Hentak

The fish is dried and crushed to a powder before it ferments, and the aroid stems are sunned for a day first.

Fish. Not vegetarian — contains fish.

Ingredients

• 300 g small Indian flying barb, sun-dried
• 300 g aroid petioles, the leaf stems of taro
• 1 teaspoon salt

Method

1. THE FISH IS DRIED AND CRUSHED TO A POWDER BEFORE IT FERMENTS, AND THE AROID STEMS ARE SUNNED FOR A DAY FIRST. Its article gives both preparations in order: the small Indian flying barb are sun-dried on bamboo trays and CRUSHED TO POWDER; the aroid petioles are cut into pieces and left in the sun for one day; and the two are then combined in equal measure. That is the whole difference from the other ferment on these pages, where whole fish are sealed in a pot intact. Powder has no structure left to break down, so this ferments faster and ends as a smooth paste rather than something you take a lump from.
2. EQUAL PARTS, WHICH ITS ARTICLE SPECIFIES. Three hundred grams of each. It is as much a vegetable paste as a fish one, which is worth knowing before tasting it.
3. THE FISH IS CRUSHED, NOT BLENDED WET. Dried hard, then pounded in a mortar to a coarse flour. Any moisture at this stage and it clumps rather than powdering.
4. THE PETIOLES ARE THE LEAF STEMS, NOT THE LEAVES. Cut into short pieces and given a full day in the sun, which wilts them and takes the raw itch out -- raw aroid stems are irritant.
5. THEY ARE POUNDED TOGETHER INTO A BALL. Worked in a mortar until it holds together as a dense paste, then shaped into a ball.
6. IT IS FERMENTED IN A SEALED CONTAINER, WARM. Wrapped and closed, left at room temperature. It is ready when the smell has turned sharply sour and ammoniac rather than fishy.
7. IF IT SMELLS PUTRID OR SHOWS COLOUR, IT GOES. A sour, pungent smell is the ferment; anything sweetish, slimy or coloured is spoilage, and the batch is thrown away rather than rinsed and used.
8. IT IS USED IN TINY QUANTITIES AS A SEASONING. A teaspoon flavours a dish for four. Its article has it as a condiment in Manipuri cooking rather than something eaten on its own.

Our own recipe. This one was written for this site rather than taken from anywhere, so there is no source to point you at. The quantities and the order of the steps are choices, not the only way to do it.

Filed under India · All recipes