Shorshe Begun (Eggplant in Mustard Sauce)

Lau Bishori (Milky Bottle Gourd Curry)

Ingredients for Lau Bishori:

Lau - 250 gm 
Potato - 250 gm
Milk - 250 ml
Nigella Seeds - 1 tsp
Nigella Powder - 2 tbsp
Ginger Paste - 1 tbsp
Green Chili - 4-5 nos
Ghee - 1 tbsp
Mustard Oil - 2 tbsp
Salt as per taste
Enough Water 

For flavour: 
1 tsp Garam Masala Powder / 2 tbsp Lemon Juice / 2 Lime Leaves 

Process for cooking Lau Bishori:

1. Peel the Lau and Potato, and cut them into cubes. 
2. Pour oil into a cooking pan. Once it is hot, add Nigella Seeds. Wait till it releases its aroma. Add Green Chilis. Now add Lau Cubes and them Potatoes. Stir well for 5-7 minutes.
3. Add Ginger Paste and mix well with Potato+Lau cubes. Then add Salt. Mix well. 
4. Add enough water to cover Potato+Lau cubes. Cover it with a lid. Let it boil for 10 minutes -  till the water gets dried up. 
5. Meanwhile boil Milk. Add Nigella Powder to the boiled Milk. Mix well. 
6. Pour this milk to the pan. Fold well. Let it boil once again and adjust the Salt. Cook for few more minutes to have a thick gravy. In the meantime add Ghee and any of the flavour mentioned above. Mix well. Turn off the heat. Set the pan covered with the lid until you serve.   

Lau Bishori is ready. You can have it with steamed Rice. 

Koi Maach'r Paturi (Steamed Koi Fish)

Ingredients for Koi Maach'r Paturi:

Koi Fish - 4 Nos.
Mustard Oil 
Mustard Seed - 3 tbsp
Rice - 2 cups
Pumpkin Leaves - 3
Onion Slices - 1 cup
Green Chili - 4-5 Nos.
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
Salt
Water

Process for cooking Koi Maach'r Paturi:

1. Soak Mustard Seeds in water for 30 minutes.
2. Meanwhile wash the fishes, Pumpkin leaves and Rice separately. Set them aside.
3. Take Mustard seed in a grinding bowl and add Turmeric Powder, Salt and Green Chili to it and grind them together. You need to make a fine paste. 
4. Mix Onion slices with the Paste. Coat the fishes with Mustard Paste. Pour few drops of Mustard Oil. Wrap each fish with pumpkin Leaves tightly. You can use a cotton thread to wrap the fish.
5. Now keep Rice in a deep bottom frying pan. Add 3.5 cups of Water to the rice. Once it starts boiling, the water level will be reduced. Now place the wrapped Fishes on the top of the rice. Cover the pan with a lid. Medium heat is required now. 
6. Turn off the heat. Koi Paturi is ready. 

Have you noticed, the rice has got yellow colour? You can serve Koi Paturi with that rice. Don't throw away the Pumpkin Leaves. You can grind it with 1 Green Chili and little Salt. 

Lau Chingri (Bottle Gourd Curry with Prawns)

Ingredients foe Lau Chingri:

Grated Lau (Bottle Gourd) - 2 cups
Prawns - 20 pieces
Turmeric Powder - 1/4 tsp
Salt - pinch for frying the Prawns and later to mix in the curry as per you taste 
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Ginger Paste - 2 tbsp
Green Chilis - 4-5 Nos
Mustard Oil for cooking

Process for cooking Lau Chingri:

1. Grate the Bottle Gourd very well with a slicer.

2. Wash the prawns and marinate it with turmeric powder salt.

3. Heat oil in a cooking pan. Fry the prawns till it turns golden brown and keep it aside.

4. Add cumin seed to the hot oil. Add turmeric powder, ginger paste, cut green chilies and salt; stir for 1-2 minutes. Add grated bottle gourd.

5. Cover the pan with a lid for 5-6 minutes and remove the cover. Stir it well and cover it and let it cook for 4-5 minutes more.

6. Remove the lid, add the fried prawns and mix it well. Allow it to cook till the excess water is gone. Add salt to taste. Mix it very well and turn off the heat. 

Chana'r Jilipi - a Bengali dessert

Another lovely sweetly festival (Bengali New Year) is just round the corner. And you know, the celebration is not afar. The actual celebration will start from 14^th April. I prefer to celebrate such moments with something that is made at home.

When I make food that helps me recall by-gone-days, even build some memories. Today’s takeaway generation has lost much of that.  It doesn't really leave much room for remembrance, do they? I try to collect the recipes from old cookbooks, Ma’s diary, faded handwritten notes scribbled by grandma – perhaps now ready to slip away. That is how some of the nostalgia survives.

Today’s Chana’r Jilipi Recipe I am sharing with you, was made by Grand Ma. 

Ingredients for making Chana'r Jilipi: (for 10-12 pieces)

For Jilipi:
Homemade Cottage Cheese / Casein (fresh made): 1 cup
Khoya Kheer / Mewa: 1 cup
Suji / Semolina: 2 tbsp
Refined Flour: 2 1/2 tbsp 
Baking Powder: a pinch
Melted Butter to mix Refined Flour
Green Cardamom Powder - 1/2 tsp 
White Oil for frying

For Syrup: 
Water - 3 cup 
Sugar - 6 cup 
Green Cardamom - 5-6

Method for making Chana'r Jilipi: 

1. Soak Semolina in 4 tbsp of warm water for 15 minutes.
2. Take Casein, Mewa in a mixing bowl. 
3. Melt Butter in a pan. Add Refined Flour. Mix well. Add this to Casein Mix.
4. Add soaked Semolina to Casein Mix. Add Cardamom Powder. 
5. Knead well. Make a smooth dough. 
6. Divide the dough in small equal size balls. Roll each balls in long strips. Give them coil shape like Jilipi. Leave them aside for 5-7 minutes. 
7. Meanwhile you can make Sugar Syrup. Take all ingredients (except green cardamom) in a deep-bottom aluminium pan. Wait till Sugar dissolves in the water. Add Green Cardamom. Stir well. Boil the Syrup till it gets 1-string* consistency. 

[1 String consistency* : Place one drop of syrup in between your thumb and forefinger. To taste the consistency you have to pull apart them gently. If only one thin thread is formed, it indicates that you have got 1-String consistency.]

7. Heat oil in a frying Pan. Fry those coil shaped Jilipi in medium hot oil until they become dark brown, but not too dark. 
8. Dip them into Sugar Syrup. Keep them in the Syrup for at least 3-4 hours. It will soak the syrup. 

Koi Fish Do Peyanja

Ingredients to cook Koi Fish Do Peyanja:

Koi Fish - 4 nos

Finely chopped Onion - 1 cup

Onion Paste - 1 tbsp

Garlic Paste - 1 tsp

Ginger Paste - 1 tsp

Cumin Seed Paste - 2 tsp

Coriander Powder - 1 tsp

Turmeric Powder - 1 pinch

Red Chili Powder - 1 tsp

Green Chili - 4-5 nos.

Finely chopped Tomato - 1 cup

Oil - 3 tbsp

Water as per your gravy need

Salt - as per your taste

Process to cook ingredients for Koi Fish Do Peyanja:

1. Heat oil in a cooking pan. Add chopped Onion and stir till it gets golden brown colour. Then add Ginger and Garlic paste. Cook for 1 minute. Then add Onion Paste and stir for 2-3 minutes. 
2. Add Cumin Powder, Coriander Powder, Turmeric Powder and Red Chili Powder. Add 2 tbsp of water. Cook for 2-3 minutes, 
3. Now add Green Chilis, chopped Tomatoes and Salt. Stir until it releases water. 
4. Add fishes. Stir until the spices coats the fishes. Now add water. Cook till water gets dried and you will notice oil on top. Add 2-3 green Chilis. Fold once. Turn off the heat. 

Serve Koi Fish Do-Peyanja with hot steamed Rice. 

Rabdi Sandesh

Ingredients to make Rabdi Sandesh:

1 cup Chhana (Homemade cottage cheese)

6 cups full cream milk

1/4 cup + 2 tbsp. sugar

2-3 pods of green cardamom

1/2 tsp. ghee for greasing

Few Cardamom for garnishing

Process to make Rabdi Sandesh:

1. For making homemade cottage cheese or chhana take 5 cups of milk in a heavy bottom pan. Bring it to a boil on high heat. When the milk starts boiling reduce the heat and add vinegar or lime juice to it. As soon as the milk curdles turn off the heat and stir it well.

2. Line a strainer with cheese cloth and pour the curdled milk over it. Wash chhana with running cold water to wash off any residual acidity. Bring the sides of the cheese cloth together and squeeze it to drain the excess water. Don’t drain it too hard.

3. Take chhana in a flat tray and knead it with the heel of your palm. Add 2 tbsp. of sugar and crushed cardamom seeds. The chhana mixture should be moist. If you feel its not moist enough add few drops of milk to it.

4. Grease a steel Tiffin box with ghee and spread the chhana evenly. Pour half cup water in the cooker and carefully place the closed tiffin box inside it. The water level should cover 1/3 of the height of the tiffin box. Cook it on medium heat without the pressure-weight for 15 minutes.

5. Allow the tiffin box to cool down completely. Remove the cover and place a plate upside down on top of the open tiffin box. Turn it over. Now your Sandesh is ready. Cut it into squares.

6. In a heavy bottom pan take milk and cook it on medium heat till the color changes to one shade darker of its original one. Don’t forget to stir it continuously. By this time it will be reduced to its half. Add 1/4 cup of sugar and freshly crushed cardamom seeds. Stir well.

Add steamed chhana cubes and turn off the heat. Let it stand for couple of hours before you serve.

Mangsher Ghugni (Dried Yellow peas cooked with meat)

Ingredients for Mangser Ghugni:

Yellow Peas (Dried White Peas) - 1.5 cup
Chicken pieces - 1 cup (I prefer to use 1 inch long pieces  - both boneless and with bones. I cut the big size pieces with a kitchen scissor.)
Potato pieces - 1 cup 
Green Cardamom - 3-4
Cinnamon - 3 (1 inch long each)
Cloves - 3-4
Bay Leaf - 2 medium size
Onion - 2 (thinly sliced)
Garlic - 1.5 tbsp (I prefer to make paste.)
Ginger - 1.5 tbsp (I prefer paste form.)
Turmeric Powder - 1/2 tsp
Red Chili Powder - 2 tsp
Cumin Powder - 1/2 tsp
Coriander Powder - 1/2 tsp
Tomato cubes - 1 cup 
Salt to taste
Oil for cooking
Chicken stock 

For garnishing: 
Lemon Juice - 1 (whole)
Garam Masala Powder - 1/4 tsp 
Finely chopped Green Chili 
Finely chopped Onion 
Finely chopped Coriander Powder (Optional)

Method for Mangser Ghugni:

1. Soak Yellow Peas in water overnight or at least 7-8 hours. 
2. Drain the water. Place it in a pressure cooker. Add fresh water. Boil till to 2 whistle. 
3. Boil the potatoes following the same way.
3. Now you have to boil the chicken pieces in the pressure cooker till 3 whistle. Don't throw away the stock. It will be used later to make the curry. 
4. Heat oil in a pan. Add Green Cardamom, Cinnamon, Cloves and Bay Leaf. Wait till it releases nice aroma. 
5. Add onion. Fry till it becomes soft. 
6. Add Ginger paste, then Garlic paste. Fry till its raw smell goes off. 
7. Now take Turmeric Powder, Red Chili Powder, Cumin Powder, Coriander Powder in bowl. add little water and make a paste. Add it to the fried curry. Mix well. 
8. After 2 minutes, add Tomato. Spread little salt over it. Mix well together. 
9. Now add Chicken Pieces. Cook till it releases oil. 
10. Add Yellow Peas. Mix well. 
11. Now add Chicken stock. Cover the pan with a lid. Allow it to be cooked for few minutes. Check the seasoning. 
12. Now sprinkle Garam Masala Powder. Turn off the heat. Set the pan aside for 10 minutes. 

Your Chicken Ghugni is ready. For Garnishing, spread chopped Onion, Green Chili and Coriander Powder. Now squeeze a whole lemon on top. In place of lemon juice you can use tamarind water.