Taro Stolon with Prawns (Chingri die Kochur Loti)

What I used:
150 grams of Prawns
200 gram of Taro Stolon (kochut Loti)
4 green chilis (slit)
1 small size onion (chopped)
1/2 tsp of garlic paste
1/2 tsp of ginger paste
Turmeric Powder
Cumin powder
Mustard oil for frying the shrimps and cooking
Sale to taste

How I cooked:
1. Clean the Prawns.
2. Heat oil in a frying pan and fry those prawns until golden brown. Keep them aside.
3. Remove the taro skin and take out the stem. Cut them 2 inch long pieces.
4. Boil them for 10 minutes. You can add tamarind paste to the boiling water. Take the stems out of the water. Keep the water aside.
5. Heat oil in the same frying pan. Add onion, garlic, ginger, turmeric powder, salt and green chilli. Stir for 2-3 minutes.
6. Add taro stem and keep stirring in medium heat until you add the prawns.
7. After 3-5 minutes, add prawns. And let it be cooked for few minutes. But don't forget to stir.
8. Water will be coming out from the taro stem. Stop stirring if you find the water dries up.
9. Add tamarind water which you kept aside when you started cooking.
10. Let the curry be cooked until you find the water again dries up.
11. Your Taro Stolon curry is ready. Serve it with hot rice. 

Nimak Para - Bengali Snack

What I used:
Refined flour - 150 gram
Ghee or clarified butter to make the dough
Carom Seeds
White oil for frying
Water
Salt

How I cooked:
1. Take flour in a bowl and add carom seeds, butter, salt and water and mix well.
2. Make the dough from the flour. Make small balls from the dough.
3. Drizzle few drop of oil on a flat surface which is specially used for rolling. Roll all the balls by a rolling pin. 4. Roll one ball into round circle. Them fold it from one end. Roll it once again to reduce its thickness. Now it is looking like a half circle. Fold it from one end and roll it again.
5. One triangles of Nimak Para is ready to fried. Make other Triangles following the same process. Make a few pricks on the surface of all Nimak para and set them aside.
6. Heat white oil in a frying pan. Once the oil is hot, reduce the heat. Add those triangles to the oil.
7. Fry them from the both sides until they become golden brown in colour.
8. Drizzle some Amchur Powder from the top.
9. Serve it with tea.
10. You can store it for longer time.

Bell Pepper Salsa

Ingredients I used:

White Oil
Red Bell Pepper
Yellow Bell pepper
Capsicum
Onion
Ginger - Garlic Paste
Tomato
Cumin Powder
Curry Powder
Brown Sugar
Coriander Leaves
Chili Flakes
Vinegar
Salt

Method I followed:

1. Chop onion, bell peppers, capsicum. Make a combined paste of ginger and garlic. 
2. Heat oil in a frying pan. Saute the onion. Then add bell peppers, capsicum. Keep stirring occasionally. 
3. Add ginger-garlic paste. 
4. Add cumin powder, brown sugar, chili flakes, vinegar. 
5. Simmer over medium heat until you get a salsa-like consistency. 
6. Serve with chopped coriander leaves on top.

Arvi ka Bharta

Ingredients I used:

250 gram of Arvi
2 tsbp of gram flour
3 tbsp of white oil
1/2 tsp of Ajwain
1 medium size onion (chopped)
2 green chili (chopped)
2 medium size Tomato (chopped)
2 tsp red chili powder
1/2 tsp of garlic paste
1/2 tsp of ginger paste
2 cloves
2 green cardamom
2 tsp Butter
1 tsp Honey (Optional)
Kasturi Methi
Salt
Lemon Juice
Garam Masala

Method I followed:

1. Peel the arvi and cut into halves. Place all the arvi pieces in a pressure cooker and add some water to boil them up to one whistle. 
2. Remove the pressure cooker from the fire. Take out all the arvi pieces from the water.  Set aside for cooking down. 
3. After 5-7 minutes mash the arvi well.Sprinkle some salt, chili powder and gram flour on mashed arvi. 
4. Now get ready to prepare masala for Bharta. Take tomato, 1 cup of water in skillet and let it be boiled. Add ginger-garlic paste, green chili, red chili powder, clove and cardamom to tomato mixture. keep stir frequently. Once you find sauce consistency of tomato mixture, add butter, honey, salt and kasturi methi. Stir again. 
5. Keep it aside for cooling down. 
6. Now blend the tomato texture in mixer. 
7. heat little oil in the same skillet and add ajwain. Shift the mashed arvi to the skillet and saute in medium heat. 
8. Add tomato mixture to arvi and keep stir until it becomes thick. 
9. Sprinkle lemon juice over the arvi and stirring once again. 
10. Your Arvi ka Bharta is ready. Serve immediately with hot rice.  

For other Arvi recipes click here. 

Mango Chutney on Crackers

Ingredients I used: ( For 8 crackers)

1 cup of chopped and peeled mangoes
1.5 cup of finely chopped yellow bell pepper ( substitute : red or green bell pepper)
1 cup water
1 tbsp of brown sugar
1 tsp of vinegar(substitute : lemon juice)
1/2 tsp of grated ginger
1/2 tsp pf minced garlic
2 crushed red pepper
Whipped cream cheese
8 Cream Cracker Biscuit

Method I followed:

1. Take chopped mangoes, chopped bell pepper, ginger, garlic, brown sugar and crushed red pepper in a sauce pan and add vinegar and water (everything except cheese and crackers). Combine them well.
2. Place it on the oven. Let it be cooked for 10 minutes and keep stirring frequently. 
3. Reduce the heat and let it be cooked uncovered. 
4. Remove from the hear and set aside for cooling down for approx. 20 minutes.
5. Mango chutney is ready. Set it inside the refrigerator. 
6. Take it out of the refrigerator the moment you are going to serve.
7. Place cheese on the crackers, then place mango chutney on the top of cheese (as shown on the image). 

For other snack recipes click here. 

Cucumber Pachadi (Raita)

Ingredients I used:

250 gram of white curd
1 cup of cucumber (grated)
1 tbsp oil to fry 
2 tsp curry leaves powder
1/2 tsp cumin seed (Substitute : mustard seed)
2 whole red chilis

Method I followed:

1. Take the curd in a bowl and beat it finely with a fork.
2. Add cucumber and salt to the curd. Mix well.
3. Now add curry powder to the curd. Mix well and set the bowl aside.
4. Heat oil in frying pan. Once the oil is hot add cumin seed and let it splutter. Pour the spluttered seeds only over the curd mixture. 
5. Then add red chilis to the same oil. Roast it and put over the curd mixture.
6. Your pachadi is ready. Set it inside the refrigerator until you serve it. 

Green Beans Stir Fry

Ingredients I used:

250 gram of green beans
1 tbsp of kasturi methi
1 tbsp of coriander leaves
1 tomato (small size)
1 onion (medium size)
1 tsp of each powder (cumin, coriander, chilli, turmeric)
1 tsp crushed garlic
Salt
Oil

Method I followed:

1. Chop beans, onion, tomato and coriander leaves separately and keep them aside apart from others.
2. Take the beans in a steamer pan and add some water. Let them steam for minutes. Make sure you are not overcooking it.
3. Meanwhile prepare the spices. Take onion, garlic, all powder and salt in the grinding bowl. Grind them well. Keep aside.
4. Check the beans if they get tender. Take the beans out of the heat and remove the water. Keep them aside.
5. Heat oil in a skillet. Once oil is hot, add onion paste and fry for few minutes until it gets nice brown colour.
6. Add beans, tomato, kasturi methi, coriander leaves to the onion paste. reduce the heat and keep stir frying for few minutes until the beans get coated with masala.
7. Serve it with hot rice.

Plain Lassy

If there is someone who literally walks the talk about food, it is definitely me. Yes, these days I have been coming a food person in whole - a hardcore foodie. It means delving into every aspect of food - history, chemistry, geography, biology, cultivation, consumption, nutrition, marketing, cooking, garnishing, hygiene, photographing etc. My system never gets into hang when I keep talking about foods.

I am sitting at office when I am writing this post. Surrounded by corporate and tall towers a small (or maybe medium size) dhaba is there... Earlier I used to go there almost every single afternoon with few of my colleagues to have some snacks or juice or something else that suits our respective stomachs... 

Standing in front of that dhaba when my colleagues asked me what I would like to have, I always considered it is a tough ask to get a clean hygienic food there. In this time of the day I always wished if I could carry some cooking ingredients to office and I could make food instantly. 

You may laugh at me hearing that these days I am making food at office too. What can I make at office easily without using fire. The first name came to my mind - Lassy - just a plain lassy... I can make it at office...I can have it in the afternoon..

What ingredients I carry to office: 

1.5 cups of White card (I carry it in large bottle.)
Sugar (I take it from office pantry.)
Salt (it is also available at office pantry.)
1 pinch of black pepper powder (I carry it in a small covered pot.)

How I make it at office:

1. I carry the whipped and blended curd in a bottle.
2. After reaching office I keep it inside the refrigerator. 
3. By 3:30 P.M. I take it out and add 2 tbsp of sugar and salt as per my taste. 
4. Stir in with a spoon constantly. Once the sugar and salt get dissolve into the curd, I keep the bottle in the refrigerator again.
5. After 15 minutes sprinkle a pinch pepper powder on the top.
6. Now it is serving time. 

Yes,...off course I have to serve the lassy to many of my colleagues. They too enjoy this healthy and clean lassy.

Aloo Sadeko

Ingredients required:

3 large size potatoes
1 medium size onion
1 tomato
3-4 garlic cloves
3-4 green chilis
1 tsp of ginger paste
1/2 tsp black salt
1/2 tsp regular salt
1/2 tsp of black pepper
1/2 tsp of fenugreek seeds
1/2 tsp of mustard sauce
1/2 tsp of cumin powder
1/2 coriander powder
1/2 tsp of turmeric powder
1/2 tsp of crushed red chili powder
Few peanuts
Little Mustard oil for frying fenugreek seeds only
Coriander leaves 

Method I followed:

Cut the potatoes in to pieces and peel them.
Take water in a pot and boil the potato pieces. Add little salt to water and let it boil for 20 minutes.
After 20 minute, poke the potato pieces with a fork or tooth pick to check whether it is boiled perfectly or not.
Done? Place the potato in a different pot or bowl. Now let the potatoes cool down for few minutes.
Meanwhile you get with with chopping onion, tomato, green chilis and coriander leaves.
Pour all of them over boiled potatoes.
Add black salt, regular salt and black pepper to the boiled potato. 
Keep the bowl of potatoes inside the fridge. Chill it for 10-20 minutes.
Now dry-roast peanuts in a frying pan. if you wish, you can fry it in oil.
Remove peanut from the pan. Set aside for cooling off.
heat little oil in the same pan. Add fenugreek seeds and fry it until it turns into black. Once they become completely black, remove the pan with fried seeds from oven. But keep the fenugreek seed in the oil for 7-10 minutes.
Make the past of garlic and mix it with ginger paste.
Take out the potato bowl from the fridge.
Add cumin powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, red chili pepper, ginger-garlic paste, mustard sauce to the potato.
Peel off the skin of roasted peanuts and pour over the potatoes.
At last pour oil along with deep fried  fenugreek seed over the potatoes. Now mix all the ingredients with your hand.
Your Aloo Sadeko is ready. You can have it directly. Else it can be served with overnight soaked rice. 

Curry leaves powder - made at home

Ingredients required : 

Handful of fresh curry leaves
Salt

Method I followed :

Wash the curry leaves and keep them in a plate. 
Place that plate in direct sunlight for few minutes for drying. 
Place a frying plan on oven and heat the pan for 2 minutes. 
Add curry leaves. Reduce the heat now. keep dry-roasting for few minutes.
If the leaves become slight brown, take the pan out of the oven. Don't fry the leave for longer time, because it may get burnt. Set the pan with leaves aside for 10 minutes.
Now put the leaves in a processor and add a pinch of salt. Grind to make fine powder. Curry leaves powder is ready.

Bengal Gram Hummus

Mine is a hummus eating family. Yes hummus…we like to it hummus with almost everything like raw vegetables, breads, chip or any crispy snack. I guess you have started thinking that it spikes our blood glucose level every single day. No, it doesn’t, because lentil hummus is low in calories. 

Making hummus at home means, it saves money, you can get any flavor of it, you can have it as much as you want, making it is very easy, your hummus would last in the fridge for longer time in comparison to store bought hummus. That is why hummus became the most essential house staple in my family.

Ingredients required:

½ cup of Bengal gram lentil (chana daal)
3 tomatoes

3 chopped and peeled garlic cloves

2 Dry red chilis

1.5 tsp dry roasted and ground black pepper

Curry leaves / Dhania leaves / Rosemary

Lemon juice

Oil for frying, garnishing

Method I followed:

Heat oil in a frying pan. Add lentil to the hot oil. Roast the lentil until you find brown spot on them. Remove the roasted lentil from the pan and set aside for cooling down.

Add little more oil to the pan. Add garlic and red chili to the oil and let them heat up.

Take another pan and place the tomato halves. Now dry roast them at high heat till the moment the skin of tomato chars and they become mushy. Remove the skin of the tomato carefully.

Add black pepper, curry leaves (or other option mentioned in the ingredient list) and salt to the warm tomato and leave it covered for 10 minutes.

Now take roasted lentil, tomato and lemon juice in a blender bowl and blend it for few minutes or until you get smooth hummus.

If you want to have it with rice, you can make it slightly grainy. Else you can serve it with any crackers, breads, sandwiches. 

Mint flavored Mango Mimosa

Today I will leave you with a refreshing and divine summer drink – Minty Mango Mimosa. 

We are hurtling towards the hottest month of the year. Searing heat is out there right from the early hours of the day. As temperatures sour, it leaves us stressed throughout the day. We all feel like to cool off with refreshing summer drinks at the end of the day. 

A tall glass of mango juice would be wonderful on the lazy evening. You don’t need to step outdoor if you whip up this easy mango Mimosa. 

Required ingredients:

1.5 cup of mango pulp (Remove all solid and fiber from 2 chilled mangoes)
1 cup of chilled water
1 cup of Sprite (I made non-alcoholic version of mimosa. If you wish to have alcoholic mimosa, you can use champagne of same quantity.)
1 tbsp of fresh lime juice
Mint leaves for muddling and garnishing
Ice cubes 

Method I followed: 

1. Muddle mint leaves and lime juice until the leaves get bruised.
2. Take mango pulp in a bowl and add chilled water. Keep stiring in them for 2-3 minutes. Then add bruised mint leaves. Now keep the bowl in refrigerator for at least 1 hour. 
3. Now take the bowl out of the refrigerator and combine Sprite.
4. Divide the mango mixture in serving glasses. 
5. Put some ice cubes and mint leaves on top of each glasses while serving.

Just look at the glasses full of mango nectar, I’m sure you are feeling like grabbing a glass right from the screen. :-)