwrap during the steaming process.

7 Place the fish parcel in the steamer and steam for about 12-15 minutes until the fish is fully cooked.

8 Remove the parcel from the steamer, cut the string and carefully unwrap it from the banana leaf. Transfer the fish to a serving plate and garnish with chopped scallions, red onions and wedges of lime or lemon. Sprinkle some chaat masala on top (optional).

Serve immediately with steamed basmati rice or basmati rice pilaf.