Doi Maach (Fish in Yogurt Sauce)

Doi Maach is a very popular Bengali dish. I had never tasted this dish before nor I wanted to try this. Coz for  me curd & Fish was a complete no no. somehow I had an impression that curd & fish should not be consumed together as its toxic. Well after doing some personal research, I understoodd that its OK to have & there hasn't been any scientific evidence:). A big Thanks to my Hubbys Bengali friend Soumik, for inspiring me about this Dish. When he visited us last month, he was going on about how good this dish is & so I thought of giving it a try. After so much of recipe research on the net, I liked Show me the curry recipe.

Doi in Bengali is yogurt & Maach means Fish. Traditionally this dish is made with River fish, Hilsa. Rohu etc. But you can use any fish you want. I dont eat fish if it smells like fish. hahahaha... yes, you heard it right. There are some fish which doenot have that strong fish smell like Pomfret, Hallibut, Seer, Batam Steak etc. In kerala especially Kottayam side Mooru Kaachiya (Yogurt curry) is very famous & is a everyday dish with rice. Ok now why am I talking about kerala here? Thatz because Doi Maach is fish in grand Mooru Kaachiya curry. This dish is very simple to make & is truely divine. I am not a curry person but I loved this dish & I am going to make this more often.

Ingredients:
Pomfret- 4 to 6 medium slice(You can use any fish)
Turmeric Powder – 1/4 tsp + 1/4 tsp
Salt as per taste
Onion – 1 medium
Cocomut Oil – 3 tbsp
Cardamoms – 4
Cloves – 4
Bay Leaves – 2-3
Cinnamon – 1″ pc
Green Chillies – to taste, slit around 4 to 5
Ginger – 1 tsp, minced
1/4 Tsp -Red Chili Powder
Sugar – 1/4 tsp- Sugar
1 Cup Yogurt
1/2 cup water
1/2 Cup warm water
Method:

Wash and clean the Fish.Sprinkle 1/4 tsp of Turmeric, Salt and rub on the Fish. Set the fish aside and allow it to marinate for 5-10 minutes. Meanwhile, make a paste of the Onion and set aside.
In a mortar and pestle, pound the Cardamom and the Cloves, discard the Cardamom skin. Set aside. In a pan, heat the Oil and lightly fry the fish on both sides, pull aside on a paper towel till ready to use. In the same. remaining Oil, add in the Bay Leaves, Ground Cloves & Cardamom, Onion Paste, Green Chilies, 1/4 tsp Salt. Mix and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add in Ginger, Turmeric Powder, Red Chili Powder, Sugar and mix.

Smooth the Yogurt with 1/2 cup of water, turn the flame off and slowly add the Yogurt to the pan, while stirring continuously.Once mixed in, turn the flame back on & Cook till the Oil separates from the mixture. Once done, add in the Fish gently. Cook on both sides for a couple of minutes. Add in the Warm Water (1 cup) and mix very gently to mix the masala to the Water. Once mixed in, lower flame, cover and cook for 5 minutes. Cook till the gravy becomes thick to serve with Rice or Chapati.

Note:

• Traditionaly they use Mustard Oil. Since I dint have & we dont use this oil often, I used Coconut Oil.
• Please go to this link to watch a video recipe by Showme the curry http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5zpubyVa1D0