Ratnagiri Bombil Fry Dried Bombay Duck Konkan

Method

1. 1

   Handle with ventilation: Dried Bombay Duck has a very intense smell. Open windows. This is normal and the smell mellows significantly once fried.

2. 2

   Check the dried bombil: The fish should be dry, firm and slightly golden. Break one gently — it should snap rather than bend. Very soft bombil is not sufficiently dried and will be oily when fried.

3. 3

   Dust with spices: Lightly dust each piece with turmeric and red chilli powder on both sides.

4. 4

   Coat with rice flour: Dust each piece with rice flour. The rice flour creates the crispy outer shell.

5. 5

   Heat oil: Heat 3 tbsp oil in a flat pan on medium. The oil should be shimmering.

6. 6

   Fry on medium heat: Place 3 to 4 bombil pieces in the oil. Fry 2 minutes on the first side without moving them.

7. 7

   Flip very gently: The dried bombil is extremely fragile — flip using a flat spatula with care. Fry 1.5 to 2 minutes on the second side until both sides are golden and crispy.

8. 8

   The transformation: The intense smell of the raw dried fish mellows considerably during frying and the finished fish smells of the sea with a pleasant, slightly salty fragrance.

9. 9

   Drain on paper towels.

10. 10

    Serve immediately with lemon: Squeeze lemon generously. Eat with steamed rice and dal — the bombil crumbles as you eat it and is mixed through the rice.

11. 11

    Note: Bombay Duck (bombil in Marathi, from the Marathi word for the Lizardfish Harpadon nehereus) is one of the most well-known and contentious ingredients of the Konkan coast — banned from aircraft holds and enclosed public spaces in several countries due to its intense smell when dried. The name Bombay Duck is thought to derive from the colonial-era postal system where dried fish was transported on the same trains as mail, the Bombay Dak (Dak meaning postal service in Urdu). For Konkan coast communities from Mumbai to Goa, dried bombil fried crispy is as fundamental as fish can be.