Recipe of ‘Katla Kalia’ from the kitchen of The Stadel (Kolkata)

I had promised that I will share few Bengali recipes from the kitchen of First Innings Restaurant, Stadel (Kolkata) [www.thestadel.com]. And as promised, today I will share with you recipe of a common dish that is cooked in most of the kitchens in Bengal. There is no doubt about the fact that Bengalis are known for their love for fish. It is hard to separate a Bengali from his ‘maachh bhaat’! 🙂 And amongst all the fishes, Rohu or Katla is the most bought, consumed and economically viable fish in the state. These fishes are found in the local rivers and are enjoyed even as a deep fried item as an appetizer. So, without wasting further words let’s quickly check out the recipe called ‘Katla Kalia’ (a main course dish) using this popular fresh water fish.

Dish name: Bengali Katla Kalia  | Portion Size: 01   | Number of portion: 01

Let’s check out the ingredients and their respective quantities:

Katla Fish                                             120gm (2 pcs)

Onion (Paste)                                       25 gm

Garlic (Paste)                                        10 gm

Ginger (Paste)                                       10 gm

Tomato (Paste)                                      20 gm

Turmeric Powder                                  05 gm

Kashmiri Red Chilly Powder              08 gm

Dahi                                                           10 gm

Cinnamon Stick                                    01 pc.

Clove                                                        01 pc.

Green Cardamom                                01 pc.

Mustard Oil                                            60 gm

Salt                                                           (to taste)

Garam Masala                                       01 gm

Ghee                                                         05 gm

And now here is the cooking method:

a) Wash the Katla fish, marinate the pieces with some salt, and keep them aside.

b) Heat mustard oil in a kadai and deep fry the fish until golden brown, take out the fish and keep them aside.

c) Now heat the oil in another kadai, add whole garam masala, add the onion paste and saute it for a while. Then add ginger garlic paste and tomato paste and fry it for another few minutes and then add turmeric powder and kashmiri chili powder.

d) Now cook it for a while and add a little water to avoid the masala to stick in the kadai.

e) Now add Dahi and simmer it, put the fried fish and finish with garam masala and ghee. Adjust the seasoning, i.e. check for the salt if it’s perfect, add a bit if required.

f) And there you go, you are ready to garnish it with some fresh green chilies, coriander leaves and serve the dish hot with some steamed rice.

Isn’t that a pretty simple recipe, and surely it is something which you can savor more than once a week. It is tad rich in flavors when compared to simple Katla fish curry which Bengalis can have everyday with steamed rice. Hope you will enjoy this dish, and hope you will like this new ‘RECIPE’ section of my food blog, there is more to come. I will post the recipes from renowned restaurants as well as share the recipe of the dishes which I prepare, especially the ones which are appreciated always by guests at my place 🙂

Last but not the least, I would like to thank Milee Banerjee and Chef Gajendra Kumar Singh for sharing this recipe for my food blog.I am sure everyone wold love this. Much appreciated.

Cheers!