Bengali Chingri Cutlets: A Must-Try Dish

Bengalis love their fish! There are some delicious fried fish preparations like Fish orli, or Fish kobiraji and of course the Kolkata fish fry, which are available in most Bengali restaurants. General rule for these fish fry dishes is to marinate the fish fillet and then fry it with a coat of egg and bread crumbs or dipped in a batter of spiced flour.

Chingri Maach or Shrimp/ Prawn cutlets are amazingly delicious, and very popular and easy to make.

For this you will need shrimp or chingri maach which are at least 3 or 4 inches long without the head. After cleaning out the black thread like thing on the back you need to wash it , and flatten it as much as possible. Then they have to be marinated with onion, garlic, lemon juice, salt and chili powder for at least 4 hours. Then the marinated chingri is dipped in egg then bread crumbs and again kept in the fridge for at least an hour for the coating to set. Next these are deep fried in vegetable oil to golden brown, and served hot with Kasundi ( Bengali mustard sauce).

I have made only 3 Shrimps for this recipe. They were about 4 inches on average. The head was removed but the tail was kept intact.

Ingredients for the marinade

onion grated 1/2 cup

green chili 1

chili powder 1/4 teaspoon

salt 1/2 teaspoon

lemon juice 4 tablespoons

garlic paste or grated 1 teaspoon

turmeric powder 1/4 teaspoon

Grind or grate the onion, grind or grate garlic, grind the chili. Or you can also chop the onion, peel the garlic, and put it in a grinder together with the green chili and make a paste. Now mix the onion, garlic, and green chili with the salt and chili powder, turmeric powder,and lemon juice.

Slit a shrimp ( chingri maach) then with a mallet flatten it as much as possible without breaking the fish. If you do not have a mallet you could use a rolling pin. Do this with all the shrimps, if it is flattened well then the shrimp curls less. You can also try stretching the shrimps gently with your fingers. Now rub the shrimp with the marinade and cover the bowl and keep in the fridge to marinate.

After approximately 4 hours you have to take the shrimps out of the marinade and coat it with egg and breadcrumbs and put it back in the fridge for the coating to set for at least an hour. Chingri and other shell fish go bad very quickly so it is better not to keep it out on the kitchen table for too long, especially if you live in a warm place .

For the coating I had 3 things set up. First the plate with some cornflour, then a bowl with egg white beaten with a pinch of salt, then another plate with the breadcrumbs. It is better to use the egg whites only, if you use the whole egg then the oil gets very foamy when you are frying the fish.

Take the marinated shrimp out of the marinade,pat it dry a little, put it in the cornflour and coat it well ( if you don’t have cornflour you can use plain flour), next dip it in the egg, then roll it in the breadcrumb, place it on a plate. When you have coated all of them cover the plate with a plastic wrap or another plate and keep it in the fridge for 1 hour at least or till you are ready to fry.

TIP: After coating I take a tooth pick or a thin skewer and carefully stick it along the middle lengthwise. Then after frying I take out the toothpick. This helps to keep the shrimp from curling.

Heat oil in a frying pan and fry the shrimp on medium heat till it is golden brown. Take it out with a slotted spoon and place it on a paper towel for a few minutes before serving. Serve with Kasundi or Tomato ketchup.

RECIPE

• Chingri Maach / Shrimp 3 pieces which are about 3 to 4 inches long.
• Onion 1 medium size or 1/2 cup grated onion
• Garlic 2 or 3 cloves
• Lemon juice 4 tablespoon
• Green chilies 1 or 2
• Salt 1/2 teaspoon
• Turmeric powder 1/4 teaspoon
• chili powder 1/4 teaspoon
• Egg white 1
• Bread crumbs 1 cup
• Cornflour or plain flour/ Maida 1/2 cup
• Oil for frying

Method

Grind onion, garlic , green chilies, together in a grinder, do not add water add the lemon juice if necessary.

Take out the black thread that runs along the back and wash the Chingri maach / Shrimp well.

Keep a shrimp on the cutting board, and make a deep slit along the back where the black vein was. Be careful not to cut it right through. Take a mallet or a rolling pin and beat it gently to flatten the shrimp as thin as possible without breaking the fish.

In the onion garlic green chili paste add the salt chili powder and turmeric powder. Mix well with with a spoon and transfer this mixture in to a shallow container and put the shrimp into it . Coat the shrimp well , and cover and let it marinate for at least 4 hours.

Take out the shrimp from the marinade and pat it dry with paper towels

Now Hold the Shrimp by the tail and dip it into the cornflour/ flour

Then into the beaten egg white

Then Roll it well in the breadcrumbs pat it to ensure the breadcrumbs sticks.

Keep it on a plate and do the same with the other shrimps. Once they are done cover the plate and put it in the fridge for at least an hour or till you are ready to fry and serve.

Heat some oil in a frying pan or wok and. Deep fry on medium heat till golden brown

Remove with a slotted spoon and place on a paper towel covered plate to absorb the oil before serving

Serve hot with Kasundi ( Bengali mustard sauce ) or Tomato ketchup .