We are not a family of werewolves. We are Bengalis. A community which is known to eat fish in all its forms and with all its parts. Including the coveted head.
Maacher Muro with Mugger Daal is a big fish head (usually Rohu or Katla) cooked with yellow mung dal. Its a wedding and special occasion tradition.
My father taught me how to work my way into a fish head. The process is meticulous and requires some patience. The eyes and the brain of the fish are the most sought after. They say those are the best parts of the fish head, good for eyesight and the brain. That explains all the Bongs out there with exponentially celestial cerebral equity. Its the fish head, I tell you!
This recipe is my Mother’s of course, and I have re-created it in my kitchen out of greed. That insatiable desire to dunk my hand into a bowl of dal and fish out (pun definitely not intended) a big piece of the head.
Just as the Muro Diye Mugger Daal is here, brimming with flavors and the taste like that from an outside world, I am reminded of a little story my Father always loves to narrate. How he never got a chance to eat the Maacher Muro in his wedding feast. Reason? He was too shy to break into the big fish head when my Mum’s relatives laid out the feast for the new groom. And some benign lady apparently in some kind of hurry, thought it was wise not to embarrass the notun bor with a fish head and took the big Rohu muro away while my Father looked at it longingly. This happened exactly 36 years ago, but the vividness with which he re-tells this incident is still fresh and funny!
Ingredients for Maacher Muro Diye Mugger Daal are:
For the fish head:
1 big fish head (Rohu or Katla) cut into half, cleaned and washed
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
Quarter cup mustard oil
Salt
Smear the head with the turmeric and salt. Heat the oil until smoking and fry the fish head – about 3-4 minutes on each side. Remove with a slotted spoon and keep.
For the dal:
1 cup yellow mung dal
2 tablespoons ginger paste
4-5 green chilies, slit lengthwise
1 teaspoon heaped red chili powder
1 teaspoon heaped turmeric powder
3-4 bay leaves
2-3 black cardamoms
2-3 green cardamoms
1 stick of cinnamon
5-6 cloves
3-4 tablespoons desi ghee
Sugar
Salt
In a pressure pan, dry roast the dal till golden brown. Do this on low-medium heat and babysit the dal so that it doesn’t burn. Remove and keep aside.
In the same pan, heat the ghee and add the bay, cardamoms, cinnamon, cloves and the green chilies. Sauté for a couple of minutes and add the dry-roasted dal.
Mix the dal well with the whole spices and the ghee. Add the ginger paste, turmeric and red chili powder.
On medium heat, mix together all the ingredients. Add the fried fish head and mix again. Let this cook for about 3-4 minutes till the fish head starts disintegrating into the dal and spices.
Use your spatula to give the fish head a helping hand. Add two – three cups of water and simmer. Season with sugar and salt.
Cook the dal till done, but not mushy. I would say about 15-20 minutes, covered all the time. If you see the water drying up too soon, add some more.
This dal will not be runny and have a thick consistency, more so because of the fish head added to it. The head would have now broken down quite a bit and you will see it mixed well with the dal and spices. Do a taste test and add sugar and salt if needed.
The Maacher Muro Diye Mugger Daal usually starts a lot of meals. Serve it with rice, crispy alu bhaja, and a wedge of Gondho Lebu and you will have a meal fit for a queen or a king! Follow it up with this or this. A meal like this usually ends with a bowl of chilled Payesh.
17 comments:
Interesting!Had never read about this in such detail!
Before marriage I used to hate it but later on I developed a taste for it. We do add pinch of sugar in it. Liked the fish plate for serving. Khoob shundor hoyeche dekhte.
Deepa
Hamaree Rasoi
My favourite dish. The reason why I started cooking after i left home
Never had this sort fish head dish,marvellous..
Love eating fish heads and this looks like a great recipe to try my hands on...yumm...tempting n lovely pics..
This is my grandma's one of the most popular dishes. Everyone in my extended family loves it and what beautifully you have made it here. I can tell that it has the perfect texture and a perfect blend of spices just from the pics. Good to see you back with such a nostalgic post.
US Masala
looks yummy! love it!
Hey Pree,
Long time no see. Was wondering where you had disappeared. Happy to see you back with a bang! At my South Indian Baaper Baari, fish head used to be thrown into trash. I was surprised to see the fish head preserved with extra care and relished at my Bong Sosur Baari. I have developed a taste for it now too.
Regards,
Seema
amchi-bong-konnexion.blogspot.com
seemabbas.blogspot.com
macher matha diye any recipe reminds me of my dad and his love for macher muro :) and of course lau diye macher kata diye ekta shobji hoye..will aks am for the name :)
I like the way you capture the cooking process in ur camera.. Absolutely awesome!!!!
Hey Pree,
I have a few awards in my space for you. I would be honored if you picked them up.
http://amchi-bong-konnexion.blogspot.com/2011/03/100th-post-10000-hits-and-awards-i-am.html
Regards,
amchi-bong-konnexion.blogspot.com
seemabbas.blogspot.com
Hey Pree,
Hi and hope you are doing good!Hadn't visited your place in quite some time and so thought of dropping in...and I get to see the amazing Muger dal diye machher matha recipe:)
The little quip about your Dad was hilarious and sweet!
Cheers!
Hello Pree, Amazing site you have here. Love the way you capture every step on the camera, its makes one drool for it more. Maccher matha diye daal or rather anything is my favourite but sadly no one at home likes to so I will have to satiate my taste buds with your pics.
I am new to the food blog world. Would be pleased if you came and dropped by on my site www.tothesenses.com
Cheers Irin
OMG, I can actually smell the fish..;-) Wonderful blog!
Wow! I love reading other peoples traditions. That is quite the dish.
Holy Shiva, does this make me miss Kolkata!
Loved going through your blog, now its making me really hungry for some bengali food. From your posts I figured out you live in Toronto. Can you suggest some restaurants in and around Toronto that serve authentic bengali food?
- Puneet
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