Ilish Macher Paturi

To make the name simplier - Hilsa wrapped in raw banana leave. Paturi is a type of food that is very famous with bongs. The flavor of mustard with raw banana leaves on steam gives the delicacy its own flavor. Though with the banana leave concept on, it becomes a little messy to make the whole dish, so for an experimental basis i did try without the leave, and tust me it tasted quite good. Almost similat, expect the leave flavor.

Hilsa paturi or ilish macher paturi has emerged as one of the signature dish in the class and is mostly smoked in banana (plantain) leaves. In earlier days when LPG gas has not invaded the kitchen, food was usually prepared on the earthen oven fired with charcoal or fire woods. The boneless hilsa marinated in chili-mustard paste or with curd used to be wrapped in gourd, pumpkin or banana leaves and was put in freshly steamed rice container. As the steam was still trapped inside the rice vessel so it uses that to steam the hilsa. This we cannot achieve in the gas stove because of the difference in the temperature.

Before jumping into this fish funda, i was a total veggy, so never liked fish and Ilish was strict no-no for me, the smell of hilsa fry always kept me away from eating it .Things started to change a little later, when you know you have to have fish. Anyhow,this recipe was grabbed by me from my mom-in-law. You just have to tell her that you want to have a paturi, she will make paturi out of anything, be Kochu (Taro) or chingri (prawn), she has it in her kitty. On the contrary my mom wasnt very keen with the paturi process.

What You Need

• Hilsa fish – 500 g
• Yellow mustard seeds – 25 g
• Black mustard seeds – 25 g
• Green chillies – 2
• Salt to taste
• Sugar – 1 teaspoon
• Turmeric- 1 teaspoon
• Mustard oil – ½ cup
• Banana leaves
• Cotton thread

How I Do It

With Banana leaf:

• Cut the hilsa into six steaks.
• Make a paste of the yellow and black mustard seeds with the green chillies , salt and sugar.
• Mix the paste with the turmeric and mustard oil.
• Lightly salt the fish. Cover with mustard paste evenly.
• Cut the banana leaves into 12 rectangles and place them in six crosses.
• Place a piece of the fish in the centre of each cross and tie up into envelops.
• Place on a dish and cook in pre – heated oven at 180 * C for 15 – 20 minutes . Alternately, you can use a pressure cooker( pressure cook for 15 – 20 minutes on a slow heat ). Remove from oven / pressure cooker and serve with rice.

Without Banana leaf:

• Cut the hilsa into six steaks.
• Make a paste of the yellow and black mustard seeds with the green chillies , salt and sugar.
• Heat oil in a Kadai.
• When the oil in hot, add green chilli.
• Then add the masala paste, and saute till the oil comes up.
• Add the fish and cover the kadai, putting on low heat.
• after 20-25 mins remove the lid, to find the hilsa done covered with the masala.
• Server with hot rice.

Sukto- The Bengali starter

A traditional Bengali meal usually consists of five to six courses, starting off with something bitter and ending with a sweet dessert. Dal–bhaja, a vegetable, fish and chutney find their way in between and are served as well as eaten in that order. I think the six courses were to give importance to the six basic tastes or rasas. The first course which is bitter can be a dry preparation of Uchche (bitter gourd), fried neem leaves, neem-begun or the culinary epitome of bangla cuisine the Shukto.

With the summer on, sukto is a must at every bengali home. As my mom used to say, it keeps the body away fom all diseases, and hence keeps you healthy. Shukto is a mix of vegetables with an emphasis to the bitterness, a preparation where instead of hiding the bitterness , it is the taste around which the dish evolves. The bitter taste is said to be good for cleansing the palate and also for letting the digestive juices flow and so no doubt it is a good start off to the meal to follow.

Shukto is also a culinary experience for whoever eats it and a culinary achievement for whoever cooks it. In fact a Bengali cook is judged by his or her shukto preparation. Though I don't understand what's so diificult about cooking it, but that might be because I haven't reached the desired culinary height of tasting and neither has my Shukto been dissected and analysed by the Shukto patrol. My shukto doesn't turn out as good as my Ma's or my Ma-in-law's but then that's natural, that's what Mothers are for.

All said and done I am not a big shukto fan though my husband is and thinking of all the goodness that comes out of eating it, we do have occasional Shukto weekends.

Before going into the recipe I would briefly describe the medley of veggies that go into this dish. Lots of veggies to be chopped so be sure to get your bitter (uh-oh better) half to chop them up.

What you Need

• Uchche or Bitter Gourd – 1 chopped
• Jhinge or Ridge Gourd – 1 chopped
• Begun or Brinjal – 1 chopped
• KanchaKola or Raw Cooking Banana – 1 chopped
• String Benas – 10 chopped
• Potato – 1 chopped
• Vadi (nuggets made of ground lentil and later dried )~ 10/15 small ones (Optional)
• For Phoron or Tempering
• Methi or Fenugreek seeds – 1 tsp
• Tejpata or Bay Leaves -- 4
• Hing or Asafoetida Powder – a pinch
• For Paste
• Mustard seeds ~ 2tbsp soaked in water.
• Poppy Seeds ~ 1 tbsp soaked in water
• I always make the above paste and keep it in the fridge for later use during the week so I use more. Often the grinder is such that it is difficult to make a fine paste with little amount.
• Ginger Paste ~ fresh grated ginger about 1 tbsp
• Milk – 1/3 cup
• Salt
• Ghee

How I Do It

• Chop the vegetables as shown in the picture. Try to cut them in the shape as in the pic.
• Wet grind the mustard seeds and poppy seeds to a fine paste. While grinding put a little salt. If you are using a dry grinder make a paste of the dry ground mustard powder in a little vinegar and salt, this is because dry grinding sometimes makes the mustard taste bitter.
• Saute the vegetables, bitter gourd being the last, lightly and keep aside
• Fry the vadi till they are brown and crispy
• Heat 2 tbsp of ghee in a Kadai/Frying Pan
• Add the methi (fenugreek) seed, tejpata (bay leaves) and the hing (asafoetida powder)
• When they start sputtering and you get the smell of hing rising add the veggies.
• Add about 1 1/2 to 2 tbsp of the mustard & poppy seeds paste.
• Add the Ginger paste
• Mix well, add salt add water and 1/3 cup of milk. Enough water to cook the vegetables, this dish is not gravy based so don't add too much water.
• Cover and cook till the veggies are cooked and there is very little water.
• Once the vegetables are almost done add a little suagr.
• Add the fried vadis at the end.

Note: If you wish to make it a gravy, then you can add a little water. it does taste good with a little moist in it.

Have this with white rice and remember to start off your lunch with this.

Kumro-Chingri Botti

Pumpkin is a much loved vegetable in Bengal, and there are a variety of dishes with equally unique names made with this unassuming plump orange vegetable. We have Kumro’r Chakka (a dish made with potatoes, parwal, Pumpkin and chana), Kumro’r chechki ( pumpkin cooked with hing & methi), Kumro’r por bhaja(pumpkin slices fried in batter), Kumro in chachari(mixed vegetable with pumpkin) and even Kumro bhaate (plain boiled pumpkin, mashed and mixed with little mustard oil ). Kumro ful or flowers of the pumpkin plant are also fried in a batter and is a delicacy.

Today I made Kumro-Chingri Botti, just because I loved its sound on my tongue and also because I love shrimp. This is a dish which is generally made by the Bangals (people and culture originating from east Bengal now a separete country Bangladesh), so my Ma-in-law makes and is something that was never cooked by my Ma. My Ma who is a Ghoti(Bengalis originally from West Bengal) always makes Pumpkin in a strict vegetarian fashion with no onions or any other non-veg distractions.

What You Need

• Pumpkin ~ I used 2 slices like the ones shown
• Shrimp ~ I used medium sized frozen cooked shrimps
• Onion ~ ½ small chopped
• Green Chillies ~ 5/6 slit
• PanchPuran ~ a five spice mixture
• Turmeric Powder
• Salt

How I Do It

1. Peel the hard skin of the pumpkin and cut in small cubes.
2. Thaw the shrimp if you are using frozen and mix with little turmeric and salt. For fresh shrimp, buy the small ones, remove the shell, devein and mix with turmeric & salt.
3. Lightly fry the shrimp.
4. Heat oil in a Kadai/Frying pan.
5. Temper with panchpuran and green chilies or in the Bong way use panchpuran & green chillies for phoran.
6. When the spices start crackling, add the chopped onions.
7. Saute till they are brown and then add the cubed pumpkin.
8. Add a little turmeric powder and continue frying.
9. Add a little water and cook covered. Intermittently remove the lid & stir to make sure the pumpkins are not getting burned and are getting cooked uniformly.
10. When the pumpkin turns a little soft, add the shrimp, a little salt and continue cooking.
11. The pumpkins should turn nice and soft and a little mushy, as in the picture.
12. Serve hot with chapatti, paratha or luchi, Also goes well with white rice.

Enjoy the dish...

Rohu Macher Kalia

Bengalis being pretty fishy folks (pun intended) have thought of hazaar permutation & combination of cooking fish. Today I thought of making Fish Kalia for dinner. This is a gravy based dish usually made with fish like Rui(Rohu) or Katla, it is not very rich but sufficiently spicy. This is appropriate for both lunch and dinner and is also popular as a dish that a Bengali family would serve their guests on special occasions. I made this with Rohu this time and it was really very tasty.

Ok, an apology is due here, as I do not cook by measure, & I kind of throw in ingredients according to andaaz, so feel free to innovate. I will try to be more specific with my measurments while I cook now.

What You Need

• 2 mid size Rohu ~ cut into 4 steak like pieces (didn’t use the fish head)
• Potatoes ~ 2 , each cut into 4 halves
• Tomatoes ~ 1 medium
• Onions ~ 1 medium/half of the big ones, grind to a paste
• Ginger ~ freshly grated around 1tbsp
• Garlic ~ 2 flakes grind along with onion
• Green Chillies ~ 4/5
• Corriander leaves
• Turmeric Powder
• Jeera(Cumin) Powder
• Dhania(Corriander) Powder
• TejPata(Bay Leaves) ~ 2
• Elaichi(Cardamom) ~ 4/5
• Whole Jeera (Cumin seeds)
• Yogurt ~ around 2/3 tbsp
• Salt

How I Do It

1. Wash the fish pieces in warm water, pat dry & and mix them with a teaspoon of turmeric powder and salt.
2. Chop tomatoes in small pieces
3. Grind onion and garlic to a paste
4. Chop the potatoes, each in 4 halves
5. Fry the fish in hot oil till it turns golden on both sides, kind of deep fry.
6. Heat oil in Kadai/Frying Pan.
7. Temper with TejPata (Bay Leaves), Elaichi (Cardamom) and whole Jeera (Cumin seeds)
8. As soon as they start sputtering add the onion & garlic paste.
9. Add a little sugar while frying as it adds a brown color (due to carmelization)
10. When the onion has turned reddish brown add the chopped tomatoes
11. Saute till they become a fine pulp.
12. Add the potatoes and continue frying
13. Mix the Jeera Powder, Dhania Powder and the grated ginger with yogurt(instead of water) to make a paste and add this masala.
14. Add a pinch of turmeric powder and water. You don’t want this gravy to be very watery so add water with caution.
15. When the gravy comes to a boil and the potatoes are almost done(not fully boiled yet) add the fish pieces.
16. Add salt.
17. Cook for a few more minutes till the potatoes are cooked and you are done.
18. Garnish with fresh coriander leaves. The gravy is best enjoyed with white rice.

SoyBean Sprouts diye Mochar Ghonto

For the uninitiated that's a Vegetable dish with SoyBean Sprouts and Potato. Ok so every person on the face of this earth , know why soy bean is good for you, that it contains plenty of vitamins and blah, blah, blah.

What many don't know is, Mocha(ch pronounced as in charm and not as in choir) or Banana Blossom/Banana Flower is deep purplish-crimson-coloured and is used as a vegetable from South East Asia. Mocha holds a much esteemed position in Bengali Vegetarian cooking, and though the mocha preparation is delicious, the act of peeling the outer bracts and extracting the inner flowers is a pretty tedious job according to me. I have never attempted it but watched my Ma, Dida go through the process.

Some pretty brilliant person had this idea to make mochar ghanto using SoyBean Sprouts. I on my part, learnt it from a friend, and found it tastes pretty well, is easy to prepare and also a pretty healthy dish. Even my epicurean hubby, who being a Bangal(ancestors going back to East Bengal now Bangladesh), is more tuned to the finer points of these delicacies, agreed that it comes pretty close.

What You Need

SoyBean Sprouts (fresh Soy Bean sprouts) ~ 1/2 or 3/4 lb

2 medium sized Potatoes

2/3 Green Chillies

Grated Coconut ~ fresh

Ginger Paste ~ 1tbsp

Jeera/Cumin Seeds

Tej Pata/Bay Leaves

Red Chilli Powder (Optional)

Jeera Powder

Turmeric Powder

Garam Masala Powder

How I do it

1. Chop the Bean Sprouts in small pieces, you can use your blender to chop them, if you don’t have the patience. Don’t make a paste though, just chop.
2. Cut potato in cubes.
3. Heat oil in Kadai/Frying Pan.
4. Add the whole Jeera/Cumin seeds and Tej Pata/Bay Leaves, wait till they sputter.
5. Add the potato cubes in the oil with a pinch of haldi/turmeric powder.
6. Saute the potato lightly till they develop a golden tinge. Do not over or deep fry them.
7. Add the ginger paste.
8. Add Jeera Powder, chopped green chillies and red chilli powder.
9. Sprinkle water as needed and fry till the masala is cooked, you see the oil separate from the masala.
10. Add the chopped bean sprouts.
11. Continue cooking/frying in medium heat till the masala has mixed nicely with the sprouts.
12. Add salt and sugar. At this point if you find the sprouts a little pungent in taste, add sugar/splenda to overcome that add a little water, cover and cook till the Potatoes & Sprouts are done and the water has dried up.
13. Add grated coconut, garam masala powder and mix well.
14. Add a dollop of ghee to get the authentic taste.
15. I like to have this dish with white rice, but it would go well with roti too.

Now, your dish is ready to be served.

Alu Posto and Biu'lir dal

Loosely translated that’s Potato in Poppy Seeds and Urad/Kalai (like my ma used to call) Soup for Lunch. Ok, that’s it, I would rather have my Alu Posto than this tough sounding dish. Having the legacy of Birbhum (my hometown),its the combination that people of this place can live their entire life on, no doubt i too love it.

Posto or Poppy-Seeds or KhasKhas is a popular ingredient for several dishes in Bengal, particularly in the districts of Bankura, Birbhum etc. I don’t know whether I loved it because it “induces euphoria and sleep” but I tell you it’s yummm and if you doze off to sleep after the above lunch that’s bliss too.

What You need

For Posto:

Potato chopped in cubes ~ 3 medium sized potatoes, peeled and cubed

Poppy seeds (Khaskhas/Posto) ~ 5-6 heaped tbsp of the Poppy seeds paste or posto bata

Green Chillies – 2/3

Dry Red Chillies ~ 2 (optional)

Whole Jeera (Cumin seeds) ~ 3/4 tsp loosely packed

Salt

Turmeric Powder

Sugar ~ 1/2 tsp or none according to taste

Oil ~ for Cooking

Mustard Oil ~ a dash i.e. about 1 tsp of mustard oil to sprinkle on the top

For Dal:

Urad Dal

Finely Chopped Onions

Fresh Coriander Leaves

Chopped Tomatoes

Green Chillies

Kalo Jeera/Kalonji

How I do it

Grind the posto/poppy seeds to a fine powder. I use the coffee grinder which can be used to dry grind only. So afterwards I mix it with water to make a paste. The consistency of the paste should not be too watery. If you are wet grinding make a paste at one go.

Cut the potato in cubes and soak in water , else they develop black spots.

Chop or slit the green chillies.

Heat oil in a Kadai/Pan

Add the whole Jeera/Cumin seeds and wait till they sputter. You can add 2-3 dry red chillies too.

Add the potato cubes in the oil with a pinch of haldi/turmeric powder.

Saute the potato lightly till they develop a golden tinge. Do not over or deep fry them.

Add the posto/poppy seeds paste.

Cook on medium heat till the paste has uniformly coated the potatoes.

Add little water (around 3/4 cup), adequate salt, and the chopped green chillies.

You can sprinkle very little sugar if you want.

Cover and cook till the potatoes are done. Also I make it dry so I wait for the water to dry up.

At this point you can add about 1 tsp of mustard oil and stir well before you remove from heat. Take care that the potatoes don't get mashed up though.

For dal:

Pressure Cook the Urad Dal with a pinch of turmeric

Heat oil and add the phoron, or as we say temper with Kalo jeera/Kalonji

Add the finely chopped onions and fry till they turn pink in color. Add slit or chopped green chillies

Add the chopped tomatoes and cook till they become a fine pulp

Add the previously cooked dal and mix well.

Add salt, little sugar and water.

Cook till you hear a nice bubbling sound. Remember to stir infrequently during this process.

Also continue cook till the thickness of the dal is according to your liking

Garnish with chopped coriander leaves.

The alu posto and Urad dal go very well with plain white rice.

Welcome to Bong Foodies!!!

Born in Bihar,spend the childhood in Delhi(7 full years),got to know the people in Bangladesh (3 years), and then spending the rest of the life in West Bengal.In a Bengali household I learnt one thing, Bengalis love to eat, feed others and cook (at least Bong women do). Of all the places, i found its only in Bengali culture to give a treat where u will have the pleasure to have all different types of non-veg, vegetables, bhajiaya, dals and of course sweet (we just cant live without that).

They love to eat and are maven in this matter, is proved by the fact that Kolkata is proliferating with all The Madras Tiffins, the Punjabi Dhabas, the Tibetan Delights, the Chinese Chow Chow and the italian sizzlers. No where else in India will you see such a fare. All other regions mostly are focused and stick to their cuisine but Kolkata has it all.

So growing up amongst this foodie state, it’s natural that I love to eat and to make my food dreams into reality. I get he ultimate solace in cooking, the comfort of the spices sputtering in the oil, the zephyr of the jeera & tejpata as they turn brown and the rich yellow of my turmeric gives me peace and makes me calm.

I start this blog as an acknowledgement to my Ma(anything dat u made,used to make my day),Thakuma(love her doi mach),Dida(what luvly macher tok u make),Monima (i miss ur Chilli Chicken) mom-in-law (can vouch on anything for ur dim narkel) and all the mashis-pishis, kakimas-jethimas who fed me well, fed me good all my years. This will be a humble collection of Bengali recipes and the food I cook representing Bengali Cuisine as I know it.

I want to pass on my legacy of Bengali food to everyone,who is a foodie by nature and a cook by passion through the smell and taste of Bangla cuisine.

This is also for all non-Bongs, to try out and sample the nuances of Bengali Cooking.

Many of my recipes might not be authentic bangla cuisine, as they have my experiments and innovations thrown in, but do go ahead and give them a try, and even u can continue your experiments on them and let me know. So welcome to my blog and have a feast...