Look Ma, They’re Laughing At Me…

“Look Ma, they’re laughing at me…”

“Don’t make fun of your food…especially dead fish,” she replied primly.

“Geez Ma, just a joke ha….just a…,” I trailed off and retreated towards the other end of the kitchen before she gave me “the look”.

I made Pan-seared Pomfret with a Spicy Poppy Seed Salsa. Sounds fancy, doesn’t it? Ha!

Though I have to admit the salsa was a bit too spicy for my taste..I should have de-seeded the green chilies before using them. And also, initially I thought of using chopped parsley, but ended up using coriander (cilantro) leaves instead.

To prep the fish:

- 2 whole pomfrets

- 1 tablespoon of mustard powder

- Half a teaspoon of salt and pepper each

- 4 large cloves of garlic, crushed

Make diagonal cuts in the fish (till the bone) on both sides. Rub in all the ingredients well. Wrap the marinated fish in cling foil and refrigerate overnight…or 8 hours…..or maybe 4 hours (if you’re in a time crunch then marinating for just half an hour is completely OK too…really).

Fry the fish in about three tablespoons of vegetable oil, 7-8 minutes for each side should be fine.

The poppy-seed salsa:

- 2 tablespoons of poppy seeds (the beloved khus khus, or posto)

- 2 tomatoes, pureed

- 1 large red onion, chopped

- Juice of 1 lemon

- 2 green chilies, chopped (and don’t forget to remove the seeds!)

- 1 tablespoon of chopped garlic

- Salt and pepper to taste

- Chopped coriander to garnish

Fry the onions and garlic in a pan (in veggie oil again) till golden brown. Add the tomato puree, poppy seeds, chilies, lemon juice, salt and pepper along with a couple of tablespoons of water. Cover and cook for about fifteen minutes on medium heat. Plate the fish and sprinkle some lemon juice on top. Serve with the salsa, garnished with coriander.