Rub the fish with little turmeric powder and salt and shallow fry until it turns light golden brown in colour. Remove from the oil and keep aside.
Cut the onion and green chillies roughly and make a fine paste of them together.
Heat oil and add bay leaves with whole cumin and stir.
Now, add minced garlic and sautè until fragrance starts coming out of it.
Add onion-chilli paste and ginger garlic paste and sautè until it turns translucent.
Add turmeric powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, green chilli powder, Kashmiri chilli powder and salt and mix properly. Sprinkle a little water and stir for 1 minute.
Now add the tomato puree and mix well with rest of the spices.
Add 1 and 1/2 cup of warm water, cover the lid and bring it to boil.
Slowly pour the Katla fish pieces into the mixture and check the salt. You can add more salt if you find it less.
Cover the lid of the pan, lower the flame and let the fish get cooked for atleast 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, open the lid and check if the fish is properly cooked. Also, check the consistency of the gravy. If you find it too thick, you can add some more warm water and bring to boil.
Please remember that this recipe demands thick gravy and thus it’s not advisable to add too much water.
Your Katla Macher Kalia is ready to be served now.
