Species sheet · The Edible River
Rohu
The carp that rules the tables of Bengal.
- As steaks, fried then simmered in a curry (kalia)
- In mustard, cooked gently in its sauce (shorshe)
- Pan-fried with turmeric and salt
- Scientific name
- Labeo rohita
- In the water
- A large carp of the slow rivers of northern India and Bangladesh, the Ganges and Brahmaputra above all, farmed in ponds across the subcontinent.
- Season & buying
- Year-round thanks to farming; on Indian markets, fattest after the monsoon. In Europe, mostly frozen in steaks.
- Common length
- ~50 cm
- How to identify it
- Arched back, silver body with coppery sheen
Scales edged in red, reddish fins
Thick, fringed lips turned downwards
On the plate
White, firm, mild flesh, a little fuller than a European carp, with fine bones through the fillet.
Avoid: Filleting it like a sea fish: it is cut into bone-in steaks and fried before going into the sauce.
In Bengal the head is the most fought-over piece: it goes to the guest of honour or the son-in-law, simmered with rice and lentils.
In Umay recipes
One Umay recipe calls for it.
