Fish and rice make us Bengali. And if the fish is Hilsha, then it’s a home run for us! During Bengali New Year, we see the craze for Ilish in action – in the form of ‘Panta Ilish’. After all, why not? Ilish or Hilsha is the national fish of our country. Naturally, it is trendy and always in high demand. Panta Ilish is just one of many tempting Ilish recipes that we see and have probably tasted. Each of these dishes is equally good. One such recipe is ‘Ilish Macher Paturi’. It is a widely popular dish in both Bengals – Bangladesh and West Bengal of India. Ilish wrapped in a leaf makes this dish exceptional both in taste and appearance.
Just the word “Ilish” brings water to our mouths and makes us crave it. Ilish is such a valuable fish to the Bengalis that they try to make the most of it. It is cooked with more or less the same spices, but the cooking process differs from recipe to recipe and it brings different tastes to the dishes.
Paturi is a cooking process that involves wrapping marinated fish in a leaf wrapper and steaming them. To cook Ilish Macher Paturi, the Ilish slices are first marinated. The subcontinent is famous for its spices, as we all know. The same may be said for this dish. The Ilish slices are marinated with various herbs, turmeric powder, ground mustard, coconut, yoghurt, etc. They are then wrapped in a leaf, especially a banana leaf. The leaf parcel is then sealed with a toothpick or cotton string. Finally, the leaf-wrapped marinated Ilish slices are steamed in oil. Once done with the steaming – Ilish Macher Paturi is ready to be served.
Ilish Macher Paturi is an easy but tasty recipe. You might call it a proper Bengali dish— served with rice in a banana leaf. You can’t get any more appropriate Bengali dish than this, can you?
Paturi of other fish can also be prepared, but they can never be as good as Ilish Macher Paturi. After all, it’s a recipe from the King of Fishes.
