Rupchanda, also known as Pomfret, is a really easy to prepare fish and an impressive starter to any meal. It is often eaten marinated in spices and shallow fried, garnished with sautéed onions and served with rice.

Bangladeshis are renowned for being big fish eaters. Fish forms a huge part of a Bangladeshi person’s diet, which is good news as fish are one of the healthiest things one can eat. Growing up I remember my mum buying all sorts of fish/seafood for us to eat; rupchanda, hilsha, ayer, salmon, sardines, prawns etc…often she would pan fry the fish and we would eat it hot off of the pan as it was so delicious and we couldn’t wait for dinner time! I also remember eating fish egg patties (masor endar bora); my mum would mix the fish eggs with finely chopped onions, chillies, coriander, salt, spices and we would snack on these. If you haven’t ever tasted fish egg patties, you need to, they’re simply delicious! Pomfret is a really easy fish to cook if you’re new to cooking fish, it’s easy to prep and it doesn’t have a lot of bones which is why my children adore this fish. The flesh of the fish is light and flaky, a great one to cook if you would like to introduce your children to fish that comes on the bone.

As this fish is very delicate, I don’t feel it needs a huge amount of spices when being prepared. I always like the flesh on my fish to remain tender and moist, especially a meaty fish like this. Fish that contain a lot of fine bones are best eaten fried until crispy, so you can chew through the bones but this doesn’t fall into that category. On this occasion I didn’t make any incisions on the flesh of my fish but you can, this will help the spices penetrate the flesh; make 3 – 4 light incisions, evenly spaced apart, either side of the fish. The amount of spices used in this recipe will result in a finished dish which is mild, adjust if you like it spicier. Newbies to cooking fish, this one’s for you!

You will need: for Fried Pomfret Fish (Rupchanda)

3 medium pomfret fish (adjust the quantities if you prepare more than 3 fish)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp mixed curry powder
oil as needed
2 peeled onions
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp turmeric
1/2 tsp mixed curry powder
5/6 green chillies
chopped coriander

Method:

Prepare your fish by cutting off the fins either side. You’ll need to remove the guts by cutting open the fish just below where you cut the fins off from (bottom left photo), insert your fingers and remove the guts. Wash all your fish thoroughly with cold water till water runs clear.

After thoroughly washing, allow your fish to drain. To your fish add 1/2 tsp of salt, 1/2 tsp of chilli powder and 1/2 tsp of turmeric powder.

Add 1/2 tsp of mixed curry powder and a dash of oil (this helps the spices stick to the fish better). Mix well and ideally leave for 20 mins before frying, you can actually fry this straight away if you are rushed for time. Heat some oil in a pan.

Fried Pomfret Fish (Rupchanda)

 

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Author: Afelia's Kitchen

Ingredients

• 3 medium pomfret fish (adjust the quantities if you prepare more than 3 fish)
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp chilli powder
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
• ½ tsp mixed curry powder
• oil as needed
• 2 peeled onions
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp turmeric
• ½ tsp mixed curry powder
• ⅚ green chillies
• chopped coriander

Method

1. Prepare your fish by cutting off the fins either side. You'll need to remove the guts by cutting open the fish just below where you cut the fins off from (bottom left photo), insert your fingers and remove the guts. Wash all your fish thoroughly with cold water till water runs clear.
2. After thoroughly washing, allow your fish to drain. To your fish add ½ tsp of salt, ½ tsp of chilli powder and ½ tsp of turmeric powder.
3. Add ½ tsp of mixed curry powder and a dash of oil (this helps the spices stick to the fish better). Mix well and ideally leave for 20 mins before frying, you can actually fry this straight away if you are rushed for time. Heat some oil in a pan.
4. Add your marinated pomfrets to the hot oil. Fry for 6-7 mins either side, being careful when turning over so as not to break the fish. Aim for a golden brown colour. Remove fish from the pan and place in a dish.
5. Finely chop 2 onions.
6. In the same pan you used for frying the fish add some more oil, add your chopped onions, ½ tsp salt, ½ tsp turmeric and ½ tsp mixed curry powder. Allow the onions to sauté for several minutes and once they start to soften add your green chillies (you may want to slice them if you want added heat, I've left mine whole).
7. After adding the chillies allow to cook for 1-2 minutes and lastly add your chopped coriander. As I am using frozen coriander I add it at this stage to cook it through but if you are using fresh coriander, add it just as you remove the fish and onions from the heat. Add the cooked fish back on top of the sautéed onions and allow any juices flowing from the fish to absorb back into the onions while still on the stove top. Remove from the heat once the juices have evaporated.
8. You can serve the cooked fish on a bed of rice with some sliced lemon. I didn't have any bell peppers, but I love adding sliced peppers to my onions while sautéing, they add a little crunch!

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