Shaak Ghonto -- Greens with Vegggies

Only in New York

This summer we went to NYC a lot. Ok, actually only twice over two months but that is "lot" by us country bumpkins standard.

On our last visit we went to the Children's Museum (CMOM). I had a whole lot of expectations, very few of which were met eventually.

As a child I used to love the Nehru Children's Museum & Birla Technology Museum in Calcutta. At each of our annual winter visits to the city, my Baba would take me and maybe a cousin or two to the museum, the zoo, the planetarium and the RBI building. Don't ask me why RBI, I vaguely remember it had an escalator which we loved to ride.

Those museums were a delight to visit. I am speaking of late seventies/early 80's and even then these museums were set up with recording studios where you could record your antics and then watch them on the tele, with voice activated doors which would open when you hollered "hello" and many such things.

This museum(the CMOM) sadly had very little to offer over all of its four floors. The second floor was for some reason totally devoted to Dora and Diego and that too with a lot of pieces missing. There were things like fire truck and mail van but not much hands on stuff.The basement was a little interesting and they do have workshops which might be good. But for a half day visit we didn't get to do any workshops. Does anyone know any interesting Children museum in NY-NJ-PA area ?

The girls had fun though. The littlest one was just happy to toddle all around the place and to pick & poke at all sorts of random objects. The older one was happy too, doing largely nothing and running around the little one. As I saw they were mainly glad to move about unrestrained, throw stuff around and make a mess without their Mom hollering "Clean up"

And boy, was I happy to be home, back to our little green patch in the suburb. It is official, I don't like a city, at least not for an extended period of time. I imagine myself being happy and content in a farm in some remote corner of the planet (ok a farm with all amenities & cheap labor), maybe it is just an idyllic dream , who knows.

For now the little veggie patch will do, where we , D has spent enough energy, money and carbon footprint to grow exactly one zucchini, plentiful squash blossoms, loads of cherry tomatoes and 20 okra to be precise. Oh and lets not forget pui saag/shaak or pohi greens or malabar spinach which have been totally paisa vasool (worth the money). Planting the stalks (as suggested by Soma), resulted in fast climbing stalks of tender, fresh, glistening pohi greens. They looked so pretty that we didn't even want to cut them down.

With these greens I made a saag/shaak ghonto. My Ma would do this with spinach and call it palang shaak er ghonto (spinach cooked with a medley of vegetables). I thought "Why not Pui". For the Palak saag er ghonto my Ma used a spice paste which she called dhone-jire-ada bata (whole corriander-whole cumin-ginger paste). Actually she used this particular paste for a lot of stuff.

Early morning, her kitchen help would sit on the kitchen floor with the shil-nora, a flat pock-marked square black slab of stone and on it would make pastes of all kinds of spices. As she moved the mortar on the flat piece, her bangles tinkled and made music with the jarring noise of the stones. Deftly she would sprinkle some water, gather the spices with her fingertips and roll the mortar until a smooth amalgamation of spices was born.

The sharp smell of the fresh spices and the the jarring noise of stone hitting stone closely followed by the milder, sweeter flavor of tea marked the beginning of a new day back home.

This forgotten paste is what I used for this ghonto, a simple mix of vegetables and greens, the flavors of the veggies only lightly enhanced by subtle touch of spices. And I forgot this dish also goes to dear blog friend Indosungod's Chard Challenge.


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Shaak er Ghonto

Prep

Make the dhone-jire-ada bata. This is basically a paste of whole cumin, whole coriander and fresh ginger. My Ma's kitchen help used to make this using the shil-nora, the flavor would be very intense and the color a dark ugly shade of brown

I make it this way. In my mortar I add 1/2 tsp of Cumin powder, 1/2 tsp of Corriander powder and 1 tbsp of grated ginger. Then I make a smooth wet paste of the above with the aid of little water. The flavor is not as intense but will do

Chop Potatoes, Pumpkin and Zucchini in almost similar sized cubes. I had 1 cup of each. You can also add brinjal and radish

Wash and clean and then chop the greens. Spinach works very well for this recipe but I have used Pui Saag or Pohi greens. I had about 500 gm of the greens

Start Cooking

Heat Mustard Oil in a Kadhai/Frying Pan. White oil will work too though Anita might not agree

Chaunk/Temper with 1 tsp of Paanch Phoron and 3 Dry Red Chili

When you see the spices dancing around, add 1 cup of cubed potato. Saute with less than 1/4 tsp of turmeric for couple of minutes.

Add the zucchini (~ 1 cup), saute again for couple of minutes and follow suit with the pumpkin(~ 1 cup)

Add the dhone-jire-ada bata and saute for 3-4 minutes. If you like it spicy add a little red chili powder now

Add the chopped pui saag (pohi greens) or spinach and give a good stir. Add salt to taste

The greens especially the pohi will release a lot of water which you want to dry out. Also the veggies will get cooked in this water. Keep cooking with intermittent stirring till the water has all evaporated into thin air and the veggies are cooked

Taste and adjust for seasoning. If the pumpkin is sweet you don't need to add any extra sugar, else a little sugar will enhance the taste

Similar Recipes:
Pui-Chingri -- Pohi Greens with Shrimp



Shubho Mahalaya to all my readers

Oven Roasted Tomato Soup -- Indian Ishtyle

First day of new school. Bus at 7:30. Too much excitement. Up since 4' in the morning.

Novelty wears off in two days time. Now 6:30 in the morning on a weekday is not a good time to be at our home. There is so much drama that HBO would cower down in shame and the pimply Dish Network guy with the Indian name would never ever call me again saying "Auntie, we at dish network have a great deal".

Ever day and I really mean this, I intend to get up at dark and sneak out before even the clock says 6:30. I really don't want to get caught into the early morning melodrama. The Dad could handle this better I think, he has done this through the last 3 years of pre-school. But to become the Saint Mom is my current short term career goal, so I stay put.

I am up way before 6, cajoling and then shouting at the 5 year old to get up. I am chirping brightly about how the new school is going to be so much fun while the 5 year old clearly thinks otherwise. She misses her pre-school which was way more fun by her standard. I am trying to make b'fast interesting which she refuses to touch and thwarts my attempts at creative lunch making by asking me just pack a sandwich.

Going at this rate my sainthood is highly jeopardized, the Vatican will not even peruse my resume if I am packing sandwiches with nothing but chicken nugget in them.

Back home to compensate that lunch with a healthy dinner and also use up the bounty of cherry tomatoes, I device a Oven Roasted Tomato Soup. The bold flavor of garlic and sweet scent of tomatoes roasting in the oven is enough to make me feel happy and uplift my spirits.
I decide to go the Indian route and spice up the Tomato soup with some whole cumin and then as a last minute whim add a little of my Red Masoor Dal (Red Lentil). With garlic chives and coriander snipped from the herb pot, the soup definitely tastes tantalizing.

"It is the best Tomato soup we have ever had", says the hungry Dad

"Why is the Tomato Soup orange, I want a red tomato soup", says the 5 year old

The glare and 15 minutes later she says, " It is yummy", while she mops up the dregs with the last piece of bread !!!





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Oven Roasted Tomato Soup

In an aluminum pouch throw together 30-35 cherry tomatoes, 4-5 cloves of garlic, salt and ground black pepper. Drizzle liberally and I mean liberally with olive oil. Put in the oven at 400F for an hour, In my toaster oven it took an hour and then I had it on broil

Heat a deep bottomed pan or a soup pot

Pour Olive oil, this time don't go over the top

Add 1/4 tsp of cumin and when it sizzles add some finely chopped white onion. Saute with a sprinkle of sugar till onion turns a light shade 0f brown

Add the roasted tomatoes & garlic

Add organic vegetable stock and then about 1/3 cup of washed Red Lentils (Red Masoor Dal)

Add salt to taste and let the soup come to a boil. Cook till the lentil is fully cooked

Add fresh herbs of your choice. Definitely coriander and I also added some garlic chives

Cool and puree in a blender

You don't need to strain. Serve with crackers or bread

Prawn Patia -- straight from Persia

Today was not a day in my dysfunctional "to do list" to write a post. No, today was a day for me to wallow in self pity for the simple reason that my child has grown up and is no longer a Kindergartner and is going to Grade 1 tomorrow.

Not my fault, solely nature's, I mean the "growing up" part. But as a Mom it is my birth right to put my hormones to full use and make a big senti deal of the whole growing up thing. The way Moms pine about the baby growing up you would think they are happiest cleaning poop and staying awake through the night. But all that sentimental mush would have done nicely for a post and with a balanced dose of nostalgia, melodrama and some pre-school rhymes it could have soared my blog hits.

I had even thought up choice phrases to write a teary post about how the little baby who looked into my eyes 5 year 8 months 3hours and 45 minutes back is no longer little and entering the big bad world (actually a school only fifteen mins away from home) .But all that will have to wait, for there is a fishy situation.

A Bong Mom or (maybe a true Bong Dad but not the resident one) will abandon fisrt born's milestones for the love of fish and that is exactly what happened here. Indrani sent me a reminder about the Fish event at her blog and luck had it that there was a brand new, still smelling fresh ,fish recipe sitting in my draft which was only waiting to be posted for a fishy event.

It is called Prawn Patia or Prawn Paatia or something similar. I had no clue that this dish existed, I am pretty clueless you might think but that is the truth. So I was clueless until I saw this name in Kalyan's blog. He is a clever Bong guy whose best half is a Parsi, a very intelligent thing to do, i.e. to marry into another culture, that way you get to sample lots of variety in food at home itself. Now though I have hardly ever had Parsi food, I have this fascination for Parsi food. So when I saw that Prawn Patia was a Parsi dish, I simply had to make it.

Kalyan had no recipe in his blog or maybe I wasn't able to find one, so the recipe I thought would be most fitting for such a dish is from RecipeZaar. I adapted the recipe and the result was delicious. All those whole coriander, cumin and fennel used for tempering added a lovely new flavor to the dish. I also dry roasted and ground a part of the above spices to make a powder which was not called for but I used in the recipe. I gave the tamarind a miss, the vinegar provided the tartness that suited our taste.The only thing I wasn't too sure of was the consistency of the gravy, any verdict ?

Going to the event @ Appayan with Prawn Patia is Doi Maach, a bengali preparation of fish in yogurt sauce and Bhapa Ilish, steamed Hilsa in mustard sauce.


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Prawn Patia

My adaptation of this recipe


Prep

Dry Roast 1 tsp Cumin Seeds, 1 tsp Corriander Seeds and 1/2 tsp Fennel Seeds. Cool and grind to a powder in a spice mill

Squeeze some lime juice and salt on the shrimp and set it aside. I had about 15-20 frozen shrimp which I defrosted.

Make a wet paste of 2 cups of chopped red onion + 4 green chili + 2" ginger + 2-4 cloves of garlic + 3 tbsp yogurt + very little water

Start Cooking

Heat a Frying Pan/Kadhai

Toast 1/2 tsp of Cumin seed, 1/2 tsp of Coriander seed and 1/4 tsp of Fennel seeds

Add Oil

Add 1/2 tsp of Mustard seed, 1/4 tsp of Paprika, 1/4 tsp of Red Chili Powder

When the spices start popping lower the heat and add the wet onion paste. Fry this for 20-25 minutes at medium heat till you see it turning golden and there is no raw smell. This will need some time, don't try to hasten the process.

Add the dry roasted spice powder,1 tbsp of tomato puree, 1 tsp of white vinegar, salt and sugar to taste. Fry for 5 more minutes

Add about 1/2 cup of water and let the gravy come to a simmer. Add the shrimp but do not over cook it.

To finish off I added about 1/4 cup of fat free half and half but this is not in the original recipes

When the shrimp is done garnish with some finely chopped coriander and serve with hot rice

Imam Bayildi -- and then The Imam Fainted

Its the last week of summer hols around here. I am jittery. Guess why ? Big sis S starts Grade 1 next week in the big school. Yeah the little girl who was a couple months short of 3 when I first started this blog is going to be a first grader now.

Last week we went uniform shopping for her. Since she doesn't meet our township's cut-off date she is going to a private school for a year and then will be back in the public school system in Grade 2. Now this school she is going to is a Catholic School and they have uniforms.

That had made me very happy initially. Having been straitjacketed into uniforms 12 years of my life, I love them. What I didn't realize is, it was my Mom who shopped for my uniforms and also largely maintained them while I was merely a bystander. Now roles have shifted.

It was there at the uniform store, it hit me that I really need to live up to the role of a Mom . Nothing before, nor even the stubborn lactation consultant had thrust this thought into my face so hard as did the uniform store.

I realized that there are only so many shirts and tunics and gym shorts you can buy. I also realized that I need to gauge and buy the perfect size which will fit through whole year. Of course I can be extravagant and buy all sizes but then I won't be writing this blog, there would be someone writing it for me.

And because of the limited buying you need to maintain these stuff. As a responsible Mom you would need to iron the shirts every couple of days, you will have to sew on buttons 'coz those goddamn shirts have numerous buttons ready to fly off any minute, you might have to hem or un-hem skirts depending on how the child grows, you might even have to mend a rent in those expensive knee-highs, and then keep those black shoes shining bright.

The very thought that my Mom did all this and more through most of my school years, wanted me to book her a flight and bring her here. To reach that exalted position I need to apprentice at a laundry and go get a needlework for dummies. Till then I keep my fingers crossed that the dad does the ironing and I can fix those buttons with glue.

Eggplants stuffed and ready to go in the oven

Now as part of the celebrations I mentioned last week I made an exotic turkish dish for the small gathering at home. Exotic seems to be the right way to describe anything Turkish I feel but this one is really exquisite. And to think that I had no clue that such a dish existed on the face of earth until August 1st.

That is when we were visiting some friends. As kids were being taken care of and I had ample time to rummage through their book shelves I found a cookbook with this recipe. The name caught my attention. "Imam Bayildi" or The Imam fainted. Why, You say. Try this beautiful eggplant dish doused liberally with olive oil and infused with herbs, and you will know for yourselves

I also referred to this blog for very nice step by step pics as to what exactly should be done while peeling and stuffing, though my version was a tad different. This recipe has the measurements, mine are eyeballed.


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Imam Bayildi

The recipe is for 4 eggplants

Get those long slender eggplants and trim the “heads”. Do not cut them completely off. Peel the eggplants in stripes i.e. the skin and the peel should run parallel. Put the eggplants in salted water. After 30 mins remove and drain on paper towel

Heat 1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil. This is a must and no other oil will do.Add two chopped red onion and saute till pink. Add 8 cloves of garlic minced.

Add 1 large juicy tomato chopped(or half a can of diced tomato), 1/2 cup of chopped coriander(the recipe said parsley), 1 tsp of citrus zest, white pepper powder, salt and sugar to taste. Saute till the tomato softens and is cooked. I added some Red Chili powder and also some garlic chives from my garden to spice it up.

Remove and keep aside

Now you need to fry the eggplants whole.

Heat 1/2 cup or a tad less of olive oil in a deep bottomed pan. Saute the whole eggplants till they are lightly browned on all side and a little soft but not thoroughly cooked. Do not try to do all the eggplants together, saute them individually. Note: I had to chop of a fraction of the eggplant tip because they weren't fitting into my frying pan. However if you are doing so do not cut from the head end

Arrange the eggplants in a baking dish

Cut open a slit/pocket in each eggplant. You might need to salt the pockets at this point if needed. Spoon in the stuffing in generous quantity into the pockets. If they spill over it is better. Pour in the juice and about 1/4 cup of hot water + olive oil into the baking dish.

Preheat oven to 375F and cook covered till eggplants are fully done. At the end of the process remove the cover and keep in oven for few more minutes to dry out any excess liquid.

Serve whole at room temperature

Baked Version (Updated n August '17):

Get those long slender eggplants or the smaller but selnder eggplants, and trim the “heads”. Do not cut them completely off. Peel the eggplants in stripes i.e. the skin and the peel should run parallel. Put the eggplants in salted water. After 30 mins remove and drain on paper towel

Preheat oven to 400F. For my toaster oven, I heated it to 425F

Line a baking tray with aluminum foil and put the eggplants face up. Score the flesh of the eggplant with a knife, making diamond patterns, but not cutting through the skin. Press sliced clove of garlic in the flesh of the eggplants.

Brush the eggplants generously with olive oil and salt. Put them face-down on the baking sheet. Bake for 25 mins.

Next take out the tray and carefully turn the eggplants so that they are now face up. Cover the tray loosely with an aluminum foil. Put back in the oven for 20 more minutes

Meanwhile, make the tomato-onion-garlic mix as you would in the regular version

After 45 mins or so when the eggplant are almost done, take out the baking tray. Scoop the tomato-onion mixture onto each eggplant face. Put back in oven for 10 mins

Serve with some feta on top

This was named Eggplant Indiana in our home!!!






Trivia:The BIG question. Why did the Imam faint ? Multiple choice, pick your own: a) The imam (Muslim prayer leader) fainted or swooned when he tasted how good it was b)the stingy imam fainted when he saw how much expensive olive oil was used c)the imam was delighted when a shopkeeper's wife was required to quickly prepare a dish for the imam's unexpected visit

Bhapa Doi -- Steamed Sweet Yogurt

Bhapa Doi

August is a month of celebration and merriment around home. It is also a time to take a breather from the pursuit of happiness and be happy with what already exists. The last year has been a hard one for us and maybe one day when I am at peace with the situation I will write about it.

But one thing I have learned in the process. When you are shattered and don't have control over destiny, non-atheists like me pray. They pray with all their might, asking God to settle things, to make whatever is going wrong right, to solve the problem. God does not necessarily listen but all that praying lends courage to otherwise scared souls and you learn to survive, to take things in your stride and most of all to accept if you are unable to make the change.

As time passes you realize that situations do not go on reverse and solve themselves, miracles don't happen but you just learn to accept whatever has been doled out to you and you try to make the best out of it. If Time does not heal it at least mutes the pain and that in itself is a miracle.

Now on a more cheery note back to the merriment. Hot and humid August is perfect time to let go of the worries and sink into blissful indulgence. Summer does that to you. Nature is so giving and earth is smelling so sweet, how can one not be happy to just be hanging around.

To celebrate the month with us we have friends popping in and out almost all weekends. Friends who have been a partner in the pain and now deserve a share of happiness, friends who have not been burdened with our worries and yet deserve a share of sweet luscious Bhapa Doi.

Bhapa Doi which was made this time around with delicious Oikos Greek Yogurt from Stonyfield Farms. Anyone who has kids would be familiar with the Stonyfield Farms Yo Baby organic yogurts. That was the staple yogurt for Big Sis S until of course she discovered Natural Desi dahi and now slowly Baby A is getting her taste of Yo Baby yogurts.

The greek yogurt from Stonyfield Farms is a delight, the ones with honey is now almost a lunch time staple for me. With the plain I decided to make the much loved Bhapa Doi. The Sweet steamed yogurt or Bhapa Doi as we say in Bengali came out much more creamier than usual, thanks to Oikos Greek Yogurt. In fact even with a Non-fat version of the Greek yogurt this dessert came out more than perfect

This is a very simple dessert to make, something you can make even when you are thinking "Oh I haven't made any dessert" and the guests ring the bell. It is so easy that your 5 year old can make it, only he/she shouldn't 'coz it involves a hot oven.


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Bhapa Doi

Mix about 1 can of condensed Milk, 1 cup of Evaporated Milk, 1 cup of Greek Yogurt. Beat with a hand mixer or in the blender till nice and frothy. Pour in a baking dish.
Note: This time around to add my own twist, I scooped out half a ripe mango and added it. Use a little less than 1 can of condensed milk if you don't like it very sweet.

Update on 08/29/09 : Also if you do not have greek yogurt you can use regular full fat plain yogurt but the measurements may vary. Today I made a Bhapa Doi again with Whole Milk Plain Yogurt. The measurements were about 1 can of condensed milk + 1 cup Evaporated Milk + 1 cup Full fat plain yogurt. No need to use hung yogurt but I drained out the whey simply by putting the yogurt on a strainer.If you don't like too much sweet, use a little less than 1 can of condensed milk.

Heat Oven to 350 F. Fill a large baking tray with water. Put the baking dish with the mix in it so that water is half way up. Do not cover the baking dish.

After 30 - 35 minutes the yogurt will be set, if not allow a couple more minutes. Take it out and chill in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours. Note for double the quantity: If you have started off with more quantity, it will take more time, you will know when the top and edges start browning a little. At this point insert a fork lightly to see if it is done. It might be a little wobbly but cool in the refrigerator for 5-6 hrs or overnight to set completely.

Garnish with saffron strands and serve. Or with the mango flavored one garnish with pieces of fresh ripe sweet mango.

Tip: If you have a small gathering, You can pour the mix in small ramekins and set the bhapa doi in it. Such individual servings look damn cute.

Updated on 08/21: An alternate method to make this dessert is on the stove stop in a double boiler. I am not sure if it can be done in pressure cooker. Check this link for several variations on this dessert


Trivia: Called “yiaourti” in Greece, Greek yogurt is creamier than regular yogurt. It also has twice the protein and fewer carbs than regular yogurt

Posto Murgi or Chicken in Poppy Seed Paste

A Recipe is just a story with a Good Meal at the end -- Pat Conroy

I have been reading Hidden Kitchen from NPR's the Kitchen Sisters lately. I do not read cookbooks for recipes. Most of the stuff I cook is what I have memories of, hand-me-downs from my Ma or Dida, pass me along kind of recipes from friends, blogs, neighbors, impromptu concoctions whipped up to please the palate, but very rarely from glossy beautiful cook books. I love cook books with stories and am afraid of tomes with teeming recipes.

When I saw this book at the library I picked it because it said NPR and I have liked it a lot since then.Who glues your community together through food ? Who is cooking on your corner ? What traditions are vanishing from your neighborhood, your family, the planet ? The authors ask these questions and more and as I read about the farmer in Indiana who sells raw cow milk or the Italian forager in San Francisco who cooks beautiful meals of his finds I am more and more intrigued.

The Kitchen sisters say "People are telling us that home cooking and the family table are on the endangered species list --- small farmers and producers are too -- and these age old practices and ways of life, cornerstone of our civilization will become extinct if we don't stop and take notice and protect and preserve them"

Home cooking is not easy and can get stressful as I sometimes find, juggling home, a job and two kids, but then again it is the most healthy and joyful alternative. And I don't say that just because it sounds nice and haloed and I am destined to do it in "servantless US of A". It does brings along a sense of peace on an otherwise bustling day.

And honestly home cooking is not so difficult as to become extinct. Much easier than fixing an Ikea book shelf and IKEA is actually doing pretty good.So what is it that makes home cooking endangered ? I often hear my cousins in India say they hardly cook and their cook does it all or if they are a young couple they just order a dabba. And when they do say that, their is a hint of pride for being able to afford a cook and an undertone of disdain for the very job of home cooking.

I am thinking is this is a slowly catching on global phenomenon, you don't want to chop, stir, cook because you either have cheap labor to do the job or you get your sandwich from the Burger baron or because you think it is a job not worth doing.

So you think the times you spend in the kitchen with the family, stirring and chopping together, explaining number lines to the 5 year old while you peel a cucumber, tasting and smelling and creating memories is just overly hyped .Maybe it is. You might bond better and have happier kids, downing shots of tequila than sweating it out in the kitchen.

But there is something wholesome and warm about this whole cooking thing which the tequila does not bring.It need not be an elaborate meal always, it need not necessarily be an everyday cooking chore, and you need not do it all by yourself, get help but whip up a hot meal and pass on your traditions.

Why do you cook dear reader and here I would urge non-bloggers to please step up ? What cooking traditions do you feel are vanishing from your neighborhood, your family, the planet that you would want to preserve ? Do you think delegating home cooking to an outside help makes a difference ? Come on tell me and share your thoughts.

With that said, I have Posto Murgi or Chicken in Poppy seed paste just like my Ma makes it only not quiet. Some of the flavors in my creation has been influenced by Indosungod's Chicken Curry. I loved her use of fennel seeds and also adding garlic to the Poppy seed paste, so those are the small changes that I made to this old recipe of my Mom's. I love Posto (Poppy Seed) in any form so little doubt that this is a much loved dish. But we had guests and they loved it too so in spite of my bias this indeed is a delicious preparation


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Posto Murgi/Chicken in Poppy Seed Paste

Wash and clean about 5 lbs of chicken cut into small pieces. Marinade with 1 tbsp of lime juice, 2 tsp of ginger paste , 2 tsp garlic paste, salt, 1/4 tsp of turmeric powder and 1 tsp of mustard Oil(optional) for 1-3 hours. Note: I usually buy whole chicken skinned. So when I say 5lb chicken I mean the weight of the chicken with bones et al

Soak 4 tbsp of Poppy Seed(Posto) in water and then make a paste of soaked posto + 6 cloves of fat garlic + 1" peeled ginger + 6-8 green chilli (heat alert adjust accordingly!)

Heat Oil in a Kadhai/Frying Pan

Chaunce/Temper the oil with 4 Clove/Laung, 4 Cardamom/ Elaichi, 1" stick of cinnamon/dalchini, 1 tsp of Fennel seeds/Mouri/Saunf

When the spices start bristling add 2 cups of finely chopped red onion. Fry the onion with a sprinkle of sugar till it takes on a nice shade of brownish pink

Add 1 large juicy tomato finely chopped and fry till the tomato is mushed up and there is no raw smell

Add the poppy seed paste, 1 tsp of Red Chilli powder, 1/2 tsp of Garam Masala powder. Fry the masala till the masala looks cooked

Add the chicken pieces and saute them till they loose their pink color and becomes a light yellow. You can add about 1/4 tsp or less of Turmeric powder at this point

Add salt, paprika for color and about 1/2 cup of water. Adjust the quantity of water according to your needs.

Cover and cook till chicken is done. The way I make this dish there is little gravy but the result is not dry either. I would say the gravy is mostly clinging on to the chicken and it is very moist

Garnish with fresh chopped coriander leaves

Lemon Balm Tea

Adrenalin Rush

"The world is like a ride in an amusement park. And when you choose to go on it you think it's real because that's how powerful our minds are. And the ride goes up and down and round and round. It has thrills and chills and it's very brightly coloured and it's very loud and it's fun, for a while. Some people have been on the ride for a long time and they begin to question: "Is this real, or is this just a ride?" And other people have remembered, and they come back to us, they say, "Hey, don't worry, don't be afraid, ever, because this is just a ride." And we kill those people"

-- Bill Hicks

Cup of Tea scented with Lemon Balm growing on my patio to soothe the nerves. And with this I admit that Big Sis S has way more spunk than me.


Lemon Balm is a citrusy and fresh scented herb with a delicate lemon scent. A leaf or two in my tea is perfect for a relaxing evening. Known for ages as a medicinal herb, lemon balm has mild sedative properties and has been used to relieve gas, reduce fever, and increase perspiration.Fresh sprigs are used to top drinks and as garnishes on salads and main dishes. Fresh or dried leaves make a refreshing tea, either iced or hot.

I have not used it for any other purpose though it is a beautiful herb with huge potential. Check out this link for more details

This beautiful herb goes out to WHB # 195 hosted this week by Dhanggit's Kitchen.

Grilled Portabella and a Salsa Soup

I am done with my challenge, it ended on Saturday. I had a glorious lunch to go to on Sunday so I ended it one day early, no harm done.

It was really good this time and I did not crave or miss anything at all. The meals were simple and yet we ate a lot of veggies and also heart-healthy fish. I stuck to eating no grains, no processed food, no sugar and almost no meat. I did bend the rules and ate out on two nights. One day it was salad, the other day a chicken vindaloo which we ordered home. I think bending the rules a bit and also a simpler meal plan helped to do the whole thing without any stress and accept it as a life style instead of one week fling.

If you ask me about weights, honestly I did not weigh in, neither before nor after. The weighing machine at home has given up after umpteen weighing of suitcases whenever the parents are here and gets totally messed up if humans are aboard. The gym whose weighing scales I trust was not visited.

I know I am nowhere near the target weight which the BMI calculators predict for me, man I would rather grow vertically than reach that pathetic low weight. But I do feel lighter and better, I think a week of restricted good eating does that to you anyway. The best thing is I have lost in inches, I can feel it , really.

Ok and the real proof of the pudding is in I could gracefully fit into the saree-blouse my Ma got stitched for me and sent over last week. This is no mean feat if you know my Mom and my blouse fitting saga.

My Mom is a health freak and is either exercising or eating small portions of healthily cooked food. She wasn't always like this but her arthritic knee has made her very watchful of her and consequently my weight. She gets my blouses stitched by the tailor whose template is from my wedding days. So most of the time I am huffing and puffing to get into those wry pieces of fabric which think I am Malaika where in real life I maybe Mayawati.

Now I am not sure if the tailor lost his original template but this time his creation was a much easier fit. A reward worthy of the challenge.

Before I go into the recipe I would like to make it clear that the no-grain diet is not necessary the best thing to and will depend on the individual's health and such factors. As some of the readers have asked, whole grains are definitely good for you in small portions.

Basically the No-Grain Diet is based on the idea that meals high in grains, sweets, and starches promote elevated insulin levels, causing you to become hungry soon after you have just eaten. This is referred to as a "grain addiction" - when the cravings trigger you to eat more of the "wrong foods" and a harmful cycle ensues. So getting rid of the grains reduces your carb cravings.

Back now to two more recipes which are much welcome in our home on no grain days are a Grilled Portabella Caps and a Salsa Soup. I have no pics for the Salsa Soup but trust me, it is a wonderfully tasty soup.


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Grilled Portabella Caps

Remove stems and wipe portabella caps clean with a damp paper towel. Combine Olive oil, Lime juice, Sambal Olek or Hot Chili Garlic sauce, little Honey, Garlic salt and Red Chili Powder.Brush the dressing on the outer side of the mushroom. Place mushrooms on their backs, with dark "gill" side up on the grill. Brush dressing over gills. Grill, gill sides up. serve whole or sliced.

The Salsa Soup is a quick recipe from here. Check the original link for measurements. I made a total vegetarian version with little changes and no Tortilla Chips but papad

Salsa Soup

Heat Olive Oil in a deep, heavy pan. Add a pinch of red pepper and about 1/2 tsp of cumin seeds to the oil and stir briefly.
When the cumin sizzles, add chopped onion and fry till soft.
Now add your salsa. Note: Either home made salsa or the jar will work. If you like it hot add chili powder or use a HOT salsa.
Cook the salsa and oil together for couple of minutes, stirring constantly so that it does not burn or stick.
Add the black beans, and the corn. I used a can of black beans.
Next, add the organic low sodium vegetable stock and stir all to blend well. If you don't have stock use plain water, add salt to taste.
Bring this mixture to a full boil and reduce heat to medium low.
Add Lime juice.
Simmer the salsa soup until the corn/bean is completely cooked .
Turn off heat under the cooking vessel and stir in a bunch of chopped cilantro.
Ladle your finished salsa soup into individual soup bowls
Stir in avocado chunks on top . Toss a bit of cheese on top of that.
Top with a few tortilla chips or papad.

Edited on 01/18/2011: Today I made this soup with a speedy homemade salsa. In a blender add
1 firm good quality tomato roughly chopped,
1-2 clove of garlic,
2 hot green chili pepper
a little cumin powder
Process till chunky to get your own salsa. Add some minced coriander to the prepared salsa.It was delicioso.Use this for the soup.





I will be on a break until next week. I haven't been able to visit blogs as much as I would have liked to the last week and the trend will continue for the next week or two. I am sorry but I will be back.


Trivia: Aztec lords started to make a mixture of tomatoes with chili peppers and ground squash seeds as early as 1521. They used it as a condiment, to be eaten alongside turkey, venison, lobster, and fish. It was Alonso de Molina who first gave the name ‘salsa’ to the mixture, in 1571.

Fish Kolhapuri and even a Paneer Kolhapuri

What are meal plans if not to be altered ? So after eating grilled and baked for two consecutive days my heart was craving something fiery. I found that D survives such stuff better, me I want spices in my life.

And then there was this jewel red, fragrant spice that had just arrived.Like a new bride it sat in my pantry, shy and coy, fiery from inside, waiting to be introduced to the rest of the family. I too was waiting for an opportune moment, to make memories out of the first introduction.

To make things more clear lets cut and do a flashback.

Few weeks back Dear Nupur of One Hot Stove had a generous giveaway at her blog. Of the millions who responded I was one. I didn't hope to win. Winning by luck is not my forte, I have better chances when hard work is involved.

So of course I did not win. But life is not totally unfair and there are extremely nice judges like Nupur who will mail losers and ask them if they want the prize even though they have lost !!! And what a prize, the jewel red, fragrant spice from far away Kolhapur, the authentic Kolhapuri Masala.

Cut to present. So yesterday I tossed the idea of baking salmon and made a Fish Kolhapuri with salmon instead.
I picked up this recipe but altered it because I was using the pre-made Kolhapuri Masala. I also got helpful and prompt tips from Nupur on using the masala, the right way.

Fish Kolhapuri with salmon was the best salmon dish we have had till date. With the sweet fresh water fishes that I love, this dish can only get better. It was rich in texture, gorgeous in color and very flavorful and fiery in taste.

Fish Kolhapuri and Dal Fry again flavored with Kolhapuri masala was our meal yesterday night. The challenge is still on but now it more flavorful.

I still had some of the masala paste remaining and since S loves Paneer, I made a Paneer Kolhapuri exactly the same way I made the fish. It was delicious to say the least.

Thanks Nupur. This is a spice mix we will treasure for ever.

If you don't have access to the Kolhapuri Masala, you can make your own from Nupur's blog or this recipe. You can also follow the original fish recipe and make the dish but I bet mine was more flavorful with that gorgeous masala.




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Fish Kolhapuri

Marinate the fish pieces (10-12, 2" x 2" pieces of salmon) in 1 tsp of garlic paste, 1 tsp lime juice, Red chilli powder, salt and 1/4 cup yogurt for half hour or more. Note: use any fish of your choice here.

Meanwhile heat oil in a frying pan/Kadhai

Saute 1 cup of chopped red onion till it is soft and bordering on light brown

Add 1 medium tomato chopped and fry till tomato turns soft and mushy

Add about 1/4 cup of grated coconut and fry for couple of minutes. I used frozen, use fresh if you can.

Add 2 tsp of Kolhapuri masala and mix well. Note: This quantity was enough for me, add more or less if you want more or less spicy

Cool the above and blend the whole mixture to a paste with aid of a little water. You need a thick paste so don't add too much water.

Heat some more oil and gently add the fish pieces. Lightly brown the fish pieces on both sides.

Add the prepared masala paste and saute for a minute

Add salt, a little water for the gravy and simmer over low heat till fish is cooked

Adjust for seasonings and garnish with finely chopped coriander.

Paneer Kolhapuri

Cut paneer in small cubes

Heat oil in a frying pan/Kadhai

Add the paneer cubes and lightly brown them on both sides.

Prepare a masala paste as above in the fish recipes

Add the prepared masala paste, salt, a little water for the gravy and simmer over low heat till paneer is cooked

Adjust for seasonings and garnish with finely chopped coriander.

7 Day Challenge -- 2.0

My packed lunch today

I had other posts in mind for this week, posts that have been sitting in my draft. But then something happened last week.

For the first time ever I met a blogger in real life. For whatever reason I have never taken a blog friendship to the next level with e-mails, chats, social networks, phone calls and then live. Occasional e-mails yes but nothing beyond that.

So even when I told her that I would be happy to meet her I wasn't too sure. But am I glad that I did. It was wonderful really and it didn't feel like meeting a stranger at all. She was extremely sweet and got me and S some delightful presents. The Tulika books for S are a treasure.

I made a complete bengali meal for her and the menu was Rice, Dal, Begun Bhaja, Jhinge Chingri Posto, Pathar Mangsho and Aamer Chaatni, the dessert didn't happen.

But her no-grains/limited grain diet for the last 12 years inspired me and I thought of doing the 7 day challenge again this week. Kay's post gave me the final shove.

Summing up the Challenge is simple points

* No Grains
* No Sugars
* No Alcohol
* No Processed Food
* Regular exercise
* Fruits and veggies except Potato
* All lean meat and fish
* Fast for 18 hours


As I had mentioned earlier my main problem was the large amount of prep work that I needed especially to pack lunch etc. So I am keeping it simple this time.

7 Day 2.0 Challenge Menu

7 Day 1.0 Challenge Menu

I got 6-7 packets of frozen vegetables, different blend like Italian, California etc. They are not processed, just chopped and frozen. I am going to steam them and pan roast them for lunch. Different spices and difference in vegetables will bring in the much needed variety. I will have a simple Dal or soup along with it. Dinner will be grilled veggies and salmon on most days. Snacks will be Kala Chana and Papad. I am going to have Tea twice a day. Also I am going to have a little honey on some days.

Steam Veggies according to package Direction

Heat 1 tsp of Olive Oil in a heavy bottomed pan

Flavor the oil with minced garlic and chopped green chillies

Add some chopped red onion and saute till onion is soft.

Add spices like Garam masala or Corriander powder or anything else that you fancy.

Add the veggies. Add salt and saute at medium to low heat till veggies are done to your liking

Pathmark carries expired Baby Food

I buy Gerber Organic Baby Food for my daughter from my local Path Mark Store every two weeks. A month(in May-June time) or so back when I opened the Green Bean container that I had bought a day earlier, it didn't look quiet right.On checking the dates, we saw the expiry date on the product was Jan 2009 (i.e. the baby food had expired 4 months back). We promptly checked all the other Gerber Baby Foods in our pantry. The Fruits were all fine with an expiry date of 2010 or even 2011. But one or two of the Veggies had the expiry date as Jan 2009.

D ,my husband took them back to the store and notified customer service about it. They simply said, they would remove the expired products from the shelves.

Today I was back at the same store. Now I was more aware and I checked the dates before picking up the Gerber containers from the shelves. However there were very few of the Organic Gerber varieties available and so I started checking the Beech & Nut Naturals. And what do I see ? Products with expiry date stamped as April 2009. Today being July 18th, 2009 the product had already expired 3 months back and yet they were still sitting on the shelf.

When I complained to customer service, they simply said it was a vendor packaging issue and were not even apologetic. They did say they will remove these products from the shelves. But I don't understand how the store could be so careless and nonchalant even after our initial complaint. These were all Stage 2 foods and could be potentially harmful for a 6+ month old baby. The way the expiry date is printed, it is not something that is at your face, you need to look for it and I am sure many parents would not pay much attention while picking up these packs.

I have filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau. I would urge all parents to check the dates on such packaged baby foods and lodge a complaint when they find something amiss.

Is there anything more I can do ?

* Please don't leave a comment if you think I am terribly wrong in feeding my baby Gerber. All constructive comments are welcome.

Edited to Add: I have sent e-mails to PathMark customer care and to the mayor's office of the township. No one has got back. I don't think the manufacturers are even responsible for this, so haven't called them yet.

Eternity

My Dida, my Ma's mother, my maternal grandma passed away last week. The memories of her that I carry in my heart can not be captured in a blog post and it is no point saying how dear she was to me. Though she was old and frail, I was really hoping to see her if and when I visit India later this year but that is not to be.

She was a wonderful cook but I never ever attempted to learn any culinary skills from her. I was too happy eating, thinking that is the norm, she would whip up one delicacy after other while we just gorged on them. Many of her cooking traditions has come trickling down via my Mom of course but to make a Chingri Cutlet(Prawn Cutlet) or Kankra Jhaal(Crab Curry) or even Khasta kachori like her will never again be possible.

She was getting old and had almost lost her will to live any longer. I am sad because I couldn't hold her and give a tight squeeze before she went on her journey to eternity,the way I always used to before I left her home

I will be back once I have my thoughts settled

I don't think any comments on this post is necessary so comments are closed

D's Squash Blossoms and Designer Fulkopi Bhaja

It was only last week that I was cursing the guy for starting his seeds late and now see what he has. His squash plants have blossomed and there are pretty yellow flowers all around. Didn't I say he was D best. Ok I never did, so what !!!



A couple of years back we used to have a tiny pumpkin patch which never gave us any fruit but we were only too happy with the blossoms and the leaves and stems(kumro da(n)ta). The stems and leaves were put to best use if either set of parents were here. I usually don't have too much patience to chop the stems and leaves and make a da(n)ta charchari so this time there is no pumpkin but the two lone squash plants have made us happy.

However we didn't get the timing right to harvest the blossoms. One day all happy with the blooms, I clicked pics and by next day the bloom had closed.

"Harvesting squash blossoms requires careful timing. You want them before they bloom, though sometimes it’s tough to distinguish between a bloom that opened and closed, and one that has yet to open."

Squash have male and female blossoms on the same plant (monoecious). The blossoms of both sexes are open and fertile only during the morning hours of one day. During this time pollen must be transferred by bees or by a person. The male blossom may open a second day, but the pollen will no longer be fertile and the blossom will close, wilt and drop from the plant that day or the next. See what ego these male blossoms have ? The females are no less, they make those guys wait like anything . There may be 3 to 4 male blossoms opening for several days to a week before the first female blossoms open.

Plants are such a miracle of nature and there are so many things you wouldn't know unless you see them happening right there in your backyard. Like the other day I saw my methi plants close their leaves and go to sleep at night. They opened up once again at dawn. Has anyone noticed that or can I just say I "discovered" the phenomenon.

So anyway we had only closed blooms to fry and that too only four(the male flowers) of them. Once you have those blossoms, remember to gingerly pull out the stamen before you cook, since the stamen makes it bitter. D made the squash blossom fries and since he does NOT measure, this is how it goes.

To make a squash blossom fry, make a batter with chickpea flour(besan), little rice flour, salt and red chili powder. The batter would have the same consistency of a pakoda batter. Dip and nicely coat the blossoms in the batter. Deep fry in hot oil till brown and crispy

Last weekend after a long time, read really long time we were at Whole Foods. So of course we had to eat at their salad bar and there I had something which was exactly like our very own Bengali Fulkopi Bhaja but with some more Indian spices.

Back home I had one medium cauliflower chopped in medium sized florets and put away neatly packed in the veggie drawer. I wanted to make a Fulkopi Bhaja but with some spices and so this was the Designer Cauliflower Fry or Fulkopi Bhaja. Instead of frying it on stove top I finished it in the oven

Heat Olive Oil in a Frying Pan. Add some chopped red onion and fry till light brown in color. Add some ground corriander powder, fennel powder, very little garam masala powder, paprika and a little red chili powder. Fry the masala with a sprinkle of water. Add the cauliflower florets. Add salt to taste and mix well with the masala. After frying the cauliflower for a couple of minutes transfer the entire content to an oven safe bowl or tray and bake at 350 F for 30-35 minutes. The cauliflower will be done and lightly crisped at the end of the process.
Sprinkle a generous helping of sumac on the beautifully roasted florets and enjoy.

I am sending the Squash Blossoms off to WHB #191 hosted by Cheryl from Gluten Free Goodness. This event was started by Kalyn of Kalyn's Kitchen and now has a new home at Cook Almost Anything at Least Once

More blossom goodness from Ahaar and Grow, Cook, Eat

What delight did you grow to eat today ?

Brown Rice -- Methi Rice

My Container Garden

The last few days have been super busy. Pardon me, I have neither blogged nor visited any blogs. There were so many unread posts in my blog reader and I felt so restless that I closed my eyes and clicked "Mark all read" for all of them.

In other news the 5 year old graduated...ahem, only from Kindergarten. But they had a full ceremony with a cap and a robe followed by a luncheon. It seems like just the other day that S started going to daycare/pre-school, bawling her lungs out and turning my knees into jelly. She has certainly graduated from a crying 2 year old to a school loving 5 and once again I feel the butterflies in my tummy as she looks forward to Grade 1 in the bIIIIg school. But that is not until September and till then she still has summer camp to enjoy at her old school.

We also got the house painted over last week (To expel any doubts I just want to edit to add that we didn't do the painting ourselves, we are not that great :)). Choosing colors is a nightmare cum pleasure rolled into one, a nightmarish pleasure if you wish. All I did till the last minute was bought sample jars while S and D painted test swatches. Thankfully most of the colors came out as expected except one which we had to re-do. So while the nightmare is over, I am sorely missing checking out paints and pairing them on the world wide web. The kitchen got a much needed break and except for Baby A's Khichudi I hardly cooked anything

After a hectic week of a ramshackle house and eating out almost all week, I wanted to bring some sanity to the body over the weekend. The body was craving something earthy with the lightest hint of spices. Made a simple Methi Rice with methi (fenugreek) greens from my container garden. I planted methi, corriander, basil, lemon balm, swiss chard and some beet in containers on the patio. D has tomatoes, squash, okra, pui saag(pohi greens) and some other stuff in our small backyard veggie patch. He started late though and I don't know when we will see any produce.

The Methi Rice or Rice with Fenugreek Greens I made was with Brown Basmati and it is not much of a recipe, more of a coming together of ingredients around the house. I did not measure anything and what I have here is more of a ball park estimate than approximate. This goes to The Heart of the Matter # 27 whose theme is Best of June's produce.


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Methi Rice with Brown Rice

Wash and soak 1 and 1/2 cups of Brown basmati

In a Kadhai or a heavy bottome pan, heat oil

Temper/Chaunce with 4 Elaichi/Cradamom, 4 Clove/Laung and 1" stick of Cinnamon/Darchini

Add 1 cup of finely chopped red onion and fry with a sprinkle of sugar till light brown

Add 1 tsp of Ginger paste and 1/2 tsp of Garlic paste and fry

Add 1/4 cup of Methi greens(I only had this much, add more if you have) and 1 cup of peas or frozen mixed vegetables(defrost before adding) and fry till the veggies look cooked

Add a little Kasoori methi and 1/2 -1 tsp of Biryani masala and fry for a minute

Add the rice and saute for couple of minutes. Add 1/2 cup of milk + almost 4 cups of water and let the rice cook. Flavor the water with some lime zest, I added 2-3 leaves from my lime balm plant. Note: Amount of water will depend on the type of rice you are using

Season with salt and pepper.

Once the rice is done, add 1/4 cup of crumbled paneer and mix well.

Garnish with coarsely grounded roasted peanut.

Trivia: Methi or Fenugreek is popular both as a herb and as a spice(the seed). Supplements of fenugreek seeds has been shown to lower serum cholesterol, triglyceride, and low-density lipoprotein in human patients . Methi from Qasoor in Punjab is very famous in its fragrance throughout the country and known as Qasoori Methi.

Cup Cakes for Dad

You guys are the best, you will eat our crappy cupcakes and still ask for more.

S and me made these chocolate cup cakes for Father's Day. Given my history of baking, these turned out so perfect that I was well shell shocked. Thanks to Nags of Edible Gardens for the step by step pictures and no, this time I didn't use my brain at all, just followed instructions.

I didn't do the frosting so S did the whipped cream and sprinkle thing to decorate. The dad really enjoyed these along with the chaotic lunch at Cheesecake factory and a t-shirt (a size too small) with the girls smiling on the world from it.

This doddering stack goes to Click:Stack hosted by Jugalbandi

Bhapa Ilish -- Steamed Hilsa

"Junie Beatrice Jones or "Junie B." as she is called for short, is an innocent, spirited five- to six-year-old American girl". So what ???

Because she is what I am reading these days, I mean "she" as in about her, books where she is the main character. You see Big Sis S's kindergarten teacher very happy with her reading skills offered to get her some books from her own childhood collection. Had it been my teacher from my childhood I would have carried home books about Mahatma Gandhi or Aesop's fables and made Mom happy. But of course S's teacher is not same and got her a "Junie B. Jones" instead.

All was well, nice school story, the kind I was fond of, I thought, until S asked "what is pasketti?" That word sounded so wrong that I read the entire book in one go. Truth be told, it was funny. But the English, it was absurd. The book was strewn with words like "flied", "bestest", "runned" and so on and so forth. Apparently the little girl(the character Junie) being a kindergartner has not got her grammar right yet and so the book uses her kind of language. That is very well for a Mom my age but what does a kindergartner reading such English do ? I had to constantly tell S all the verbs that were wrong in the book to not mess her up. This series is a very popular kid's series and I really have no clue why they would use wrong English if it is meant for an age group whose language needs to be enriched.

Trying to be "the cool" Mom, who doesn't care for such frivolities I haven't told S's teacher about my concerns and so she has given S 2 more from the series.

Couple of days back S shyly told D that Junie B. has a boyfriend. The Dad panicked, I could see it on his face. He was imagining boys, tattoo on their fore arm and misshapen shorts rising low on the hips, knocking his door. And then he told her what my Ma used to tell me at 15. He said "That must be just a boy who is a friend, like you have R & A and T in your class". Smirk, smirk.

I am desperately trying to be "the cool" Mom here but honestly why does a kindergartner need a boyfriend and a current as well as an ex and also why do phrases like this "new Thelma (a naïve girl whom Junie B.'s boyfriend Ricardo always chases)" have to be in a children's book.

Maybe I will just be un-cool and give S's teacher a "Suitable Boy" instead.

Books which S can read and I have liked so far are The Magic Tree House and The Rainbow Fairies(Thanks Chox). Any more suggestions for 5-7 year old readers ?

And now to the Ilish Bhaape or Bhapa Ilish aka Steamed Hilsa. The dish I had talked about in my earlier post, the signature Bengali Ilish dish which has to be on all important menus when Ilish is in season. Hilsa steeped in a pungent mustard sauce steamed to perfection with a liberal dousing of mustard oil is a sensuous experience. There are two ways of doing this, actually 3, in the pressure cooker like my Mom, in a steamer and in the oven.

I usually don't do this if I don't get Ilish which hasn't been frozen too long which is rare. It tastes best with fresh Hilsa. The oven version of this recipe goes very well with salmon too. Also I heard Herring tastes close to Hilsa so you can try this recipe with salmon or Herring if you don't get Ilish/Hilsa. Shad fish in North America has a taste close to Hilsa too.

The fish roe(macher dim) is a delicacy enjoyed by the Bongs and Hilsa roe is much coveted. This time around I mixed Hilsa roe with little chickpea flour and green chili and then fried them in mustard oil.

Get this recipe in my Book coming out soon. Check this blog for further updates. 

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Bhapa Ilish/Steamed Ilish

Step 1: The Paste and the sauce

Make Sorshe Bata or Mustard paste.
Soak 2 tbsp Mustard seeds(Shorshe) + 2 tsp Poppy seeds(Posto) + 3-4 hot Green Chilli in less than 1/2 cup of water for 30-60 minutes
Grind the above with little salt to make a thick mustard paste or shorshe bata Note: Some of my friends do not use Posto or Poppy seeds for the paste. Instead they add a little grated coconut.

In a bowl add the above mustard paste + 1 heaped tsp Yogurt + 2 tsp Mustard Oil + 1/4 tsp Turmeric powder + 1/4 tsp Red Chili Powder(optional) + salt to taste. Mix well. This is the mustard sauce you will use for the fish. Quick Tip: If you have a bottle of Kasundi, add 1-2 tsp of Kasundi to the mustard paste that you have made. This lends an awesome taste.

Step 2: The Fish

Wash and clean 5-6 pieces of Hilsa/Ilish cut in steak size pieces.

Step 3: Bringing it together 2 ways

Way 1 -- In the oven

Smear an oven safe bowl with little mustard oil. Place the fish pieces in the bowl in one single layer. Pour the prepared mustard sauce over it so that it covers all the fish pieces nicely. Add 3- 4 slit green chili on the top and drizzle 1 tsp or more of Mustard Oil on them

Cover the bowl with an aluminum foil. Put this bowl in a bigger tray with 2" of water like a water bath. Bake at 375F bake for 25-30 minutes

Serve hot with rice. Does not taste that great if stored and served later.

Way 2 -- In the pressure cooker

Smear an pressure cooker safe bowl with little mustard oil. Place the fish pieces in the bowl in one single layer. Pour the prepared mustard paste or sauce over it so that it covers all the fish pieces nicely. Add 4 slit green chili on the top and 1 tsp or more of Mustard Oil on them

Cook in pressure cooker for 2-3 whistles. Here is a pressure cooker version.

Note on making Mustard Paste: When I didn’t have a small wet grinder to make my mustard paste I used to dry grind the seeds in my coffee grinder and then mix the dry powder with a little vinegar, salt, and green chillies and keep for an hour or so to prevent the bitterness. My current wet grinder(Magic Bullet) serves the purpose much better and makes a nice smooth paste with green chillies, and salt

Quick Tip: If you have a bottle of Kasundi, add 1-2 tsp of Kasundi to the mustard paste that you have made. This lends an awesome taste



Trivia: Hilsa is an oily fish rich in Omega 3 fatty acids