Ponty Fuszermartassal (Deviled Carp) is a traditional Hungarian recipe for a classic dish of cleaned carp baked in a mix of tomatoes and onions with paprika where the baking liquid is turned into a sauce to serve with the fish. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic Hungarian version of: Deviled Carp (Ponty Fuszermartassal).
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This dish is often served for Christmas in Hungary.
Ingredients:
1 whole carp (about 1.4kg), gutted, scaled and sliced into about six 3cm thick steaks
1 tbsp plain flour
120ml sour cream
3 tbsp bacon fat or lard
100g onions, finely chopped
2 tbsp Hungarian paprika
1 large green bell pepper, de-seeded and cut into 6mm pieces
200g tomatoes, blanched, peeled, de-seeded and chopped
60ml dry white wine
salt and freshly-ground black pepper, to taste
Method:
Melt the bacon fat (or lard) in a large frying pan or skillet over high heat until it forms a haze on its surface then reduce the heat to medium and use to fry the onions for about 8 minutes, or until coloured a light golden brown.
Take the pan off the heat and stir in the paprika. Stir to combine then return to the heat before adding the bell peppers and tomatoes. Cover the pan and simmer for about 5 minutes before adding the wine. Take off the heat and use half the mixture to cover the base of a buttered baking dish (about 20 x 30cm). Season the fish steaks liberally with salt and black pepper then arrange in a single layer in the baking dish. Cover with the remaining onion mixture then transfer to an oven pre-heated to 170°C and cook for about 16 minutes, or until the fish is firm to the touch and flakes easily when prodded with a fork.
Arrange the fish steaks on a warmed serving plate and cover loosely with foil then place in the oven. Now make the sauce. Beat the flour into the sour cream with a whisk, until smooth. Gently stir the mixture into the pan juices then reduce to a simmer and cook, stirring constantly, for about 5 minutes, or until the sauce is thick and creamy. Pour over the fish steaks and serve immediately.
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