Sea Bream Mach'er Kalia - Spicy Tomato Sea Bream Curry

My Blog- “Hello! Don’t you think you are forgetting something to write here?”

Me-“No, I don’t think so. Let me check  The Recipe Index  oh! Yes I forgot to update the recipe index list for this year I guess. I promise I will do it in next few days.”

My Blog-“No, no something different here that I am talking about.”

Me trying to figure out -“Different, what different, oh  I am  just another food blogger in this vast world of talented food bloggers. Just like a drop in this big ocean.”

My blog-“I agree, but this is something about the years I am talking about.”

Me-“Years, oh! No Noo...I can’t disclose my years just like that...I mean how can I?”

My blog- “ But I am not talking about your age here, well everybody and my readers specially think or know you to be middle aged, spectacled .And my readers know well that sometimes you like giving lectures on Dharma, Karma and Kriya.And to correct you, I am referring my age here.”

Me-“Oh! That way. But hey come-on I am not middle aged yet to correct you.” Checking myself in mirror.

My Blog finally gleaming with happiness to see me in an understanding mode-“Yes, yes, finally you are picking up the right track.”

Me-“Ok, Let me check when you were born – Introductory page . 
       
My blog-‘See this is the problem with you, you never tend to take things (pointing towards itself) seriously in life.”

Me, almost trying to figure out the source here, glancing someone sitting across the corner of the room, quite puzzled –“Now who told you that?

My Blog, shrugging its shoulder -‘Nobody! As I know it all by myself.”  I knew it, this wouldn’t me my better half but sometimes you tend to overwork your brains or perhaps wives are like that.

I, trying to reason out what my blog just told me -“But why do you think, I don’t take you seriously.”

My Blog- “You never share my highs with my readers.”

Me- “And I thought highs and lows are only something you come across while you are discussing weather and watching too much of weather channel. Overdose of anything is not healthy.And pardon me, your readers?

My Blog- “Yeah! My readers, the people who visit here are my readers...they read me not you.”

Me- “Ahem! Ok so what I have to do to rectify that.”

My Blog- “Give them details of people who read me, with that I mean number of page views and hits.”

Me-“And how will that prove that I am taking you seriously.”

My Blog- “Statistics Silly.”

Me-“Dear, my Math has always let me down, was never good with numbers.”

My Blog-“Ok Ok, I understand, but how can you forget my birthday.” Now almost giving up with this guessing game and seemed so disappointed.
Me- “Your birthday, when it was? I mean seriously, I know, now I have hurt your feelings, perhaps”. I realized what I missed this time and may be last time as well.

My Blog- “See that is why I told you beforehand, you don’t take me seriously.”

Me- “My apologies to you if I have hurt your feelings and to your readers if they expected something grand on this space on your birthday my dear blog.”

My Blog packing its bag – “I know I don’t belong here anymore.” Sad Violin tunes playing in the background from where that I don't know.Or May be my blog paid for this who knows.

Me- “Hey! Don’t go, this time in night , and it's raining you see.What you want me to do now? Realizing things are turning sour this time.

My blog- “Make a good blog post and write about all the details of my birth and my achievements.”

Me- “ But I do think your readers are your achievement.Their warm wishes are your achievements.When they respond personally thro e-mails and include you and in return me into their life for trying your recipes. When some of them leave messages that it’s a "touchy blog" or when someone sent "blessings" by e-mails far from here...dont you think those are the moments perhaps bigger than any trophies or award for that matter.”

My Blog stopped and pondered- “Yeah I know, what you want to say. But if I were you I would have made a long splashing post about my birthdays and page views etc. Did you ever bothered to tell my readers that so far my page views have crossed 5 lakh plus within a span of last three years. As you never updated for the first two years regularly, if you had probably I would have crossed 10 lakh mark as well.”

Me- “I told you I was never good with numbers.And yeah we were traveling a lot for the past five years now. I mean what you would expect when we have travelled three countries, three continents and that too in five years. But I tried to update whenever I had time for you. Didn’t I?

My blog- “Excuses and more excuses. Why haven’t you switched me to a custom domain, I could have flourished there more, generating you more earnings through advertisements and search engine optimization. You don’t seem to act properly like an entrepreneur.”

At this point of time, my head started spinning...almost murmuring to myself - “ An enterpenaur !! ,am I ? but I think , no I am a simple homemaker and I don’t run a bussiness here.I could have earned more money in real life doing things I am better doing at perhaps then.

My blog ( sensing I am going weak here) - “I told you, there is a problem with you, you lack total professionalism. You don’t update me 3-4 times a week. You don’t host any more good food events and you do not send my entries to other really worthy and great  food events. And oh! Yeah you do not even bother to blog hop much for the past two years or so.And you don't seem to be active on Facebook and Orkut.Do you have a twitter account ? The answer is a big "No" .Everything that I wanted to see you doing , you are not doing it correctly. And if you could have done all these or perhaps more and regularly then I would have gained more page views till date .And I wish if I had controls over here on my own ,I would have taken full charge from here onwards.. …”

Me- “Eh! You have so much going against me for the past years or so now, my blog! , my dear blog are you and your readers are really so much angry with me? I do think I have been fair enough in updating you more often with recipes worthy of trying for the last three years or so. Remember I celebrated your second blog birthday you can visit Here...and then your Third blog birthday  .” I do tend to  become sometimes defensive specially if someone going senti here.

My Blog- “Yeah I know, but you forgot last year and  this year too.” Point blank.

Me- “I apologize if that make you and your readers happy. But I adore you like anything. My blog, my dear blog, you and your readers are special to me. No words can perhaps express what you and your readers mean to me. And I must take this opportunity to thank you and your readers for being such nice people. Believe me it still gives me immense happiness whenever your readers drop by to say even a simple “Hi”. And Bonus when they leave positive feedbacks for a particular recipe. Some even say they almost feel like a second home, I would say that’s the very essence of you my dear blog Spice and Curry. A homely feeling where one can come, and discuss a particular recipe, see it, read it and then hit straight to the kitchen to try their hands in making it. As simple as that. Now don’t you think you have been so important to me? I am here known as Jaya because of you and I am incomplete without you.

Now, let me tell a real story then, I met a lady in a supermarket here in abroad almost a year ago. She obviously is a Bengali otherwise she wouldn’t have noticed my language while conversing with my dear daughter and dear husband. And we exchanged some smiles and then the ice broke some initial intro and then we went our ways. We kept bumping into each other quite often from thereafter. She started telling me about many ingredients and then the recipes she had tried up from internet particularly from a site. She herself is a great cook and writes fabulous children stories. I was curious but couldn’t disclose hello I too had a food website if you care to visit. Now, I really don’t know what stopped me from inside. One fine day we bumped into each other and that day you know what my dear blog, she mentioned you...imagine “YOU”...she was telling all the recipes you have.That day I realized you had something which meant a second home to many.With a shaky voice , I told that lady I am the person who is writing you ,,my dear blog.For a zap of second she freezed, and when she realized, she burst into laughter.She told me I don’t look like a person who is writing this blog.She found me quite different from what she conceptualised reading you.But this is truth and so , what matters at the end is you and your redears.If I ever had a image it’s just because of you, you are my own extended part.And you and your redears are very special."

Somehow my blog seemed happy, contented and convinced for the time being and unpacked its tiny bag thankfully. I really do not know if it will remain that much happy in coming years also or not .But just wanted to live the moment where I tried my best to convince my blog that my world is incomplete without it and its readers.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the readers, friends, well wishers who have stopped by here to leave responses or just dropped in to say a simple “Hi”.

When I look back, I do think my initial purpose was to maintain or to write a simple recipe diary which by luck or chance happened to be online.

Now you would say then why write a blog with recipes that is public and read by many or probably thousands every month?

I really don’t know why, but everybody likes being appreciated once in a while and I am not an exception. This blog also satisfies my creative outlets, as I would have liked to do it otherwise.

I never intended to give a professional look or touch. Being a HTML challenged person that I am, I was never a technical girl so writing a blog, and then linking, and posting etc was really very puzzling for me initially. Somehow, I managed and everything I tried was from scratch just like my most of the recipes here. These days Blogger publishing tool is much easy to understand as everything is just a click or drag or drop. I slowly started gaining confidence and posting recipes with pictures. As my initial post didn't have pictures. I have been cooking now for almost 15 years in real life, almost thrice daily. And this blog my virtual life has been here for 5 years now.

Most of the recipes that are listed here are part of my everyday cooking which is more or less is part of my daily routine even if I don’t blog about it regularly.So, there are times when I do cook but forget to take pictures, and then there are times when there is no left-overs to take pictures with.
Some days my folks are so hungry they just cant wait for the picture business.
I mean why should they wait when I cooked the dish for them.Right?

I was doing my part, updating this online recipe diary just like I would write everyday a page in my diary or as per indexing my recipes in recipe diary regularly. But when readers like you started trying out recipes and leaved some very positive response, I thought perhaps there is something strong which appealed all of you. Spice and Curry was and is incomplete without your acknowledgement and encouragement friends. Can’t believe it’s almost five years, and can’t believe this blog has also travelled with us across three countries and three continents with us. It feels just like a blink of an eye, or a moment passed in jiffy.

Many of the readers who have e-mailed me told me that they almost feel like a second home the moment they come to Spice and Curry or “this blog is very touchy”. Some impressed their girlfriends and boy friends and some their family members with the recipes listed from here. I have tried to update the blog with their recipe request but I have never mentioned their names.
Two of the requests which I was unable to do is “JoyNagarer Moa” which I do really regret as this moa is made with special kind of rice and murki which I was unable to create in my kitchen. The other recipe is perhaps Gustaba.Kashmiri Gustaba has been on my mind for a while, I do think something similar on that part is Keema Kofta Curry  but not authentic Gustaba.

Some do really care to drop in and add their valuable feedbacks adding upto the contents of recipes like the ingredients substitute, duration of the preparation etc...I would say friends that are the very essence of Spice and Curry for you. This is a place where you can come, ask freely any question regarding a recipe, discuss it and then leave to try out in your kitchen and then come back and leave your response how you made it etc….

I really don’t know if this sound anything surprising but yes many of them do come regularly and almost spends 2-3 hrs browsing recipes here. I am sure many a times cooking in kitchen while peeping into their laptops/computers checking the steps/ingredients in a recipe here etc...

I would say if you are one of them, then I would request you to drop in few lines here on this post. Come on don’t you think I deserve a little attention on your part on completing five years in blogging?

Here is a recipe with Black Sea Bream fish. A firm fish that is Bream for you and which is available here in a very affordable price. Also known as Dorade.There are many recipes out in internet where it is baked, broiled with olives, lemon, parsley,garlic or Thyme  or other dry herbs.But being a typical Bengali something inside me was not convinced, so made Sea Bream Mach'er Kalia just like a rui mach’er kalia would do .The texture of this fish quite resembles our very own Bhekti fish.

Sea Bream Mach’er Kalia- Spicy Tomato Sea Bream Curry


Recipe requirements

• 2 Black sea bream fish, cleaned and cut into three steak pieces of about 2 inch long in length.
• 1 large onion
• 2-3 fat cloves of garlic
• ½ inch of ginger
• 2-3 green chilies
• 1 tomato
• 2 medium size potatoes cut into cubes
• 3-4 tbs of cooking oil+ some more to fry fish pieces
• Seasonings
• 1 tsp of turmeric powder
• 2 tsp of hot red pepper powder
• 1 tsp of cumin powder
• 2 tsp of coriander powder
• Salt as per taste
• Pinch of sugar

Method

• Marinate fish in turmeric powder and salt for about 1hr.The fins are sharp especially on the dorsal side. I would say no need to cut this out. After frying the fish this portion comes out easily.
• Fry them in hot oil on both sides. Keep them on a separate plate.
• Prepare the masala paste-
• Pulse through- in a heavy duty mixer/grinder onion, garlic, ginger and tomato and green chilies.
• In that oil left after frying fish, add more cooking oil.
• Now add the masala paste with the dry ingredients- turmeric, red pepper and cumin+coriander powder.Adjust salt and add pinch of sugar.
• If you don’t want to make the masala paste, add in chopped onions, ginger and garlic and tomatoes .Slit green chilies and add to the above frying ingredients.
• Slowly stir/fry it splashing water in between. Add in potatoes, mix well and fry it well to coat the masala well about4-5 mints at med-high.
• Now add in about 1/ cp of water and let it cook at high flame. The gravy will tend to become dry. The gravy will tend to release oil by sides. Mix well all.
• Now add in 1 cup of water or depend on the kind of gravy you want.
• Cover and let it cook for about 7-8 mints.
• Half way through, add fried pieces and little bit more water.
• Cover the entire gravy and cook at low for 10-14 mints or till potatoes and fish becomes juicy and tender.
• Serve with warm cooked rice, a must to enjoy the flavor of this fish with the spicy gravy.

Happy Cooking Friends and thanks once again for visiting Spice and Curry and liking this small  space of mine for almost five years or so now.