Steamed Bhetki Fish or Bhetki Mach-er Bhanpe

October and November are the true festive months of India.  Dussera or Durga puja is usually on October followed by Kalipuja/Diwali and Bhaiphota or Bhaiduj. I, the lazy soul, didn’t prepare a single dish on Durga puja on the account of depression from being far from home. From saptami, lunch was bhog at the durga mandap. Bhog is the food offered to the Goddess which is generally a combination of: khichudi (the main dish), accompanied either by the famous Bengali beguni or begunbhaja (fried eggplant in besan) or a vegetable dish like labra or mixed vegetable or the both, chatni and payesh or a sweet or both.  Dinner for 5 days, starting from Panchami to Dashami was different so called Kolkata preparations at different stalls in different mandaps.

Durga puja Bhog

 5 days continuously eating outside at odd hours of night was truly too much for me. My taste buds became numb. Slowly I geared up myself. And after a fortnight I have really made some dishes which I have never made before. All these dishes include mocha ganto or a Bengali preparation of banana flower, cholar dal-er bara diye peNpe (Raw papaya curry with chanaa dal or Bengal gram pakoris) and a steamed Banana cake just prior to Diwali and mudighanto (a Bengali preparation with fish head) and Bhetki mach bhape or steamed Bhetki on Bhaiphota.  On Diwali I have made dahi vada or doi bada, Semai-er payesh (a dessert made of vermicelli) and chicken in red chilly and vinegar which I have made many times. Gradually, I will put all the recipes on my blog but for today it is only the Bhaiphonta or bhaiduj special.
 

Bhaiduj or Bhaiphonta is an occasion which takes place generally 2 days after Kalipuja. Bhaiphonta is always a grand affair at my mamabadi (maternal uncle’s place). Now, for the last 5 years I miss Bhaiphonta. This time, when I came to know that N, my cousin, is in Mumbai, I asked him to come for Diwali and Phonta. He also promptly accepted. He is a bachelor, a foodie but does not cook- altogether a genuine one who misses ghar ka khana or the Bong combinations. I thought of making fish. From my personal experiences I know even though you get mutton or chicken outside but Bengali fish dishes are not available. 

My bhaiphonta menu was very simple: Steamed rice with patla musur dal (masoor dal with with panchphoron  , onion, tomato and coriander), begunbhaja, Mudighanto, Bhetki mach Bhape and semai-er payesh. The Bhetki recipe is the one which I am going to give today.

Ingredients

Bhetki fish (choice of weight and pieces are yours. I had taken a fish of 2 kg and cut it into round pieces)

Bhetki fish

Dahi or curd

Mustard paste or Mustard powder 

Plain water

Mustard oil

2-3 green chilly

Salt

Turmeric

Preparation:

Wash the pieces of the fish and season with salt and turmeric.

Heat oil in a deep-bottomed pan. When the oil is hot enough lightly fry the fishes, turning both the sides.

Make a mustard paste by grinding mustard seeds on a mortar and pestle along with green chilly, pinch of salt and turmeric (to avoid the bitter taste)or  Mix 4 teaspoons of mustard powder and a pinch of salt together in half cup luke warm water.

To the Mustard paste add 3 table spoons of curd, salt and turmeric and make a smooth paste. If you have already added salt and turmeric while making the mustard paste then you just add the curd.

Now in a microwave proof bowl put the fishes covered with the paste. Drop 2-3 drops of mustard oil and slit green chilies.

Cook the fish for 5 minutes in microwave plus convection mode. After 5 minutes take out the fish, turn them and cook for another 1 minute. Be careful while turning, as this is a very soft fish and tend to break.

Serve with hot steamed rice.

 

Rashogolla

After one week of Rakhi, it is Janmashtami.  The day before was a traditional day for R and she was curious about why she was wearing the color dress. Anything whatever is new in the schedule has to be explained to her. So, I said that it is Nandalala’s birthday and that is why she will wear a salwar kurta to school instead of her regular uniform. Now, my little one asked ‘where’s the cake Mamma?’ A valid question, truly. ‘Not a cake this time my dear, but Mamma will make rashogolla for Nandalala and you’.

Rashogolla, (rasgulla) as I prefer to call it as a proper Bangla pronunciation, is not a dish that you can make regularly or any day as you wish. It needs enough time and patience. It was a holiday for R on Janmashtami and I took a day off. So, making of the Rashogollas was possible. I was very excited to see those white, hot, sugar-syrup dipped sweets for the first time after opening the pressure cooker. I cooled one, and served R. She asked for another one.

My first attempt to make Rashogolla was a success. It was soft enough, sweet and adequately dipped in sugar-syrup. Here is the step by step recipe of Rashogolla.

Ingredients

1 L whole cream milk

Juice of 1 big  lemon

3 cups of sugar

4 cups of water (1.5l approx)

2-3 elichi pods (optional)

Nakuldana/ramdana/sugarcandies

Making the gollas

 Boil the milk.

When it starts boiling add the juice of 1 big lemon. Switch off the gas and stir. Within a few minutes the milk will be curdled. You can use any other curdling agent if you wish. Ensure that the milk should be coagulated fully. I have used curd to make the paneer or chana. I have taken full cream milk 2 liter and 6 big table spoon of curd.

Drain the water and keep the paneer aside. If you have used lemon juice you can just run it once under cold water.

After the water gets drained place the paneer on a plain cloth, tie it tightly and hang for 30-40 mnts or till the water gets drained fully.

Now knead the paneer well using your hands. This is the most important part of the whole recipe and the secret for soft rashogollas. Knead the paneer for 20 to 30 minutes.

Make balls from the kneaded paneer. The balls should be smaller from the desired size as the size will get increased atleast two times when they are dipped in sugar syrap. Approximately you can make 15 gollas from 1L of milk. Place the nakuldana inside the balls.

The sugar syrap or the Ras

 While you are making the gollas prepare the ras. In a deep bottomed pan mix 3 cups of water and two cups of sugar and bring to boil. Add some cardamom pods if you like, for flavor. When the sugar gets dissolved add the 4^th cup of water. Add  from the side of the pan so that the temperature does not gets decreased.

The flame should be in high all through.

Carefully slide the gollas into the syrap. As the size of the gollas increase after being dipped in the syrap take a pan which can provide enough room to the rashogollas.

You can pressure cook the rasogollas. I did that. In a high flame I cooked the rasagollas till one whistle and switched off the gas. If you don’t want to pressure cook then cover the pan and cook for 5 minutes. Do not overcook.

You can refrigerate them or serve hot as you like.

Spicy Dam aloo

Celebrations!!! Yes, we love to celebrate each and every occasion, right from Valentine ’s Day to Eed, from Christmas to Navroz.  Our calendar is marked with festivals and celebrations all through. Then there are birthdays and anniversaries.

As a Bengali my festival starts with ‘poush parban’ or Makar sankranti, followed by saraswati puja (Vasant Panchami), holi, paila boishak (Bengali new year or first day of Baisakh), jamai shoshthi and so on. Married to a Bihari family I now also celebrate some more occasions with much fervour.  Rakhi or Rakshabandhan is one such.

I remember one incident of Rakhi from my childhood when I was in first standard.  Our’s was a girls’ school and there was no holiday on Rakhi as in Bengal we observe Bhaiphonta (bhaiduj). One of my classmates Neeraj Pandey came with a big Rakhi adorned with all Zari and decorative beads. She managed it from her brother. The rakhi was too attractive and there was a wish hidden on my young mind to have one such some day. Then so much water has flown into the Ganges!!!

When I came to Mumbai, didi was the one who tied me a rakhi for the first time. It was a small decorative piece and I loved it. After that as long as I was in Mumbai each year she used to tie me the silk thread.

With R, Rakhi is now more serious and busy event. Till now, R, the only daughter of the family, has to send Rakhis to all her cousins. So, now I get enough chances to handle those silk threads. This year, I have even bought 3 extras. They are so beautiful and creative!!! A Superman or a Doreman Rakhi for the kids, Designer Rakhs, Rakhis like Punjabi ChuRas and so on. One for my boudi, one for my sis-in-law and the other one for me- 3 punjabi ChuRas apart from R’s share.

If Rakhis and gifts are one part of the celebration then the other important part is the food of course (the one without which we cannot think of our festivals). The menu that I decided this time was spicy dam aloo, dhokar dalna, shemai-er payesh and sattu paratha (chatu-r parota). Typically a mixed Bihari  & Bengali cuisine.

I am sharing the recipe of Spicy Dam aloo.

Ingredients

Baby Potato 10-15

1 big onion finely chopped

1 medium tomato finely chopped

Green chilies  (as per your tolerance) finely chopped

1 Big onion fine sliced

Garlic paste

Ginger paste

2 tblsp fresh lemon juice

Jeera/ Cumin powder

Dhaniya/ Corriander powder,

 Lalmirch/ Red chili powder

Haldi/ Turmeric powder

Whole jeera/cumin seed, whole dry red chili and tejpata

Mustard oil or any white oil

Ghee, garammasala and sugar (optional)

Method     

                                                                                                                          

Wash the potatoes and partly boil. Add some salt while boiling. You can cut them into halves if you wish.

Peel the boiled potatoes

Heat a pan with 1 table spoon mustard oil.

Fry the potatoes with ½ tbsp of turmeric. Fry till they have a golden colour.

Next add another tbsp of mustard oil and temper the oil with some whole jeera/cumin seed, 2 whole dry red chili and 2 tejpata

To it add the finely chopped onion, green chilies and tomato.

Cover and cook

Now, add 1 tbsp garlic paste and cover again

This should be cooked in a low flame.

Now in a small bowl make a paste with 1 tbsp ginger paste, 1tbsp jeera, dhania and ½ tbsp lal mirch powder, salt turmeric and water.

Add this to the cooked onion and tomato mix and fry. You can add a pinch of sugar at this time. I add this as a part of traditional Bengali cuisine. This doesn’t make the dish sweet but adds to the taste and flavor.

When the mix releases oil add the potatoes and let them be cooked in the spices for sometimes. After they are well cooked in the spices, add water and increase the flame.

Cook in a high flame for 5 minutes or till the water dries. This is a dry dish, so do not keep lot of gravy.

Now add the lime juice and mix it well and switch off the gas.

If you want you can add some ghee and garam masala at the end. I usually avoid this but this time I added as a part of festival dish J.

Minced Chicken Cutlet / Chicken Keema Cutlet with blanched Veg Salad

Long monsoon and rains....yes, that's how the climate here now for last 3 months. The temptation over fried items is irresistible and then blame to the climate!!!

No, when  I want to have something I have it and I make all the points ready for my defense to me. 

Three weeks back on a heavily drenched Saturday I made this cutlets. Since then this recipe was with me. Finally, before a weekend it is seeing the daylight. A weekend special dish as it takes more time to cook than usual. 

Ingredients for  Cutlet

Chicken Keema/ Minced Chicken:  250 gms

1 Onion big

1 Tomato medium

1 potato medium

2-3 green chilies (or as per your choice)

Ginger paste 1 table spoon

Garlic paste 1 table spoon

Salt as per taste

Turmeric powder ½ tea spoon

Jeera powder 1 table spoon

Red chili powder 1 teaspoon (or as per your choice)

Bread crumbs

1 egg

Mustard oil/Sunflower oil 2 table spoons to cook

Oil to fry the cutlets

Preparation

Wash the keema.

Chop finely onion, tomato and the green chilies.

Boil the potato, peel it off and mash.

Cooking                                                                                                                               

Heat a pan with 2 table spoon of oil.

Add the chopped onion, tomato and the green chilies.

Add salt and cover.

Now add ginger paste, garlic paste, jeera powder, turmeric powder, Red chili powder and cook for 2 minutes.

Add keema and cook. When it releases oil add the mashed potato and cook for some more time.

When the mix is completely dry, it is ready.

 

Making the cutlets

Divide the mix into small portions and make small balls out of it and flatten it.

First, coat a cutlet with breadcrumbs. See that both the sides are well coated.

Now beat the egg and dip the cutlet into it. Then again coat it with breadcrumbs.

In a deep pan heat oil and fry the cutlets.

Serve with blanched Veg salad.

Ingredients for  Salad

1 Red bell pepper medium

1 Yellow bell pepper medium

1 Green bell pepper medium

1 Onion  Yellow bell pepper

2 green chilies (optional)

3-4 garlic cloves

Salt as per taste

1 tea spoon black pepper

1 table spoon oil

Preparation

Slice all the ingredients into thin long strips

Cooking

Boil water in a pan. When it starts boiling add all the ingredients except onion, garlic and the chilies. Boil for 5 minutes or until soft.

Drain the water and place under running cold water to help maintain the bright color of the vegetables.

In a pan heat 1 table spoon of oil and add onion, garlic and the chilies.

Add the boiled vegetables and stir cook for 5 minutes.

Add salt and pepper and stir. If you want you can add some vinegar.

Your salad is ready.

Patol/ Parwal Kasha

During the summer and monsoon Parwal/patol is quiet available here. Parwal is one of the vegetable that both S and I prefer. There are many variations of parwal that I make. This time it is patol/parwal kasha. 

‘Kasha’ is a type of preparation where you fry and cook the ingredient with spices in a low heat for a long time, so that the all the spices go inside it to make soft and seasoned.  The gravy can be thick or dry being ideal to have with paratha or nun. The most enjoyed ‘kasha’ dish according to me is mutton/chicken kasha. The other kasha recipes are dim (egg) kasha, kasha alur dom (dam-aloo) and patol kasha.

Ingredients 

Patol/ Parwal:  10-12

2 Onions Medium

1 Tomato  Medium

2  green chilies (or as per your choice)

Ginger paste 1 table spoon

Garlic paste 1 table spoon

salt as per taste

turmeric powder ½ tea spoon

jeera powder 1 table spoon

red chili powder  ½  or 1 teaspoon

½  tea spoon sugar

½ tea spoon garam masala

½ tea spoon ghee

Bay leaves and whole jeera for tempering

Mustard oil/Sunflower oil 3 table spoons

Preparation

Cut the parwal from both the ends and scrape.

Wash them and with a fork pierce for two or three times. This will give good result while seasoning.

Chop finely both the onions and tomato.

Cooking

Heat a pan with 2 table spoon of oil.

Fry the parwals with a pinch of salt and turmeric. Reduce the flame and cover. Open the lid after 5 minutes. Turn the parwals to the other side and fry well. Parwals may discharge water. In that case increase the flame and fry. Do not cover now. Remove them from flame when both the sides are light brown and the parwal is soft.

The total time of frying the parwals will be some 10 minutes.

Now, you may need to add a table spoon of oil to the existing one. Once the oil is hot enough temper it with whole jeera and bay leaves.

Add the chopped onions and tomato.

Add the green chilies and the garlic paste

Let it be cooked for 5 minutes.

In the mean time you can make the spices ready.

For the spices: In a small bowl put ginger paste,  jeera powder, red chili powder, turmeric, salt to taste and 3-4 table spoon of water.  

Mix the spices thoroughly and add it to the chopped onion and tomato. Let it be cooked for some more time.  The mixture will release oil. At this point add a little bit of sugar.

Now put the parwals and reduce the flame and cook for some time.  You may sprinkle little water to avoid the parwals getting burnt from bottom.  Let it be cooked for 10 minutes, covered with a lid. The parwals will get absorbed in the spices.

Now   add ghee and garam masala powder and switch off the gas. Keep it covered for more 10 minutes.

Serve it with roti or paratha.

Veg Shammi Kabab with green Chutney

Shammi Kabab and Veg!!! 

Even I raised my brows as I read the name of the dish in Bongcomb’s blog, but I should say that the whole recipe was indeed appealing.  It was on my mind to make some chatpata  veg starter and what best it could be than trying out these veg kababs!!!

The ingredients of this dish are quiet simple and almost available at home, readily I decided to make it last night. The outcome is a healthy and tasty dish, loved by all including R. Moreover, I did not have to spend more than 15 minutes to complete the dish.

For all those you want the original recipe here it is

http://bongcomb.wordpress.com/2013/07/22/meat-kebabs-wait-these-are-vegetarian-kebabs/

I have made some very minor changes. Here is my version:

Ingredients

Soya granules 1 cup
2 tablespoon of besan ( chickpea flour)
Ginger paste 1 table spoon
Garlic Paste 1 table spoon
Salt to taste
½  teaspoon turmeric
½  teaspoon Red chilli powder
½  teaspoon jeera ( cumin ) powder
½  tablespoon plain yoghurt
1 ½  teaspoon Everest Tandoori Chicken Masala powder*
½ teaspoon Garam Masala Powder
1 tablespoon oil

Method                                                                                                                               

Soak the soya granules in 1 cup of warm water for about half an hour. Check if they are soft in texture.

Drain out the excess water. Do not squeeze out the water from the granules.

In a bowl with the soya granules mix all the ingredients one by one other than the oil.

At the time of mixing all the ingredients

Make small balls out of the mix and flatten it with your palm to give it the shape of the Kabab.

Heat a tawa or flat skillet, brush it with oil and shallow fry the kebabs on both sides till the color turns golden.  

Kababs on the Tawa (not a good picture though!!!)

Serve hot with green chutney and onions.

The final thing...

This time I made some variation with the chutney as well. For the chutney:

1 Bunch of coriander washed and roughly chopped.
1 green chili
1 table spoon yoghurt
Salt to taste

Blend or grind all the ingredients in a blender or chutney grinder till smooth.

Mixed Veg Tofu Cutlet with Green Chutnee

This recipe was in my inbox for a long time. Finally, it saw the daylight.  Thanks to me!!!

It was late in the afternoon on one weekend, when S said that an old friend of ours is coming to visit us along with his wife.

Though they said that major is the adda, as we will be meeting after a long time so a cup of tea will be enough. S added, we will order something.   As it was on a weekend, so I could spend some time in the kitchen, and I thought of this cutlet with green chutney.

This was for the first time I made it and it came out well. There are many versions of cutlet, but this one is easy and tasty. If you can spend an hour in the kitchen any day then you can go for it.

Ingredients

Vegetables of your choice (I used the following)
1 carrot roughly chopped
1 big capsicum roughly chopped
French beans roughly chopped
1 large Potato boiled and mashed
Tofu 250 gms
Green chilies (as per your tolerance)
1 Big onion fine sliced
Ginger paste 1 table spoon
Garlic Paste 1 table spoon
Salt as per taste
Roasted jeera, dhaniya, lalmirch Powder*
Any vegetable oil 4-5 table soon
Breadcrumbs

Method                                                                                                                               

Heat a pan with 1 table spoon of oil.

Add the chopped onion and the vegetables.

To it add salt and cover.

When the vegetables are almost cooked add the tofu.

Dry up the released water and add the boiled mashed potato. Now add the roasted spice powder and stir.

When the mix releases oil, it is ready.

Cover it and give some time to cool.

Divide the mix into small portions and make small balls out of it and flatten it.

Coat the cutlets with breadcrumbs. See that both the sides are well coated.

Now shallow fry the cutlets and serve with the green chutney.

For Chutney:

5-6 sprigs of dhaniya patta
2-3 green chilies or as per tolerance
2-3 garlic cloves
½ table spoon oil (optional)
Salt and lemon juice  as per taste

Mix 1, 2 and 3 in a mixture. To it add ½ table spoon oil, salt and lemon juice.

For Roasted Spice

Heat a flat bottom pan and add whole cumin, coriander seeds and Red Chili. Roast till the ingredients turn brown. Cool and ground it. You can store it in a air tight container for future use.