Ilish polau /Hilsha polau

Our very own Ilish polau/ Hilsha polau

Ilish polau recipe has two parts . Cooking Ilish korma and combining it with polau .Ilish polau can be cooked in so many different ways based on different recipes of Ilish korma. MY mom used to cook it in at least three different ways. Some times she used to cook it in coconut milk , sometimes in regular milk and sometimes in yogurt. My version is the improvised version and it came out really great !!!!!!!!!! 😀

My version of Ilish polau:

Ingredients:

Ilish Korma:

6/7 pieces of Hilsha

1/3 rd cup of Onion paste

1 tbl spoon of Ginger paste

Half table spoon of Ginger juice ( Ada’r rosh)

2 tbl spoon of Sweet yogurt ( mishti doi)

2 tbl spoon of plain yogurt

Half cup of Coconut milk ( you can substitute it for regular milk too , but coconut milk enhances the taste)

Salt to taste

Oil

Green chilies

Ingredients for Polau:

3 cups of ( 750 gram) Kalijeera or any other aromatic rice

Sliced Onion 1 medium

Ginger paste 1 and half teaspoon

Bayleaf , cardamom , cinnamon

Salt to taste

Handful of Green chilies

Ghee+oil

Procedure:

1. Wash the fish well . Beat sweet and plain yogurt together with 1/4 th cup of water so that no lump is there .

2. Heat oil and add the onion paste and ginger paste . Cook them well adding water little by little . Now add the beaten yogurt . Add the fish and salt . Add the ginger juice and cover the lid . When the gravy is reducing add the coconut milk / regular milk . When the gravy comes to desired consistency add some green chilies and keep it on low flame for five minute with the lid on until the oil separates.
Your Ilish korma is ready !!!!!

3. Separate the fishes from the gravy . The gravy will go directly into the polau . 😀

Now the polau part!!!

4. Heat ghee+oil . Add the sliced onion and whole garam masala ( bay leaf, cinnamon, cardamom). When the onions are little brown add the ginger paste, salt and rice . Fry them well . Add the gravy into it . Mix well .It would spread the flavor of Ilish in every grain of polau. Now add 4 and half cup of hot water into the rice ( for every cup of rice , take 1 and half cup of water). Cover the lid and cook it on medium flame.

5. When the water is drying out, add handful of green chilies and reduce the heat a little . When the water dried out and your pulao is ready arrange the fish pieces on the top of the polau , cover the lid and place it on very low flame , which we call to keep on “dom”.

6. Be careful while serving . Take out the fish from the top of the polau . Take a serving dish and arrange polau and fish layer by layer . Take some polau and add few pieces of fish, cover it with layer of polau and place remaining pieces of fish on the top of it . Garnish it with Fried onion/ Bereshta .

Notes:

1. Never fry the fish for Ilish polau .. The taste will be reduced , if you do so.

3. Many put turmeric while cooking the fish !!!!!!!!! It’s a “NO NO” .. The korma for Ilish Polau should be real korma , without turmeric , chili powder .

4. Don’t put cumin in your korma . It may ruin the flavor of Ilish.