‘Pulasa’ is very special for connoisseurs of food in the Godavari region. This fish variety is available only when the Godavari is in spate but food lovers wait for the monsoon season and don’t mind spending a huge amount on the fish variety.Pulasa Chepa Pulusu is the most sought after delicacy for those who relish seafood; the dish is sent as a gift to many places by the natives of this region.

In taste and texture, there can be no substitute to ‘pulasa’ but a city hotel is making an attempt to win hearts by serving something that tastes close to the rare fish variety. It is serving ‘salmon,’ a Norwegian version of this anadromous fish imported from Norwegian countries in frozen condition. The exotic fish variety has foodies compare its flavour with that of ‘pulasa.’ Weighing about 2.5 kg to 3 kg each, salmon is chopped into slices and grilled in Italian style before it is served to the guests.

“We use citrus risotto, unsalted butter, virgin olive oil and Italian rice to make ‘grilled salmon.’ Since it is an exotic dish, we retain the flavour and serve it to the guests with wine,” says Ch. Laxman, executive chef at the GRT Grand.

Both salmon and ‘pulasa’ are anadromous fish that are born in the sea and swim against the current to reach the freshwater source for breeding. While salmon lost its life in the process of breeding, pulasa can swim back to the sea, provided it is not caught in the fishing net.

“The lifecycle remains more or less the same for pulasa and salmon, but ‘pulasa’ has a unique taste when compared to salmon. We also find similarities between salmon and our Himalayan Trout, a fish variety available only in the Himalayan region,” says T. Rajyalakshmi, senior scientist and former director of the Central Institute for Brackish Water Aquaculture.

“Some of our guests recalled the taste of ‘pulasa’, while tasting the salmon. In fact, salmon is not suitable for gravy, whereas we cannot imagine ‘pulasa’ without gravy,” observes Mr. Laxman. Not just the foreigners who often check into the hotel, the local foodies also taste the salmon served in grilled and sauté form. “Response to the exotic fish variety salmon is quite good here and we are serving 12-15 orders a week,” says M. Uma Maheswari, general manger of the hotel.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Andhra Pradesh / by K.N. Murali Sankar / Kakinada – December 16th, 2015