And finally!!! IIish

And so finally ......it is here.... the fish of all fishes.... the greatest.... the tastiest....Ilish....the fish which inspired this blog.....(oh my!! how great is that?!):)

So we finally discovered this Bangladeshi shop and we drove all the way and we came back loaded with fish and mutton(goat meat).
We are "river fish " people and however tasty the sea fish is... the bengali 'macher jhol' just cannot beat anything..... and so C was quick to pick up the ilish/hilsa and Bata(a very bony but very tasty small sweet water fish).

And last evening it was hilsa time! I will try out the more elaborate recipes later... but for now we were happy with the 'ilish mach bhaja'(crispy fried hilsa) and I must say it was too good.... the kitchen was filled up with the overwhelmingly fishy smell and we hogged on the fried fish with plain rice and boiled masoor dal!!

Just wash the fish in cold water and rub salt and turmeric on the fish pieces.
Keep them aside for 10-15 minutes.
Heat mustard oil in a deep frying pan/karhai/wok.
Fry the fishes till they are brown and crisp.
Enjoy with white rice and dal or best... khichudi!

Lip smacking Alu paratha!

Weekends are the best.. and the run up to the weekends... even better!
And so of course ... it is time for leisurely talks ,a particularly engrossing game of Scrabble and late dinners!
And this Friday.. what a dinner it was..!And the smile on C's face made my day...
All my previous attempts at making Alu paratha have not been very successful... maybe the dough was too soft, maybe the filling was was not right and of course while rolling out the parathas ... the fillings were everywhere but inside the paratha...
This time however I was very careful... and VOILA!.... it was perfect...

You need:(for 5 parathas)

flour and atta:2 and 1/2 cups (mixed equally)
flour for dusting
ajwain: 1 tsp
salt:a pinch
water
oil :1 tsp


For filling:
potatoes-2 large peeled
salt
green chillies bits(optional)
pearl onions:2-4 chopped finely

Add the ajwain ,salt and oil to the flour. Mix well and take care that the oil does not form lumps.
Next add water and amke a soft dough form the flour/atta mix.
Keep aside for 1/2 an hour.
Meanwhile boil, cool and mash the potatoes.
Add salt,onion and green chilli bits.
Mix well.
Now pinch a medium sized ball from the dough and roll it into the size of a roti all the while dusting with flour.(about 6" diamater)
Carefully spoon in 2-3 tbsp filling in to one half of the paratha and fold the other half over it.
Tightly seal the edges and flatten by ppressing gently by hand.
Heat oil in a pan and fry until golden brown.
Serve hot with cold onion cucumber raita and hot mango pickle....YUM!

Beans in coconut and poppy seed paste

This is a very simple lunch dish .. one you can make in a jiffy and enjoy with hot white rice.
C came home for lunch and I had fresh beans in the refrigerator. So there I go and in 15 minutes this delicious veggie dish was ready.

To make this you need:

fresh green beans:300-400 gms
poppy seeds(posto)- 4 tbsp ground into a fine paste
coconut shavings-1/2 cup
nigella seeds-1/2 tsp
green chillies-2-3 slit (according to taste)
turmeric-1/2 tsp
white oil- 3 tbsp
mustard oil-1 tbsp
salt

Heat the white oil in a pan and sizzle the nigella and the green chillies.
Next add the beans and fry for a minute .
Add little salt, the turmeric and cover the pan and put the flame on low medium.
Let the beans cook for 5-7 minutes.
Once the beans are soft, add the poppy seed paste and the coconut.
Mix properly with the spices and check the seasoning.
Before taking it off the heat just sprinkle them mustard oil and serve.

P.S.1. You can replace the white oil with mustard oil if you want.
2. This is a recipe I picked up from Sananda.... a popular Bengali magazine.

Soul food!

Typical bong breakfasts on weekends are a little elaborate .It is essentially a 'luchi ' or 'parota' time with the simple 'cholar dal' or 'alur dom'.
Even C who is so much into healthy eating cannot say no to these 'not so healthy' treats.
At any time we prefer parota to luchi because it is not deep fried.

How to make parota:

flour-2 cups
water
oil-1tsp for kneading and 4-5 tbsp for frying
salt-a pinch

Mix the flour with salt and oil. Now knead it into a soft dough and keep it aside for 10-15 minutes.
Next pinch out small balls form the dough and roll it to a circular disc on a smooth surface .
Fold the disc twice and press roll it again for the triangular parota.
Heat oil in a shallow pan and on medium heat fry the parota.

Alu r dom:

potatoes-6-7 medium ones peeled and halved
peas-a handful
tomatoes-1 large diced
ginger paste-1 tbsp
whole cumin-1 tsp
slit green chilli-2-3
garam masala powder-1 pinch
yogurt-2 tbsp
turmeric-1/2 tsp
oil-4 tsp
salt
sugar
coriander leaves- a handful

Pressure cook the potatoes till they are soft but not mushy.
Drain the water and keep them aside.
Next heat oil in a pan and lightly fry the potatoes and keep them aside.
In the same oil sizzle the cumin seeds.
Add the ginger and tomatoes and lower the heat.
Pan fry until the tomatoes soften and release oil. Add the peas.
Add the yogurt, turmeric , chillies and let the gravy come to a boil.
If it is too thick add little water.(We do not like ours too watery.)
Add the potatoes and salt and stir .
Add sugar according to taste and the garam masala powder..
Add the coriander leaves.
Serve hot with parota.

Teto r dal (bitter lentils)

Calcutta is famous for its sultry summers. Those summer afternoons were long and balmy and every day after school when I sat down for lunch with Ma there would be two things that were Ma's summer specials. The first one was teto r dal . Now , I am very fond of bitter vegetables (funny eh!) and since then I have come to know that these bitter stuff help to keep the body cool.

Since Sunday the weather here had been unusually warm. And so I missed Ma's tetor dal more than ever. C was a little apprehensive.."Bitter dal?!! How do you make that? Is it good?"He asked me over the phone when I told him that's what I had packed for his lunch."Tell me how it is after you have had it", I told him.
An hour later C told me it was his best lunch ever! He loved the dal!( I knew he would! :))

I also looked up the recipe from Bong Mom's Cookbook.

Ingradients:
moong dal-1/2cup
masur dal-1/3 cup
bottle gourd (lau/lauki)-half of one middle sized one chopped into chunky pieces
bitter gourd (ucche/karela)-2 small cut into circular pieces
ginger paste-1 tbsp
Kalo jire (onion seeds)- 1/2 tsp
salt-according to taste
oil-2 -3tsp
green chilli- 1-2(optional)
turmeric-a pinch

Pressure cook the dal (do not dry roast or fry the dal) with the bottle gourd, turmeric , salt , ginger paste and 1/2 tsp oil.
Now in a pan fry the bitter gourd pieces (not too crisp). Just let them cook.
In the remaining oil sizzle the onion seeds and the green chilli.
Pour the boiled dal and adjust seasoning and consistency.
Serve with hot white rice on a summer afternoon and ENJOY!

Happy 1416

Shubho Nababarsho.....

The start of the Bengali New year was always fun time back at home.
But here in 'Phoren' land nothing like that. Weather wise it is much better though. The sun shines bright,the trees are leafing and there is a nip in the air still.

C wants a special dinner today with all his favorite goodies(read: alu bhaja and muger dal).

So dinner will be a tad more elaborate as I plan to include a few more dishes.

Will post about it soon!

Till then have a great time!

Baked Salmon

C always likes his fish baked..... and since here we do not get many fresh water fishes and the only salt water ones that I can eat is salmon..... I too prefer the baked variety. It is incredibly healthy,mouth watering and amazingly easy to prepare.

Ingredients:

Salmon -1 lb
yogurt-1 cup
coriander- a handful
coriander powder-1/2 tsp
cumin powder-1/2 tsp
onion paste-1 tbsp
ginger garlic paste -1/2 tbsp
salt- according to taste
lime juice- 4-5 tbsp
oil for basting
lime wedges

Marinate the salmon pieces with salt and lime juice for 1 hour.
Whip the yogurt until it is a smooth paste. Chop the coriander fine and add it to the yogurt.
Next add the spice powders with the onion and ginger garlic paste to the yogurt.
Add salt to the yogurt .
Coat the fish pieces with the marinade and keep it aside for 2-3 hours.
Preheat the oven to 350F and bake for 30-40 minutes on each side.
From time to time bast with oil.
Serve with lime wedges and enjoy!