Skinned Black Gram Stuffed Indian Bread ( Urad Dal Ki Kachori)

SKINNED BLACK GRAM STUFFED INDIAN BREAD ( URAD DAL KI KACHORI)

Kachoris basically originated in Rajasthan and forms a central part of the authentic Rajasthani cuisine. Though various versions of these kachoris have evolved over time like moong dal ki kachori, pyaaz ki kachori and never the less urad dal ki kachori. This particular post is about urad dal ki kachori which can be served with green chutney , pickles or some white chickpeas curry.

INGREDIENTS

For Stuffing	Amount
Skinned Black Gram (Urad Dhuli)	1 cup
Asafetida (Hing)	A pinch
Red Chili Powder	1 tsp
Coriander Powder	1 tsp
Salt	To taste
oil	1 tbsp

For the outer covering	Amount
Refined flour	3 cups
Salt	To taste
Refined oil	2 tbsp
Water	Enough to knead a dough
Oil	To fry kachoris

METHOD TO PREPARE:

Urad dal filling

               For the filling

1.      Start with soaking the lentils for 3 to 4 hours.

2.      Drain the water and grind the lentils to a consistent paste.

3.      Now heat oil in a pan and add the asafetida followed by the mashed lentils and mix with a ladle.

4.      Now add the rest of the spices and salt and sauté it on low flame for 3 to 4 minutes.

5.      Remove from fire and let it cool down.

6.      Your mixture for stuffing is ready.

               

             
             For the outer covering

Dough prepared for kachoris

1.      Take the refined flour in a vessel and add the oil and salt to it .

2.      Now knead the flour with some water to make a smooth dough.

  

 For making the Kachoris

1.      When the dough is ready divide it in equal proportions.

Stuffed urad dal balls

2.      Flatten each dough with your hands and fill in the filling mixture in the middle and lift the sides of the flatten dough to the center and make a ball out of it.

3.      Now roll out each ball into round discs.

4.      Heat oil and fry these discs in it till they are golden brown.

5.      Serve hot.

Bengal Gram Pudding

BENGAL GRAM PUDDING (CHANNE KI DAL KA HALWA)

This pudding is used as an offering to  deity's during the festival season.

The sacredness of this preparation is its simplicity and  good taste which will leave a marked impression of divines and purity rather than just richness.Tried and made this pudding as an offering to Lord Ganesha myself on the occasion of Ganesh Chathurthi

INGREDIENTS
Overnight soaked Bengal Gram ( Channe ki dal)- 1 cup
Milk- 2 cups
Sugar- 1 cup
Cardamoms( Elaichi)- 2 nos
Dry grated coconut- 1/2 cup
Clarified Butter ( Ghee)- 2 tbsp
METHOD:

1. Put the required amount of milk in a pressure pan along with the crushed cardamoms and reduce it to half its content on medium flame.
2. Now add the over  night soaked bengal gram to the reduced milk.
3. Now add some water so that the water and milk level is just above the bengal gram.
4. Pressure cook the lentils for 10 to 15 minutes on low flame.
5. Let the stem release on its own pace.
6. Open the cooker and see that the lentils are soft and get mashed easily.
7. If excess of water is present heat the lentils till the water gets vanished.
8. Now add the sugar to it and heat it. The sugar will also release water so continue heating till water evaporates.
9. Now add the dry grated coconut and mix well followed by adding clarified butter to it.
10. Can be served as pudding or can be converted to small balls (ladoos) for offerings.

Fish Kaliya with meat masala

 FISH KALIYA WITH MEAT MASALA


No meal is complete without a fish dish in a Bengali Cuisine. Even being a Bengali I didn't use to enjoy fish and would prefer Chicken or mutton over it.But my taste for fish developed after my marriage. Here i have tried to twist a simple fish kalia dish with the meat masala  and red chillies available in the market. The alteration was significant and the taste of the delicacy is enhanced. Would really like to recommend its preparation if you love spicy north Indian foods. Basically the taste of this cuisine is a blend of West Bengal and North Indian states and the look is richer and it tastes more spicy.

INGREDIENTS:
Rohu Fish- 1 kg
Mustard Oil - for frying
Turmeric-1 tsp
Salt to taste
Onion paste- made from 2 medium sized onion
Garlic paste- 2 tsp
Ginger paste- 1 tsp
Red chilli Whole cut into small pieces- 2 nos
Bay leaves- 2 nos
Cloves- 2 nos
Cardamom- 2 nos
Nutmeg Powder- a pinch
Meat masala- 3tbsp

METHOD:

1. Wash the fish pieces properly and put it in a big colander to draw off all the excess water from the pieces
2. Now marinade the fish with turmeric and salt and leave aside for 30 minutes.
3. Take mustard oil in a kadai and heat it till smoke starts to appear.
4. Now deep fry these fish pieces on medium flame in batches.
5. When you are done, take out the fish and remove the excess oil from the fishes.
6. To make the gravy you can use the left over oil in the kadai. 
7. Heat the oil and add the red chilli pieces and cloves, cardamom, bay leaves along with a pinch of nutmeg powder.
8. Now add the onion paste and garlic paste and saute it till this onon garlic paste turns brownish.This will take about 10 minutes on medium flame.
9. Add meat masala to this and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes.
10. Add the fish pieces and mix along with the prepared mix gently without breaking the fish pieces.
11. Add water and required amount of salt according to your taste and bring it to boil. Now cover it with a lid and cook for 5 minutes.
12. Your spicy fish kalia with meat masala is ready.

Cold Coffee with Ice Cream

During summers we all loose our appetite and do not want to indulge in spicy or oily foods. It is also the time when our kids stay at home and there everlasting demands never ends. So great your child along with his friends with a glass of cold coffee. Its healthy, tasty and yummy.

INGREDIENTS:
Milk- 2 to 3 cups
Sugar-6 tbsp
Coffee-4 tsp
Crushed Ice cubes-2
Vanilla ice cream- 2 scoops
Sliced almonds-6 nos
Melted Chocolate-3 tbsp
Bend in pipes

Method:

1. Blend milk along with the sugar, coffee and crushed ice cubes to make cold coffee.
2. Now take a glass of your choice and keep it in a refrigerator to chill and then add some chocolate syrup to the sides of the glass.
3. Put the glass back in a freezer for the chocolate syrup to settle. Otherwise it will be fluid. 
4. Put a scoop of vanilla ice cream in it and and pour the cold coffee along with the slices of almonds.
5. When the glass is filled up add another scoop of ice cream along with some melted chocolate  and some almonds.
6. Place a bend in straw and serve chilled.
7. A wonderful way to refresh yourself with cold coffee.

Natal Fruit indian relish (Karonde ki chutney)

Natal Fruits is referred as Karonda in India and is grown in gardens and orchards as hedge plants.

Its  botanical name is Carrisa carandas. This ivory colored fruit has a plunge of pink or red color on it and tastes sour. This particular fruit is useful to cure anemia and is used to remove Worms from the intestinal tract.

People of India make use of karonda to prepare jams , jellies and chutneys.Here is an an home made recipe of Karonda chutney which is a blend of sweet as well as sour flavor.

INGREDIENTS:
Karonda-250 grams                                            Preparation Time:20 minutes
Sugar- 1/2 cup                                                     Cooking Time: 15 minutes
Salt- 1/2 tsp
Red Chilli Powder- 1/2 tsp
Cumin Seeds(  jeera) - 2tbsp
Mustard oil- 1 tbsp
Water- 1 cup
Bengali Five Spice ( Panch Phoran)- 1/2 tsp
Note: Panch Phoran consists of fenugreek seed, nigella seed, cumin seed, black mustard seed and fennel seed in equal parts.
For Cumin seeds: Put a pan on the flames and add the cumin seeds.Heat it on low flame stirring continuously until you get a aromatic smell. Do not over heat as it may burn the cumin seeds.Grind this cumin seeds to fine powder. 

Method:

1. Cut the karonda's into half  and remove the seeds with the tip of the knife.
   
2. Wash the karonda's properly.
3. Take a heavy bottomed pan and heat mustard oil in it.
4. When the oil is hot turn off the flame and add the Bengali five spice to it.
5. Now turn on the flame add add the karondas and mix it properly.
6. Add water along with the salt and sugar in it and cover it with a lid.
7. Let it cook for 10 minutes on medium flame.
8. Add red chilli powder and cumin seeds powder to it along with some water and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. 
9. Let it cool down and crush it with a blender.
10. Put it in a refrigerator and serve chilled.

Chicken Roll

Rolls originated on the streets of Kolkata and is finding its way to different locations in different parts of India. A really easy and quick dish to prepare and the best part is that everybody finds it to be yummy. Easy to get ingredients and hassle free preparation along with its spicy and vibrant taste makes it a real try to incorporate in your recipe book.

INGREDIENTS:

For the wrap:

Flour- 2 cup

Refined oil- 1 tbsp

Salt- 1 tsp

For the filling:

Boneless chicken-250 grams

Onion paste-1 cup

Garlic paste-2 tbsp

Ginger paste-1 tbsp

Red chili powder- 1 tsp

Coriander powder-2 tsp

Vegetable oil- ½ cup

Salt- according to taste

For extra fill-ins

Sliced Onions- 1and ½ nos

Capsicum -1 nos

To serve:

Tomato Sauce

Chili Sauce (optional)

Mustard sauce (optional)

METHOD:

For the filling:

1.       Heat a kadai and add oil to it. When the oil is hot add the onion paste followed by the garlic paste and ginger paste and heat the mixture on high flame till water is reduced.

2.      Turn the burner on medium flame and heat till the onion paste turns brownish.

3.    Add the boneless chicken pieces along with the spices and salt and sauté the mixture on reduced flame for 10 t0 15 minutes till the color turns dark brown.

4.     Add a little water to it and cover the kadai with a lid and let it cook on low flame for further 5 to7    minutes.

5.    Remove the lid and see if the chicken is cooked up or not. If nor repeat the process for another 2 minutes.

6.       Open up the lid to see the water content. If it is too watery reduce the water on high flame.

Extra fill-ins:

1.       Saute sliced onions and capsicums with some oil in a fry pan to be used as extra add on to be filled in the wraps

For the wrap:

1.       Take flour in a vessel and add refined oil and salt to it.

2.       Mix well and add water and knead it to soft dough.

3.       Divide it into equal proportions to make round balls enough to make a chapatti.

4.       Now Take a round ball and with the help of a rolling pin spread it in circular dimensions.

5.       Heat a tawa and spread it over it. When brownish bubbles start to appear on this side, flip the chappati and let it turn brown on the other side also.

6.       Now add some oil on both sides and fry it.

How to Serve:

1.       Place a hot fried paratha or wrap on a plate.

2.       Now place some filling on one side of this wrap in a straight line.

3.       Add fried onion and capsicums followed by adding tomato sauce, chili sauce or mustard sauce.

4.       Roll over the wrap from one side to another covering the filling.

5.       Take a paper napkin or foil paper and roll it over half of the wrap and serve it.