I’m sure most of you are familiar with this dish, it’s one we all grew up with, the dish of choice when there was no time to cook anything fancy and you needed something on the dining table fast! ‘Biran’ literally means ‘fry/fried’ in Bengali and as this is a fried dish, it is an appropriate title. This recipe is very simple to execute but is almost addictive, you will most certainly have one plate and want another. Many of the first generation immigrants to the UK were men, who being single knew how to cook for themselves. My dad (Allah bless his soul) however wasn’t a very good cook, but boy did he make a mean sardine and aloo bazi or what?! He used to tell us stories of how flatmates would take it in turns to cook for one another (the done thing back in their day) and this was the one recipe he could actually cook well. This was also what he would rustle up for us whenever duty called (when my mum was needed elsewhere) and it has to be without a doubt one of my favourites too.

This recipe can be cooked all by itself without the addition of any vegetables, I do like adding a potato or sliced bell peppers for variation and to stretch it a little more. You can, as always, try another vegetable that you like and experiment. I always buy sardines in tomato sauce as my kids prefer this to the plain ones. When you cook the sardines it’s important to remember to mash them really well using a wooden spoon to mix the flavours, do this before adding the vegetables as it becomes difficult afterwards. I have used 2 cans of sardines as this serves my family of six people, if you are cooking for less, use 1 can of sardine and you can adjust the other ingredients too. Adding green chillies and fresh coriander is a MUST to fully appreciate how good this recipe is! Other than that there isn’t much else to say except, if you are going to become a true Bengali kitchen chef this is one recipe you must master before conquering any other!

Serves 6

You will need:

2 sardine cans
1 medium onion peeled
1 potato
1 tsp salt (or less if you prefer)
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp mixed curry powder (I use Rajah brand)
4 green chillies
a handful of fresh chopped coriander

Method:

Start by finely slicing 1 onion.

In a frying pan heat some oil.
Once hot add the sliced onion along with 1 tsp of salt (or to your taste). Mix, cover and allow to saute till the onion is soft and translucent.

Once the onion is translucent add 1/2 tsp turmeric powder….
….1/2 tsp chilli powder, 1/2 tsp coriander powder and 1 tsp mixed curry powder. Gently saute for a couple of minutes then add the sardines.
At this point I don’t really mix the ingredients well as the sardines are hard (from being cold) so I cover the pan and warm them through over a low heat while I prepare the potato.

Peel and finely slice 1 potato, rinse and reserve in a bowl with cold water till needed.
Uncover the sardines now (they will be warm and easier to mash) and mash them really well using a wooden spoon. By doing this you ensure that all the flavours combine with one another.

Drain the potato and add to the pan, mix well and cover. Cook over a low flame for 6 – 8 minutes or till the potatoes are cooked through.
Slice 4 green chillies (I like to slice my chillies diagonally for this type of dish) and chop a handful of fresh coriander.

Add the green chillies during the last few minutes of cooking (if you want the green chillies to release more heat, it is best to add them before adding the potato). Promptly remove the sardine from the heat after garnishing with coriander and serve with plain rice.

You will want a second plate of rice, so make sure you cook enough!

Bon Appetit!! ??

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