PAN FRIED BOMBIL (BOMBAY DUCK)

The Bombay duck or Bombil as it is locally called is one of my favorite fish delicacies. 
Why it is so special is because of its tender, light and melt-in-your-mouth meat. 
Its sooo soft it literally melts in your mouth the moment you take a bite and not only that, it also has a great flavor, is very succulent and doesn't have a strong smell of the sea. It's bones too are super soft and can be consumed except for the center bone / spinal column.

Apart from its brilliant taste and texture, it is also very high in its protein content, a great source of omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids which is good for the heart and countless more health benefits.

The Bombay duck is however a delicacy to very few people as they are mostly found in the Arabian sea between Mumbai and Gujarat and some parts of Bay of Bengal and the China Sea. Therefore their availability is limited to the vicinity of the areas they are found in.

The Bombay duck can be prepared in various forms. It can be made into a curry, it can be tawa fried or deep fried and it can also be sun dried, salted and eaten. However I would not advise the last form of preparation as it gathers a very strong smell of the sea and dried fish which might not be accustomed to many.

Today however I shall share with you how to prepare bombil in a tawa fried form. The only challenge with cooking bombil is that the meat is just sooo soft that it just breaks away on a more than required touch. So we have to be very careful and delicate while cooking it.
I will be using very simple and minimal spices for this dish as I don't want to overpower the flavor of the fish. So here it is, try it for yourself.

INGREDIENTS

• 1/2 kg bombil (bombay duck) cleaned. (Don't chop the fish into smaller pieces)
• 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
• 2 spicy green chillies
• 8 to 10 cloves of garlic.
• 1/2 tsp mustard seeds (rye)
• 1/4 tsp garam masala powder
• 2 tsp rice flour
• 1/2 tsp dried mango powder (aamchur)
• 1 1/2 tsp of traditional maharashtrian chilli-onion chilli powder mix.
• Salt as per taste.
• Lemon juice for garnish
• Mustard Oil

STEPS

• Put all the ingredients into a blender, add around 1/4 cup of water and blend into a fine paste.
• If you don't have the maharashtrian chilli onion powder mix use 1 n half tsp red chilli powder, 1 small onion's puree, 1/2 tsp garam masala powder.
• Pour this spice paste over the fish and  coat it well. Let the fish marinate in d spices for 6 to 8 hours in the refrigerator.

• Once marination is complete. Heat a Non-Stick pan and pour mustard oil on it.
• Now come the tough parts.
• Place the fish on the non stick pan. Don't overcrowd the pan or it will pose a problem to flip the fish. Leave atleast 2 fingers space between each fish.
• Let it sizzle on a medium heat for 7 to 8 mins on one side (Do not stir it or move it too much. Let it cook in one place or it will break) and then slowly and gently using a thin spatula and tilting the pan flip the fishes to its other side. You have to be very very gentle while flipping it or it will just break into pieces. Don't use tongs, I've tried that and it is a bad idea, the fish just breaks into 2 from the point where you have held it.
• Once the fish is cooked evenly on both sides slowly slide the fishes off the pan and onto a plate. This fish's meat cooks very fast so around 10 mins max on each side should be enough.
• Squeeze some lemon juice over the fish and garnish with some fresh raw onion rings.
• Enjoy it hot.