Many people have eaten hot, crunchy loitta (Bombay duck) fry at a beachside restaurant in Cox's Bazar. You do not need to go out for it: with a few ingredients and the right technique it can be made at home. The method below follows Dinajpur TV's recipe.
Ingredients: half a kilo of loitta; half a teaspoon each of turmeric, chilli, cumin, coriander, garam masala and black pepper powder; half a teaspoon each of ginger, garlic and onion paste; 1 tablespoon lemon juice; 1 cup gram flour (besan); 2 tablespoons cornflour; salt to taste; and oil for frying.
Clean and wash the fish well and drain. In a bowl, coat the fish with the ginger, garlic and onion pastes, the turmeric, chilli, cumin, coriander and garam masala powders, salt and a little lemon juice, making sure the spices reach every part. Leave to marinate for 10 to 15 minutes.
In another bowl, mix the gram flour, cornflour and a little black pepper and chilli powder, and add water a little at a time to make a thick batter. A thin batter will not cling to the fish; a thick one gives a crisper crust. Instead of batter, you can also roll the fish in the dry gram flour and cornflour mix.
Heat the oil well in a karai, dip the fish in the batter one by one and lower them in, turning them over medium heat. When both sides are golden and crunchy, lift them onto tissue paper to drain, then serve hot with tomato sauce, chilli sauce or a dip of your choice.
Photo: Biswarup Ganguly / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0)
Source: Dinajpur TV
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