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Bengali Fish Curry / Macher Jhol Recipe

Bengali Fish Curry / Bengali Macher Jhol

Macher Jhol is a staple dish cooked daily in Bengali households. This Bengali fish curry is a simple recipe that can be made with any type of fish.

Course Main Course
Cuisine Bengali
Keyword gluten-free
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Servings 6 People
Author Chandrima

Ingredients

  • 6 pieces- Freshwater fish (I used Rui/Rohu)
  • 1- Potato medium-sized
  • 5-6- Green chilies (halved)
  • 1 tbsp- Cumin powder
  • 1 tsp- Coriander powder
  • Turmeric powder
  • 1- Onion medium-sized (thinly sliced)
  • 1 tbsp Ginger paste
  • ¼ tsp- Nigella seeds/Kalojire/Kalonji
  • Salt to taste
  • 1 tsp- Kashmiri mirch powder or Red chilli powder (optional)
  • Mustard oil
  • 1 tsp- Freshly coriander leaves (chopped)

Instructions

  1. Peel and cut the potato into wedges, wash them and keep aside.

  2. Rub salt and ½ tsp of turmeric powder on the freshly washed pieces of Rui/Rohu.

  3. Heat ½ cup oil in a kadai/deep frying pan and shallow fry the fish pieces over medium heat. Transfer them to a bowl and keep aside.

  4. In the remaining oil, shallow fry the potatoes until golden, remove and keep aside.

  5. At this stage 3-4 tbsp oil should be there in kadai, if not, add some more oil to make the fish curry.

  6. Temper with kalojire/nigella seeds.

  7. Next, add ginger paste, salt, cumin powder, coriander powder, kashmiri mirch powder, green chilies and ½ tsp of turmeric powder. Add a splash of water, mix quickly and sauté the masala over medium heat for two minutes.

  8. Add 1¼ cups of water, mix well and give this a quick boil over high heat. Once it boils, reduce the heat, add the fish pieces and potatoes. Cover and cook over low heat until the potatoes are done.

  9. The consistency of this fish curry will be medium thick. Garnish with fresh coriander leaves, remove from the heat, and transfer to a bowl.

  10. Serve hot Macher Jhol with steamed rice, enjoy!