Hilsa Substitutes Abroad: What to Use for Shorshe Ilish

The mustard sauce is easy, the fish is the problem

Shorshe ilish is hilsa steaks in a pungent mustard sauce. If you live outside Bangladesh or West Bengal, the sauce is the easy part. The fish is the problem. Frozen hilsa shows up in some South Asian shops in the UK, US and Gulf, but quality and price vary a great deal, and many people just cannot find it.

Our recipe, Shorshe Ilish, uses the real fish. This guide covers the substitutes, plainly: none is hilsa. Hilsa has a high oil content, a distinctive flavour and a lot of fine bones. Another fish can still make a very good mustard curry if you pick it with that in mind. For the method itself, see shorshe ilish with mustard.

What you are trying to replace

Three things make hilsa what it is:

1. Oily, rich flesh. The fat carries mustard well.
2. Steak cuts on the bone. The pieces hold together in a light sauce.
3. Fine, forked bones. This is a hurdle even for people who grew up eating it.

A good substitute matches the first two. The third you can happily lose.

Options, compared

Frozen rohu steaks from Asian shops are the practical, familiar choice. Salmon is the easiest to find in a supermarket. Neither tastes like hilsa. Both taste good in mustard.

Adjusting the recipe for each

Keep the paste the same, then adjust fat and time. For 500 g (1 lb) of fish:

• 2 tbsp yellow or black mustard seeds, soaked and ground with 2 green chillies and 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 tbsp mustard oil, raw for finishing
• 1/2 tsp turmeric
• 150 ml (2/3 cup) water

Rohu or catla. Cook as in the library recipe, but 3 to 4 minutes longer, since they are leaner and denser. Marinate with salt and turmeric for 15 minutes first.

Mackerel. Reduce water slightly, because the fish releases oil. Simmer gently 8 to 10 minutes.

Salmon. Use thick steaks or 3 cm cuts. Simmer 6 to 8 minutes only, then stop. Salmon turns dry fast. Salmon cooks safely at 63 C (145 F), but many cooks stop slightly earlier and let residual heat finish it.

Lean white fish. Add 1 extra tablespoon of mustard oil to the sauce. It will taste less rich, but still good.

The mustard rules do not change

Whichever fish you pick, the sauce has the same problems. The big one is bitterness. Grind mustard seeds only until just broken, with a pinch of salt and a green chilli, and do not boil the paste hard for long; over-cooking it makes it bitter. Soaking the seeds in warm water for 10 minutes first softens the sharpness. Our mustard oil guide explains why raw mustard oil smells so strong and how to handle it.

Bones: what to do about them

If you cook with a bony fish like herring or mackerel, warn the table. For children, use boneless salmon or basa. Remove the skin from salmon before cooking if the family dislikes it, or leave it on to hold the piece together and lift it off after.

What to serve with it

Plain steamed rice, nothing fancy. A side of fried begun bhaja style vegetable or simple dal fits. If you want a lighter Bengali fish dish, the thin curry in machher jhol basics pairs with the same swaps.

Shopping and storage

That last point is worth checking: in some places mustard oil is labelled for massage only because of local rules on erucic acid. Where it is not sold as an edible oil, use a neutral oil and add a little extra mustard paste. Degchi can keep rohu and mustard seeds on your list so they are in your cart when you shop for the weekend; see the pantry sandbox.