Delish Fish: Part of the hi- protein, avoid carbs diet.

This was a long break from blogging. Well mostly because there is so much else going on. For starters, my sis Ms. Cultured Purl is in town.  I've joined this Kickboxing class in Bandra that is kicking my butt into shape and then I'm on a diet. So suddenly I find myself with a lack of appetite and wanting to survive making through the holidays without a bite of dessert. Was I successful- of course I was. It took every nerve in my body to do so. But part of it I could not stand to write about food especially look at food photos and food descriptions. That's the end of my career as an indulgent food blogger. Oooh! And  I've also had other fun distractions. (big grin on my face). 

Anyways part of this diet is not to touch carbohydrates after 4pm. So dinner has to be some form of a salad and protein. My sis has been encouraging me to eat more fish which means cooking fish in my mom's all vegetarian kitchen. Grill, bake, curry it.

Today I decided to make a little more indulgent version of my normally baked fish. I made my own version of a Doi Ilish which I had in Calcutta over Diwali. I really enjoyed the mustard, chilies and yogurt sauce with the lovely Hilsa fish- a staple in a Bengali household. I cheated though- I bought a dark Surmai from my fish wali who cut it in cubes instead of the typical cross sections. Oh well. I also did my own take on the marinade and some of the masala. Oh well! I never really follow recipes or traditions. 

So here it is- my own Delish fish.

Ingredients:

500 gms surmai skinned, deboned and cubed

Marinade:

Soya sauce

Papa's magic masala

green chilies

The Sauce:

Mustard seeds

Green chilies 3-5 long sliced

2 tbsp of minced ginger

2tbsp of minced garlic

6-8 Curry leaves

Handful of fresh coriander leaves

2 onions sliced

1 full spoon coriander powder

1/2 teaspoon red chili powder

1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder

1/4 teaspoon mango powder

salt to taste

Yogurt mixed with equal part of milk thoroughly stirred. 

So this is really easy:

1. Marinade the fish for 30 min with soya sauce, papa's masala and some green chilies. 

2. In a flat pan, pour a little oil and spread evenly on the base and place the fish pieces evenly on the pan. Cook till it turns opaque and white and flip over. Dont over cook the fish or it will become chewy. Place all the pieces of fish on a plate. 

3. In the same pan start the sauce. Throw in the mustard seeds, green chilies, coriander leaves, curry leaves, garlic and ginger. Stir till you can smell the curry leaves releasing their amazing flavour. 

4. Add the onions and saute. 

5. Add all the dry masala and let the onions cook. 

6. Last slowly stir in the yogurt milk mixture on to the onions. Mix the sauce thoroughly, let it simmer on low for a bit. 

7. Next carefully place the pieces of fish in the sauce. The fish is delicate and can fall apart easily so it is necessary to work on this slowly. Just smell the sauce, take in the headiness of the flavours. 

8. Gently toss the fish in the sauce so that it is evenly coated.

Turn off the heat.

9. The fish is ready to eat with some rice. 

Ofcourse I did not eat any rice. I just had the fish and what a delish fish it turned out to be. It was spicy with a bite of mustard. The fish was very soft and melted in your mouth. And as always Papa's magic masala always adds that little kick that takes any dish over the top.

How is this hi protein low carbs going for me. Well initially I felt really weak and tired but now with the working out I feel super energetic. It is yet to be seen if I will revert back to blogging with a gusto. Till then do enjoy these photos.

Janu and I have been taking some goofy pics of ourselves. We definitely look similar. What do you think? (we are not twins- I am 6 years older than her) Im going to miss her immensely when she leaves for Salt Lake City. By the way she said the fish was really authentic. 

Also a Happy New Year. For more exciting adventures this year. For new friends who become like the dearest of old friends and for old friends who have been such a great support system. 
Love always.