Machha Munda Ganta (Mix Fish head curry)

Serving for: 4 Persons

Ingredients

1. Rohu Fish Heads: 2 Pieces (500g)
2. Potato: 250g
3. Tomato (fine chopped): 1 medium size
4. Chana Dal: 150g (Soaked in water for 6-8 hours)
5. Ginger Paste: 1 Table Spoon
6. Garlic Paste: 2 Table Spoon
7. Onion Paste: 2 Table Spoon
8. Onion (fine chopped): 1 medium size
9. Cumin Powder (Jeera Powder): 2 Tea Spoon
10. Coriander Powder (Dhania Powder): 1 Tea Spoon
11. Refine Vegetable Oil: 5 Table Spoons
12. Red Chili Powder: 2 Tea Spoons
13. Haldi: 3 Tea Spoons
14. Dalchini Powder: 2 Tea Spoons
15. Bat Leaf: 1 medium
16. Salt to taste

Method:

1. Cut each fish head into two halfs. Wash neatly in running water. Add 2 tea spoons salt and one tea spoon of haldi. Mix it well and leave it for 10 mins.
2. Boil the soaked chana dal in a pressure cooker for 10 mins on low flame.
3. Wash and cut the potato into cubes of 1"
4. Heat 2 table spoon of oil on a frying pan. When the oil become hot enough, put the fish heads (halfs) carefully and fry it well from all the sides. Fry, till the fish heads becomes crispy enough. Remove the fried fish heads and keep it open in a plate to cool.
5. Heat 1 table spoon of oil on the frying pan and put the potato cubes into it. Fry it till colour of all the sides of the potato cubes turns into rosy red. Remove it from the pan and keep it separately.
6. Put a kadhai on the stove and put rest of the oil into it. When oil becomes hot enough add the bay leaf and chopped onion and fry it till the colour of onion turns to be golden brown.
7. Add ginger and garlic paste and stir it for two minutes.
8. Add the onion paste, chopped tomato, rest of haldi, red chili powder, coriander powder and cumin powder and fry it till all the spices starts being separated from oil.
9. Add the fried fish heads and brake each half into 2-3 pieces though the frying stick. Mix it well with the spices.
10. Add the fried potato and boiled chana dal and mix it well with the spices and broken fish heads. Fry it for 7 mins. Be careful, so that the spices don't stick to the bottom of the kadhai
11. Add 3 cups of water and cover the kadhai with a lead and leave it for 5 mins over low flame.
12. Remove the preparation from the stove and let it cool a little. Add the dalchini powder and cover it with an air tight lid so that the flavour of dalchini could be properly absoved into the preparation.

Now your delicious Machha Munda Ganta is ready to be served with Rice and Dal. If you are an Odia or Bengali you can use this dish as dal itself and have it directly with Rice. Else try to have it as a side item of your main course.