A quick papdi or shim(sheem) chorchori

Writing after a long long time....hope everyone is keeping well.

As winters set in here we have the delectable vegetable known as papdi or flat beans or sheem as we call it in Bengali.

So I decided to make a quick mustard based side dish.

For sheem chorchori you will need:

200 gms flat beans ( remove the side strings)
Bit of turmeric
Pinch of methi seeds
Salt to taste
Mustard paste 1 tbsp *
Tomato 1 cut in big chunks
Green chilli -2 slit
Red chilli powder 0.5 tsp
Sugar (optional) pinch

To make the mustard paste:

Soak 3 tbsp of yellow mustard in water with little salt and 2 -3 raw rice for 15 min.
After 15 min drain the water and make a fine paste of the mustard with 1 green chilli.
If it is too dry you can add few teaspoons of water.

Now to the main recipe:

Heat 2 tbsp of mustard oil and throw in the methi seeds. As the seeds turn reddish put the beans in the pan and fry it covered for two to three minutes.

Now add salt,turmeric,sugar and red chilli powder and fry for another 3 minutes.

After that add 1 tbsp of the mustard paste and slit 2 green chilli. Fry for another 2 min .At this point you can add 2 tsp of water if you want some moisture. I didn't add any water.

After 2 min add the tomatoes and cover and cook till tomatoes become mushy and leaves oil. And you are done.Serve with steam rice.

A fusion Indo Thai Gravy

After a long long time am back ...

This dish is an Indo Thai egg masala as I would term it... And its an invention of one of those days when you have quite few ingredients on their finishing line and also you dont want to cut veggies.

I had yogurt, coriander leaves and red curry paste at my disposal and I came up with this. This dish gives a very distinctive Indian flavor with the hint of Thai spices and freshness of coriander.

Hope you like it.

Ingredients:

To make a paste :

Coriander leaves - 1 to 2 bunch
Garlic cloves (fat ones) - 3 to 4
Lime (small) : 1
Olive oil : 1 tbsp
Salt as per taste
Green chilli : 1 to 2 (as per taste) I used one jalapeno (Again one single standing in my refrigerator)
Water - 1/4 cup

For the curry :

Onion (big) - 1 sliced
Tomato - 1 sliced
Red curry paste(store bought) - 2 tbsp
Yogurt (plain flavor) - 3 heaped tbsp beaten
Red chilli powder as per taste (I used 2 tsp heaped) and I use Kashmiri Red Chilli powder.
Oil - 2 tbsp

Procedure :

1. Make a paste with all the ingredients for paste in a food processor. I made it runny with the addition of water.

2. Heat oil and saute onions and tomatoes till they leave oil.

3. Add in the thai red curry paste and saute for 2 min on low flame.

4. Add the coriander paste and saute for another 2 min. Check for seasoning. If you want it hot add the red chilli powder here.

5. Reduce flame to low and add yogurt  and simmer till oil is released.

This curry can be served with paneer or egg (shallow fried with turmeric, salt and redchilli powder)

A quick Coriander dish

Hello Everyone,

Yesterday I was craving  for a forgotten recipe....Dhone patar bata or coriander leaves paste....this is a quintessential Bengali winter dish which my mom prepared every winter...though in this age of supermarkets everything is available at every season.....u can relish this any time of the year. This is a no fuss recipe and requires very little time and ingredients. So here goes the recipe:

Ingredients

1. Coriander leaves - 1-2 bunch ( make a paste preferably without water)

2. Turmeric powder - 1/4 tsp or a pinch.

3. Green Chilly - 1 or more slit ( according to the hotness you require)

4. Garlic cloves - 2 - 3 chopped finely

5. Kalonji (nigella/ onion / kalijeera) - 1/4 tsp

6. Salt to taste.

7. Oil - 1 tsp

Method

In a small pan or kadhai heat the oil and put the kalonji, chilly and garlic and saute for 2-3 min. Do not burn the garlic.

Next , add in the coriander leaves paste and saute for a minute. Add the turmeric and salt and saute for another minute.

If you feel the mixture is too dry you can add a tbsp of water. Adjust the salt and switch off the flame once the raw smell of turmeric goes away. Serve with hot rice

A veggie Bengali Delight

Long Beans and Potato Curry

This one is from my mother's bag of wonders.  The other day I was little bored of cooking the long beans the usual way ( i usually coat them with spices and just saute them on mid flame), so I just msgd my mom to send me a recipe which is quick and hassle free. So here's the recipe.

Ingredients

Long Beans - 300 to 350 gms approx.

Potato - 1 cut the long way. Each piece is half the thickness of your finger, and half the length of your finger. Well the cut doesn't matter. You can cut it anyway. I just cut them to match the length of the cut beans.

Oil - 2 tbsp (preferably mustard oil)

Panchphoron - 1/2 tsp ( this is a mixture of 5 spices namely cumin, mustard seeds, fenugreek seeds, nigella seeds, fennel seeds- all in equal proportions)

Green chilli -  1 slit

Cumin powder- 1 tsp

Kashmiri Red Chilli Powder- 1/2 tsp

Turmeric powder- 1/2 tsp

Tomato ketchup - 1 tbsp

Garam masala powder - 1/2 tsp

Ghee - 1 tsp (optional)

Procedure

Heat oil in a pan. Fry the long beans and potato for 4-5 mins and keep aside.

Pour some more oil if necessary.

Once oil is smoking, reduce heat and put the green chilli, panchforon into the pan.

Once it starts spluttering, add cumin powder, chilli powder, turmeric powder and fry for 30 sec.

Next pour in the tomato ketchup . Sprinkle some water to prevent spices from burning.

Once the mixture oozes out oil stir in the long beans and potato.

Fry for another 5 min. Pour half cup of water (if you want gravy) and boil the mixture till the potatoes are done.

Sprinkle garam masala powder and ghee before turning off the heat.

Enjoy with steamed rice.



P.S : Sorry for the shoddy presentation

Healthy And Tasty Chicken Burger with Baked Potato Wedges

Hello All,

I am back with a new recipe and this time the main ingredient is Chicken.

This recipe is healthy as it uses minimum oil and no mayonnaise and very tasty for kids and adults alike.

I prepared this for two people. You can adjust the quantity of ingredients accordingly.

So let's move on to the recipe.

For the burger:

1. Burger Buns - 2 nos.
2. Iceberg lettuce leaves- 2 nos (u can increase the amount if you like more leafyness in your burger).
3. Tomato- 1 no thinly sliced in round shape.
4. Onion- 1 no. Thinly sliced in round slices
5. Chicken breast -250 gms
6. Dried herbs - sage, thyme,basil,oregano,rosemary. You can any herb that is available at your end except coriander and mint . You can also use mixed dried herbs.
7. Chilli Flakes- according to your taste ( in case you don't have chilli flakes you can use normal red chilli powder).
8. Garlic powder- 1/2 tsp (or to taste)
9. Greek yogurt or labneh or hung yogurt- 2 tbsp ( make sure there is no water left in the yogurt)
10. Mustard paste or store bought mustard sauce or mustard powder- 1 tsp ( u can adjusthe quantity based on how mustardy u want the spread to be)
11. Red Chilli powder - 1 tsp
12. Crushed pepper- to taste
13. Oil - 1 tsp

For the potato wedges:

1. Medium Sized Potatoes- 2 nos. Cut in wedges.
2. Red Chilli Flakes - according to taste
3. Mixed dried herbs - 1 tsp
4. Garlic powder - 1/4 tsp
5. Oil - 1/2 tsp
6. Salt - according to taste.

Preparation Method:-

First we shall prepare the chicken breast. Beat or roll the breast with a rolling pin so that it reduces to half its thickness. Cut the breast into two pieces. Make small cuts in the chicken so that the marinade goes inside the chicken. Now marinate the chicken breast with the mixed herbs, 1/4 tsp  garlic  powder, chilli flakes, salt for 10 min.

After 10 min heat a tsp of oil in a pan and sear the chicken on both sides untill its done completely.

Next we prepare the spread. For this take the yogurt, mustard sauce, chilli powder, 1/4 tsp garlic powder, black pepper powder, salt in a bowl and mix them well. Adjust the seasonings accordingly.

Now that the spread and chicken are ready , we can move on to the potato wedges. You can also prepare this first and put them for baking while you prepare the chicken and spread. This saves on your cooking time.
Spread a tray with foil paper or any baking sheet. Mix the potato wedges with salt, garlic powder, chilli flakes, oil, mixed herbs well. Lay them on the tray and bake them for 15 min at  180 deg in normal mode and 5 min for 200 deg in grill mode. Check them in intervals for their  completeness.

Now as we have got everything ready, we can assemble our burger. Slightly warm the burger bun in a pan. Place the lettuce leaf on the lower part of the burger. Spread it with yogurt mustard paste. Place the chicken, tomatoes , onions . Sprinkle some black pepper powder and salt and close the burger. Serve it with the hot potato wedges and tomato ketchup.

Tomato soup and Corn kebabs....A healthy version

Hello Friends ,

How have you been....it has been quite a long since I last posted something....so here I am with two new recipes...to continue with my stream of fast and quick evening snacks recipes.....It's December and the best time to have some hot soup with corn kebabs to go along with it....Yes...today my recipes are Home-made tomato soup (cream-free/fat free and gluten free) and Corn Kebabs.

Recipe 1- Tomato soup(for 2)

Ingredients

Tomato paste/puree - 2- 3 tbsps (approx 120-130 gms)

Red Onion (Medium/Large) - 1

Tomato - 1 finely chopped

Garlic - 4- 5 finely chopped

Mushroom - 3-4 finely chopped ( I had  mushroom stems leftover hence used them only)

Butter- 1/2 tsp (not melted)

Olive oil - 1 tsp

Vegetable or chicken stock - 1 ltr (I prepared that with the help of salt less chicken stock cubes of Maggi)

Spring onion- handful finely chopped the green part

Salt and Pepper- to taste

Coriander - for garnishing

Method

Prepare 1 ltr of  stock and keep aside

In an deep bottomed pan heat the butter and olive oil.

Once heated, fry the garlic and the onion till the raw smell goes and then add the mushroom,tomato and the other vegetables if you are using them .

Add salt and pepper to taste

Cook till the mushroom and tomatoes are cooked .

Add the chicken stock and let the soup boil for 4- 5 minutes

Add the spring onion and adjust the salt and pepper

Garnish with chopped coriander and serve hot.

Recipe 2- Corn Kebabs

Ingredients

Sweet corn- 2 cups (I took the frozen variety and defrosted them in the microwave for 2 min)

Green Capsicum - 2-3 tbsps finely chopped

Green chilly- 1 or as per your taste chopped

Onion (Medium) - 1 finely chopped

Coriander-  finely chopped

Rice flour- 1-2 tbsps

Salt - to taste

Oil for shallow frying

Method

Blend the sweet corn . We don't want a smooth paste . You can keep some corn kernels intact.

To the corn, add all the above ingredients except the oil.

You might need to adjust the amount of rice flour depending on the amount of water in the corn. If the mixture is too runny then add more flour or else add only 1 tbsps. For me 1.5 tbsps did the job.

Make small patty or kebabs of the mixture and shallow fry them in hot oil

Alternatively you can also deep fry them if you want a crunchy snack.

Bengali style Phulkopir Shingara/ Cauliflower filled Samosa

Hello Friends,

Hope all of you had a Great Durga Puja...So I have been to Shillong this Puja...it was an awesome time...with all the fun of Parar Pujo.

On the occasion of Bijoya Dashami, I prepared this typical Bengali style Phulkopir Shingara. My mother prepares this every Poush Sankranti and we have been relishing it since childhood. So here goes the recipe:-

Ingredients-

For the filling:-

Cauliflower- 1 no. (Medium)
Potatoes- 3 nos (Medium)
Green Peas- 1 -1.5 cup
Raisins-1/2 cup
Cashew- 1/2 cup
Panchphoron- 1 tsp  (This is a mix of five spices mainly fenugreek/methi seeds, fennel/saunf/mouri seeds, nigella/kalonji/kalojeera seeds, cumin/jeera seeds, yellow mustard/sarso/holud sorshe seeds all in equal quantities)
Dry Red Chilli (Whole)- 2 nos.
Green chilli- 2 nos. (or according to your desired level of hotness, 2 chili gives a moderate level of hotness)
Cinnamon Sticks- 2 nos (1 inch)
Cardamom- 4-5 nos
Cloves - 3 -4 nos
Garam Masala powder- 2 tsp
Cumin Powder- 2 tsp
Turmeric Powder - 1.5 tsp
Salt to taste
Water- around 1 cup
Oil(White/Refined/Olive)- 3 tbsp

For the samosa/shingara casing:

Flour -2- 3 cups
Refined/White Oil- 2 tbsp
Warm Water- as per requirement
Oil for frying

Method:

Step 1: Cut the cauliflower into small florets and steam it for 5 minutes. Throw away the water and drain the florets
Step 2: Peel and cut the potatoes into small cubes.
Step 3: Put the raisins and cashew nuts in hot water.
Step 4: Heat the oil in a deep pan.
Step 5: Once the oil is smoky hot, put the panchphoron and dry red chilli into the pan.
Step 6: Once they start spluttering , put the cinnamon sticks,cardamom, and cloves.
Step 7: Once you get the aroma of the spices, put the potatoes and fry them till they are half done.
Step 8: Put the cauliflower florets and the green peas in the pan and fry for another 5 mins.
Step 9: Put the turmeric powder and salt and fry for another 2-3 min
Step 10: Put in the cumin powder and mix thoroughly.
Step 11: Sprinkle water and cover and cook till the veggies are well cooked. Make sure the veggies don't get burned or stick to the bottom.
Step 12: Put the cashews and the raisins and mix. Lastly sprinkle the garam masala powder.
Step 13: check the seasonings and switch off the flame. Let the mixture cool.

Now Let's prepare the casing:

Step 1: Mix the flour ,oil and water and make roti like dough.
Step 2 : Make Rotis and cut them into half.
Step 3: Make cones of the half roti and fill in the mixture and seal the cones
Step 4: Fry the samosas/shingara and serve them hot with ketchup or mint chutney