Pabda Pasinda

Lately the media seems to be lacking in their resources, why otherwise the only pictures hovering here, there and everywhere are the pics of Aishwarya Rai in her baby bumps or in her post pregnancy weight gain. It is disgusting how media being a responsible source of information does not give other crucial news their due importance and creates commotion on what is natural to women upon the delivery of a child. I am not an Aishwarya hater, but the excessive coverage of her by the media makes me feel that the media spokespersons are too gung-ho about her and go overboard in their dealing of covering a news on her. C'mon there are other actresses too, who though not be hailing from a Bachchan family, have notched a name in the tinsel world by virtue of their acting prowess like Madhuri Dixit and Rani Mukherjee.

Talking about Rani Mukherjee, she is a Bengali by origin and somewhere I read that she is fond of fishes. So assuming that she likes pabda, I want to dedicate this dish to her :)

Ingredients:                                      Cooking time: 40 minutes ü  6 pabda fish (rubbed in turmeric powder and salt) ü  1 cup onion (chopped) ü  1 cup tomato puree ü  3-4 green chillies (ground into paste) ü  1 tsp garlic paste ü  4 tsp tomato sauce ü  50 gm yogurt, beaten ü  3 tbsp cashew nuts paste ü  4 tsp cream ü  2 tsp cumin powder ü  2 tsp coriander powder ü  1 tsp dry mango powder ü  1 tsp kasuri methi ü  Mustard oil for cooking ü  Salt to taste For Sauté: ü  1 inch cinnamon stick ü  1/2 tsp cumin seeds ü  2 bay leaves Method: 1) Heat oil. When smoke spirals out of the oil, toss in the fishes and deep fry. Keep aside when done as you set about preparing the gravy. 2) Heat oil in a wok. As oil turns piping hot, add the ingredients for sauté and allow them to sizzle. 3) Add onion and garlic paste. Brown the onions. Then add tomato puree and green chilli paste. Toss in the spices - cumin powder, coriander powder, dry mango powder and salt. Sauté for couple of minutes till oil leaves the sides. 4) Add cashew nuts paste and tomato sauce. Mix in and cook for another couple of minutes till the ingredients are well incorporated. 5) Now add yogurt and cream. Stir in to mix. Simmer away for 2-3 minutes. 6) Slide in the fried fishes. Sprinkle kasuri methi on top and fold in gently. 7) Serve hot with rice or pulao.