Grilled Pomfret with Filling

This mouth watering recipe is the best grilled Pomfret recipe I have ever come across.

It is one in a million recipe, one which you will treasure for life.

Where I found it? BBC Good Food India. Good food really lives by its words - "Triple tested recipes". The magazine is not just about recipes but also about knowledge sharing. If you are really an avid cook, you must subscribe to this magazine :-)

I have tweaked it a little bit, added few new ingredients and changed the quantity of ingredients used.

Lets begin!

Ingredients (serves 2)

2 medium size pomfrets

For cleaning pomfret
2 tsp Bengal gram flour (Besan)
Juice of 1/2 lemon piece

For the marinade
1 1/2 tsp olive oil
2 tsp cayenne powder
[An excellent replacement for chilli powder. Less chilly and has lots of natural red colour! Use it liberally]
1/4th tsp Dijon mustard paste
1/2 tsp green cardomom powder (choti elaichi)
2 1/2 tsp ginger garlic paste
[Preferably home made]
Juice of 1 medium size lemon 
1/2 tsp haldi
Salt to taste

For the filling
1 heaped tsp crunchy peanut butter
1 heaped tsp tamarind pulp
[For preparing tamarind pulp, dip de seeded tamarind in warm water, stuff the tamarind as much as possible, to avoid watery pulp. Put it in a mixer and grind till it reduces to pulp. For storing for future use, add a pinch of salt to the pulp and store in a dry air tight container in fridge]
1 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup fresh grated coconut
3 green chillies finely chopped
1/2 cup chopped coriander
1 1/2  tsp olive oil
1 tsp finely chopped ginger.
salt to taste

Wash the pomfrets thoroughly. Rub the fish with besan and lemon juice mixture and keep aside for 15 minutes. It helps remove the fishy smell.

Wash again and pat dry.

Trim the fish and use a sharp knife to carefully make a slit across the length of the each pomfret as shown in the picture - from stomach to neck - on one side.

Make sure it doesn't touch the bone. Now carefully make 2 horizontal and not so deep slits on each side of pomfret as shown in picture.

Mix all the ingredients in the marinade and rub it on the fish, covering all the slits and sides inside out.
Keep aside for minimum 30 minutes.

For the filling, pour oil in hot pan. Add onions and fry till they turn transparent. Add ginger and coconut, fry for 2 mins.

Add tamarind pulp, peanut butter and salt, mix well. Fry for 30 seconds.

Turn off the stove and add freshly chopped coriander.

Place each pomfret in the center of allumium foil large enough to wrap the fish.

Now, stuff the filling in the pocket slit. Wrap the fish.

Place both the fishes on wire rack and set the microwave to grill mode.

Grill for 20 minutes.

Gently uncover the fish on top side and grill for 5 minutes or until the exposed side is golden.

Now the fish becomes easy to handle as the top side is grilled. Use a wide spoon and remove the fish from foil, turn side and place on wire rack directly.

Grill for 5 minutes until the other side also turns golden.

Voila! Tangy spicy Stuffed and grilled Pomfret is ready.

Serve it with a chutney of your liking.