Shorshe ilish
Hilsa in mustard sauce
Shorshe ilish (সর্ষে ইলিশ): hilsa steaks in pungent mustard sauce
Hilsa, ilish, is the national fish of Bangladesh, and during the monsoon, when the shoals swim up the Padma and Meghna rivers, families in Dhaka and Chandpur cook it almost daily. Shorshe ilish is the most loved way: steaks of the rich, silvery fish gently simmered in a paste of ground yellow and black mustard seed, green chillies and mustard oil until the sauce turns sharp, creamy and nose-tingling. Eat it with plain white rice and nothing else. Hilsa is very bony, so warn guests and eat slowly; salmon steaks are an easier, less traditional swap. The common mistake is boiling the sauce hard after the mustard paste goes in, which turns it bitter. Chef's tip: grind the mustard seeds with a pinch of salt and a green chilli, and let the paste rest for 10 minutes before cooking; this tames the bitterness.
- Total time
- 45 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the fish
- 1 ⅓ lb hilsa steaksabout 8 steaks, 2 cm thick, cleaned
- 1 tsp ground turmeric
- 1 ½ tsp salt
For the mustard sauce
- 3 tbsp yellow mustard seeds
- 1 tbsp black mustard seeds
- 6 green chillies2 for the paste, 4 slit
- 1 cup water
- 4 tbsp mustard oil
- ½ tsp nigella seeds (kalonji)
- ½ tsp Kashmiri chilli powder
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Rinse 1 ⅓ lb hilsa steaks gently, pat dry and rub with ½ tsp ground turmeric and ¾ tsp salt. Leave in the fridge for 15 minutes while you make the paste.
15 minStep 2: Soak 3 tbsp yellow mustard seeds and 1 tbsp black mustard seeds in 4 tbsp of the ¼ cup water for 10 minutes. Grind with 2 of 1 ¾ green chillies and a pinch of the remaining salt to a smooth paste. Leave the paste to rest for 10 minutes.
10 minStep 3: Heat 4 tbsp mustard oil in a wide pan over a medium-high heat until it just smokes, then lower the heat. Fry the fish 1 minute a side so it firms up; lift it onto a plate.
3 minStep 4: Add ½ tsp nigella seeds (kalonji) and the remaining 4 ¼ green chillies (slit) to the oil. When the seeds crackle, stir in ½ tsp Kashmiri chilli powder, the remaining ½ tsp ground turmeric and the mustard paste, then cook over a low heat for 1 minute.
2 minStep 5: Add the rest of ¾ cup water and ¾ tsp salt and bring just to a gentle simmer. Do not boil hard.
3 minStep 6: Slide in the fish in one layer, spoon the sauce over, cover and cook over a low heat for 8–10 minutes, until the flesh is opaque right through and flakes from the centre bone when pressed with a spoon. Don't stir; shake the pan instead so the steaks don't break.
10 minStep 7: Drizzle with a little extra raw mustard oil if you like, rest for 5 minutes and serve with hot rice. Pick out the fine bones carefully as you eat.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 360 kcal
- Protein
- 27 g
- Carbs
- 4 g
- Fat
- 26 g
- Fibre
- 2 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does shorshe ilish take?
- About 45 minutes in total: 25 minutes to prepare and 20 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- Is it very spicy?
- It has some heat. Use less chilli for a milder version, or more if you like it hot.
- What can I use instead of ground turmeric?
- Leave it out (it mostly adds colour).
- What can I use instead of yellow mustard seeds?
- Cumin seeds, same amount (different flavour, same crackle).
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