Bhapu (fish soup with tamarind and fresh herbs)

Ingredients

• 1 medium yellow onion, sliced crosswise into 6 mm (¼ inch) rings
• 1 cup (16 g) roughly chopped coriander (cilantro) leaves and stems
• ½ cup (22 g) dill fronds, roughly chopped
• 1½ tbsp garlic paste
• 1½ tsp salt, or to taste
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
• 1½ tbsp tamarind paste
• 4 bird’s eye chillies, sliced lengthwise
• 2 mild dried red chillies
• 450 g (1 lb) white fish fillet, preferably pomfret or mackerel, cut into 2.5 to 4 cm (1½ to 2inch) pieces

Instructions

1. In a heavy-bottomed pot, combine 4 cups (960 ml) water, the onion, coriander (cilantro), dill, garlic paste, salt and turmeric and bring to a boil over high heat. Cover the pot and lower the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook for 25 to 30 minutes until the onion softens.
2. Stir in the tamarind paste, bird’s eye chillies and dried chillies. Add the fish and let the soup cook, uncovered, for 5 minutes, or until the fish is cooked through.

Note

I adapted this recipe from fisherfolk activist Fatima Majeed. She traditionally recommends preparing it with pompano; however, any fatty white fish, such as mackerel, will work well.

Recipe from Pakistan: Recipes and Stories from Home Kitchens, Restaurants and Roadside Stands by Maryam Jillani (Hardie Grant Books, HB $55). Photography by Sanjeev Thakur, Waleed Anwar and Insiya Syed.