Bhetki Macher Paturi is a very popular and authentic Bengali Dish. It is one of the quintessential Bengali dishes, to which Bengalis can never say no. This dish is cooked with marinated fish, wrapped in a banana leaf.
Contents
Steps to Make the Best Bhetki Macher Paturi
Things you’ll need:
For Cooking:
- Bhetki (Sheephead) Fish Fillets – 300 grams cut into 6 pieces
- Yellow Mustard Seeds – 2 tablespoons
- Black Mustard Seeds – 2 tablespoons
- Turmeric Powder – ½ teaspoon
- Salt – as per taste
- Grated Coconut – 1 small bowl or 50 grams
- Green Chilies – 7 to 8 and 2 to 3 for garnishing
- Mustard Oil – 4 to 5 tablespoons
For Wrapping:
- Banana Leaves Cut into Pieces
- Strings to Tie the Wrap
Step 1. Wash the fish
- Wash the fish pieces properly and keep them on a plate for marination.
- Sprinkle turmeric powder and salt on the fish fillets. Rub it over the fillets to spread the seasoning evenly.
- Keep them aside for 10 minutes.
Step 2. Prepare the paste for marination
- Soak black and yellow mustard seeds in warm water.
- Grind them into a fine paste along with some green chilies.
- Add some water if required.
- Add 2 to 3 tablespoons of mustard oil and blend everything together.
Step 3. Marinate the fish
- Coat the fish with grated coconut, chili-mustard seed paste, and mustard oil.
- Rub it into the flesh for enhanced flavor; make sure that all the pieces are evenly coated.
- Cover and keep aside for at least 15 minutes.
Step 4. Wrap the fish like a parcel
- Place one piece of fish on each leaf.
- Garnish with slit green chilies.
- Wrap it like a parcel and tie it together with a piece of string.
Step 5. Cook the fish
- Heat a pan on high flame. Once the pan is hot, reduce the flame to low and place another pan over the first one.
- Add a little oil to the pan.
- Place the wrapped fish over the pan and cover it.
- Cook each side for 15 minutes.
Serve hot with steamed rice and enjoy!!!
Tips
- You should use a tender banana leaf for wrapping.
- If you can’t find a tender leaf, you can tenderize it by heating it over the flame just for a few seconds, else it will break while wrapping.
FabHow Tips
- A simple way to elevate this dish involves marinating the fish in 2 stages. First, marinate the fish in some fresh lemon juice, turmeric, and salt for 1 hour. You can also add some red chili powder if you want. Then add the grated coconut, mustard seed paste, and mustard oil; for best results marinate the fish for at least 6 hours or overnight.
- You can also wrap the fish in gourd leaves (or any other edible leaf) for cooking; you can consume the leaves along with the fish once the dish is cooked.
- For easy wrapping cut the banana leaves into 6 by 6 squares.
- You can also use a toothpick to secure the ends of the wrap together. For wrapping, place the fish in the exact center and fold the leaf in from each side, giving it the shape of a parcel. After folding the top and bottom sides, pierce and fasten them together with a toothpick.
- While traditional bhetki macher paturi is cooked using a pan, you can also prepare it using a microwave oven. Pre-heat the microwave oven to 350 °F and bake the wrapped fish for 20 to 25 minutes.
- If you want to try out more recipes, you can learn how to make Coca-Cola chicken and sweet and spicy chicken drumsticks.
- For those of you who are into healthy eating, we have a quick and easy recipe to make a salmon sandwich at home.