Australian Gourmet Traveller - (10)October 2020 (1)

Maache’rPaturi

SERVES4 // PREPTIME 45 MINS// COOK 20 MINS(PLUSFERMENTING)

“Thisrecipeis verytraditionalBengali,”saysAhanaDutt.“It’snormallyjusta pieceoffish

coatedina coconutandgreen-chillimustardpaste,andwrappedinbananaleaf.I’vedone

a modern take.” Start this recipe 3 days ahead to make the green-peppercorn mustard.

200 gmfrozenshreddedfresh

coconut(seenote)

4 x 200-250gmskinless

Murraycodorpearl

perchfillets

4 bananaleaves,large

enoughtowrapthe fish

50 mlmustardoil

GREEN-PEPPERCORNMUSTARD

100 gmblackorbrown

mustardseeds

100 gmyellowmustardseeds

1½ tbspgreenpeppercorns,

rinsed,drained

1 tbsprawsugar

1¼ tspsalt

100 mlverjus

1 tbspbuttermilk

SALTEDCHILLI

50 gmgreenbirdseyechillies,

trimmed

¼ tspsalt(2%ofthe chillies

byweight)

CORIANDEROIL

2 bunchescoriander,

leavespicked

200 mlneutraloil,suchas

grapeseed oil

1 Forthegreen-peppercorn

mustard,soakmustardseeds

andpeppercornsina bowlof

waterovernight.Thenextday,

strainandrinseundercold

water,thendrainwell.Transfer

toa high-poweredblender.Add

sugar,saltandverjus,andblend

toa smoothpaste(1 minute).

Stirinthebuttermilk.Transfer

toa sterilisedjar,coverloosely

witha pieceofmuslinandset

asideatroomtemperaturefor

2 days(seenote).Makes3 cups.

2 Forthesaltedchilli,pound

thechilliesandsaltwitha mortar

andpestle(orblitzina small

foodprocessororspicegrinder)

toa smoothpaste.Setaside.

3 Blendcoconutand400ml

wateruntilsmooth.Strain

througha nutmilkfilterbag

ormuslinintoa bowl,gently

squeezinguntilalltheliquid

is extracted.Refrigerateuntil

needed(discardcoconutflesh).

4 Forthecorianderoil,blend

thecorianderandoilina high-

poweredblenderuntilvery

smooth(6-8minutes).Strain

through muslin or a coffee

AhanaDuttinheritedherloveofcookingfromhermother.“I alwayswatchedher,whichis how

I learnt,”shesays.“Shewasalwaysinthekitchen,andanytimeshewasthereI wasthere.”

Duttinitiallydreamedofbecominga dancerbeforequicklyrealisinghertalentsinthekitchen.

“I justwantedtoworkina fieldI reallyloved,” she says. “Life’s hard enough as it is, so why would

I notdosomethingthatI reallyenjoy?”

Fromhumblebeginnings,makingtraditionalsavouryshortbreadsinherKolkatahome,toworking

alongsideoneofSydney’smostacclaimedchefs,LennoxHastie,Dutthascomea longwayina short

periodoftime.The27-year-oldmadeherentranceintothehospitalityworldviaa hotelmanagement

courseinMumbai.In2014,shemovedtoAustraliaafterbeingacceptedatSydney’sLeCordonBleu.

“WhenI cametoAustralia,therewassomuchopportunityhere.Andtherestillis becausethe

foodsceneis stillgrowing.There’ssomuchdiversityhere,too.Andsomanynewthingstolearn.”

Aftergraduating,Duttdida stintwiththeKeystoneGroupbeforeapplyingfora jobatFiredoor

• a rolethatcontinuestoinfluencehercookingstyle.“Firedooris sodifferentfromanytraditional,
  conventionalkitchen.Youreallyappreciatetheingredientsand all the effort that goes into making
  anything– evenforboilingwater,youhavetobuilda fire.”
  Now,hercookingis allaboutsimplicity,whileimpartinguniqueelementsfromherBengaliheritage.
  Andhermantra?Letthingsbe.“I likelettingingredients and produce speak for themselves, rather
  than making something really complex.”➤

AhanaDutt

Juniorsous-chef

at Firedoor, Sydney

filter.(Theleavesshouldform

a pastethatyoucancompost;

theoilshouldbebrightgreen.)

5 Cutbananaleaves,if

necessary,intopieceslarge

enoughtowrapfish.Coat

bothsidesoffishwith1½tbsp

green-peppercornmustard.

Topeachwith1 tspsalted

chilli.Placefishondullside

ofbananaleafandwrapinto

a parcel(seenote),securing

withkitchenstring.Heata

liddedbarbecueorchargrill

panovermedium-highheat

andbrusheachparcelwith

½tspmustardoil.Cook2 fish

parcels(2minutes),thenclose

barbecuelidorcoverpanwith

a large,heatproofmetalbowl

andcontinuecooking(4 minutes).

Removelid,flipparcelsand

cook(2-3minutes).Repeat

withremainingparcels.Set

asidetorest(1 minute).

6 Seasoncoconutmilkwith

salt.Openparcelsandcarefully

transfertoservingbowls.

Drizzleovercoconutmilk,

corianderoilandremaining

mustard oil to serve.

NoteFrozenfreshcoconut

is availablefromAsian

supermarkets.Makesureall

utensilsusedareveryclean

toavoidcross-contamination.

Donotuseanair-lockseal

onthejarforfermentingthe

green-peppercornmustard.

Anyextramustardcanbe

fermentedatroomtemperature

foranother5-7days;afterthat

it shouldberefrigerated.To

makewrappingeasier,hold

thebananaleavesovera gas

flametosoftenand become

more flexible.

80 GOURMET TRAVELLER

WORDS GEORGIE MEREDITH.