Grilled Pomfret for a weeknight !!!

Mention Grilled Fish to me, and its Pomfret which always comes to my mind. The Amreekan or the quintessential continental version of Grilled Fish still has to fight many battles of loyalty to me, to de-throne the seemingly simple Grilled Pomfret. I have grown up loving this delicacy, courtesy my Mommy's Mumbaiya roots. The way one can pack in a heavy punch with this Fishy Delight, is beyond comparison. A few drops of lemon juice on the freshly grilled fish, and some salad for crunch, by the side, and any weekday dinner will start to look up.

Who doesn't like an easy weekday dinner? That's something we always look forward to. And if we can manage to do the prep work a little bit in advance, then it becomes even easier. These days I am on the look out for dishes I can cook, where the cooking time is minimised. Maybe its a lazy streak, maybe not. But I am impressed when I can  leave the kitchen faster and settle down on my comfy couch, with a cup of hot tea.

We had picked up two packets of Pomfret a few days back. While Hubby wanted a Pomfret gravy at first, my mind was more towards Grilled Fish. So after thawing a packet of fish, I divided the contents for two dinners. The first day was the Fish for the Gravy(which is also my Mommy's recipe and not MIL's not so tasty take). I scored a few whole Pomfrets(well, they were not too big), on both sides. In a shallow box I made a simple marinade and let the fishes soak in for a day. I had always seen Momma soak the fishes in a vinegar based marinade for a few hours before she whipped up a batch of grilled fish. She always said, that it helped to firm up the fish, and that it would not break during grilling. So I grabbed some white vinegar, some ginger-garlic-onion paste, green chili paste, lemon rind,paprika and mixed them well together for the marinade. I slathered the marinade on both sides of the fish and even stuffed some in the cavities. Refrigerated the marinated fish in an airtight container for a day. I seasoned the fish, just before it went on to the grill.

The next evening, the job was much easier. Made the man crank up the small grill and grill away. Boys love to grill, and one should give them a few days or nights at it,to keep them smiling !

Its the simplicity of the marinade which shone through dinner that night. We had wolfed down our fishes in no time, without even exchanging words. It was that good, that it made even a talkative couple like us, super quiet, at dinner.

GRILLED POMFRET: 

Ingredients: 
Cleaned and whole Pomfret: 2
Onion-ginger-garlic paste(or grated): 5-6 tbsp
Paprika: 1 tsp
Green Chili Paste: 1 tsp
Salt: to taste
Lemon Rind: 1 tsp
White Vinegar: 1 1/2 tbsp
Canola Oil/ Non Stick cooking spray: For Grilling

Procedure: 

Clean the fish and score them horizontally on both sides. I made three scores on each side so that the marinade soaks in better.

Make a marinade of onion-ginger-garlic paste, green chili paste, lemon rind, paprika and white vinegar and mix well. Slather the marinade on both sides of the fish and even fill in the cavities with some marinade. Let it soak in the juices overnight, in an airtight container in the refrigerator. If you are running short of time, then marinate for an hour at least, after the fish has been thawed.

Crank up the grill and spray some non stick cooking spray. Season the fishes well, and then grill them uniformly on both sides.

Dig into Grilled Pomfret  goodness !!

Bon Appetit !!