Bajai halászléBaja fish soup

• 2 kg4.4 lb whole carp (ponty), ideally a fleshy fish of 2–3 kg, scaled, gutted, gills and the bitter throat tooth removed; body cut crosswise into 3–4 cm horseshoe steaks (patkó), head split
• 30 g2 tbsp salt, for salting the fish ahead, plus more to taste
• 200 g7 oz yellow onions, finely chopped or grated
• 2.6 l11 cups cold water, about 1.3 l per kg of fish
• 4 tbsp (30 g)4 tbsp Hungarian sweet ground paprika (édesnemes fűszerpaprika), the best you can find; it gives the colour
• 3–4 hot cherry peppers (cseresznyepaprika), fresh or dried, whole
• 250 g9 oz gyufatészta (thick 'matchstick' egg pasta for halászlé), or thick-cut egg tagliatelle broken into 5 cm lengths
• fresh hot peppers or hot paprika paste, at the table
• white bread, to serve

Method

1. 1

   1. Rub the carp steaks and head all over with the salt, cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or overnight as Baja cooks prefer.

2. 2

   2. Put the onion and the cold water into a wide pot or bogrács and bring it to the boil.

3. 3

   3. Lay in the head and then the fish steaks in a single layer if possible and bring back to a strong boil.

4. 4

   4. Let it boil until the grey foam that forms has broken up and disappeared, 3–5 minutes; do not stir.

5. 5

   5. Sprinkle the paprika evenly over the surface, breaking up any lumps with a spoon, and drop in the whole cherry peppers.

6. 6

   6. Keep the soup at a hard, rolling boil for 20–25 minutes, shaking or turning the pot every few minutes instead of stirring, so the fish stays whole and the fat emulsifies into a glossy red broth.

7. 7

   7. Meanwhile cook the pasta in a separate pot of lightly salted boiling water until just tender, then drain it.

8. 8

   8. Taste the broth and add salt if it needs it; the fish is done when the flesh lifts easily from the backbone.

9. 9

   9. Do not strain the soup. Put 2–3 tablespoons of pasta in each bowl, add one or two pieces of fish (or serve the fish on a separate plate) and ladle the hot, clear red broth over.

10. 10

    10. Serve at once, with hot peppers for those who want more heat and bread on the side.