Fish Passions

Talk to a Bengali about food and the conversation always turns, sooner rather than later, to fish. The rivers that flow through Bengal are rich in fish and so is the Bay of Bengal. Bengalis are known as eaters of rice and fish; in Bengal even most Hindus, who elsewhere are largely vegetarian, eat fish. The favorite Bengali fish seem to be mostly freshwater varieties. One of the preferred fish is rui, a large carp. Carp is widely available in North America, especially in Chinese markets. It has lots of small bones, and perhaps because of that, many people here avoid it. Another, a huge Bengali favorite, available only seasonally, is a rich-fleshed delicious cousin of herring and shad called hilsa (or illsh in Bengali), also very bony. Fishermen catch it during the monsoon season as it travels upriver from the sea. Unfortunately, it’s hard to find outside the Subcontinent. (If you come across hilsa, perhaps flash-frozen, do try it, either in Classic Bengali Fish in Broth, or else simply lightly rubbed with salt and turmeric and panfried or grilled.)