Cantonese Style Chicken Sausage and Green Garlic Vegetable Stir Fry...

Cantonese cuisine is a simplified traditional Chinese cuisine which comes from Guangdong province and is one of the Eight Culinary Traditions of Chinese cuisine. The ingredients used in Cantonese cuisine, are spring onion, sugar, salt, soy sauce, rice wine, cornstarch, vinegar, scallion oil, and sesame oil, to enhance the flavour, garlic is heavily used in some of the dishes. Ginger, chilli peppers, five-spice powder, black pepper powder, star anise and a few other spices are also used. 

Net source... 

This dish is good for starters. The sugar balances the flavour of the sourness. Love the flavour of the garlic. 

Ingredients 

10 pieces of Chicken sausage cut into pieces

1 cup Yellow and Red Capsicum cut into cubes

1 Onion cut into cubes

2 to 3 Green chillies slit into 2 halves

6 to 8 whole Garlic cloves 

1 cup Green Garlic leaves cut into pieces 

1 tbsp Rice Wine Vinegar or White Vinegar

1 tbsp Soya Sauce

1 tsp Chilli Sauce

Salt to taste 

1/4 tsp Pepper powder

1/2 tsp Sugar 

2 tbsp Sesame seed Oil 

Method 

Take a wok or a fry pan, add oil. Heat up the oil. Add the sausages and stir fry for a minute. Add the whole garlic, green chillies and onions. Stir fry on high flame till the onions are light pink in colour. Add the capsicum and stir for 2 minutes. Add the green garlic leaves. Stir for a minute. Add the vinegar, soya sauce, chilli sauce, sugar, salt and pepper powder. Stir for a minute and serve it hot.

Macher Bhappa Cake / Fish Cake Steamed.....

This is an excellent recipe to have with evening tea or as a starter. The fish is boiled and mashed with boiled potatoes and vegetables and then set in a steamer or steamed in any vessel till it sets. This recipe is a heirloom recipe from my aunty’s kitchen and recreated in my kitchen. It has a touch of Bengal as Kasundi is used in it.  It's a very healthy recipe as there is very less oil content which has come from Kasundi and greased container. For the bread crumbs, I have used whole wheat bread crumbs, you can also roast or crisp the leftover rotis to make the breadcrumbs.
For people who eats egg... you can substitute the fish with soya granules.
I am sure you will love my recipe as much as I did making it. I am sure you will try it out.

Ingredients
1 cup / 250 grams  Any Fish boiled, deboned and mashed ( Bhetki, Prawns, Kathla)
1 big size Potato boiled and mashed
1/2 cup finely chopped any colour capsicum
1 small Onion finely chopped
1 tsp Garlic minced
1/2 tsp Ginger minced
1/2 to 1 tsp Green chillies minced
Salt to taste
1/4 tsp Pepper crushed
1/2 tsp Cumin powder
1/4 tsp Baking powder
1/4 cup Bread Crumbs
2 Eggs beaten
2 tbsp Kasundi ( Mustard Sauce )
1 tbsp Tomato Ketchup
1/4  tsp Mustard oil just to grease the container

Method
Take a mixing bowl and mix all the ingredients together very well, except for the oil. Take a greased baking pan. Pour the mixture in to the container and spread it. You can steam it in a steamer or take a wok, add water, place a napkin at the base. Place the container with the lid on. Cover the wok and steam it for 20 to 30 minutes or till the mixture has set. To check, insert a tooth pick. Cool it down. Cut it into pieces and serve it with more Kasundi.

Kasundi Chicken Kosha Tarkari Diya...

This dish taste scrumptious with hot steaming rice. I have used home made Kasundi ( Mustard Sauce ) to marinate the chicken along with the other ingredients. You can use ready made Kasundi available in the market. I have added mushrooms and carrot to the dish. You can add potatoes too. I love little sweetness of the carrot with Kasundi. This is an experiment in my kitchen. Do try it out... I am sure you will enjoy it. 

To Marinate the Chicken

Ingredients 

6 pieces of Chicken Legs

2 tbsp of Kasundi (Mustard Sauce) 

1 tsp Ginger - Garlic - Chilli paste 

1/2 tsp Coriander powder

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder

1/2 tsp Panch phoran powder

Salt to taste

1/4 cup Curd 

Method

Mix all the above ingredients together and let it marinate for an hour. 

To make the Chicken 

Ingredients 

Marinated Chicken

1 big Carrot cut into medium size strips

2 Onions sliced

6 to 8 whole Garlic cloves 

8 to 10 small size whole Mushrooms 

1 Green Chilli slit 

1/2 tsp Panch Phoran 

2 to 3 tbsp Mustard oil

Method 

Take a fry pan, add oil. Let it come to a smoking point.  Lower the flame and reduce the heat. Add the Panch phoran. Let it crackle. Add the green chilli and sauté for few seconds. Add the garlic and sauté for few more seconds. Add the onions and carrots, sauté till the onions are light pink in colour. Add the marinated chicken, stir, cover and cook for 10 minutes. Add 1/2 cup water, let it cook for 10 minutes more. Add the mushrooms, stir and cook till the mushrooms have cooked and the water has reduced. Serve it hot.. 

Gokul Pitha

To make this pitha, first stuffing is made. Then the batter is made. Little portion of the stuffing is taken and dipped in to the batter and fried. Then the fried balls are dipped into the sugar syrup.
For the Stuffing
Ingredients
2 cup Coconut grated
3/4 cup Date Jaggary grated
2 tbsp Sugar or more as per the taste
4 tbsp Mawa / Khoya
1/4 tsp Cardomom powder
Pinch of Salt
1 tsp Raisins

Method
Take a pan, add the coconut, sugar, Jaggary and salt, stir it on a low flame till the coconut becomes dry. Add Mawa , cardamom and raisins.Cook for another couple of minutes till the mixture is dry. Pour in a bowl and let it cool down.

For the Batter
Ingredients
1 cup All Purpose Flour
1/2 cup Semolina
1 cup Milk or more
Pinch of Salt
1 tbsp Sugar

Method
Take a mixing bowl. Add flour, salt, sugar and semolina. Mix it. Add milk little at a time to make the thick batter. Cover and let the batter stand for 30 minutes.

For the syrup
Ingredients
1 cup Sugar
1/2 cup Water

Method
Take a heavy bottom pan, add all the above and boil it to get thick syrup.

For making the Gokul Pitha
Ingredients
Oil for Frying
Batter
Stuffing
Sugar Syrup

Method
Heat the oil in a wok. Mean while make lime size balls of the stuffing. Dip these balls one by one in the batter and coat the balls. Add the balls in the hot oil. Fry on very low heat till they are golden brown in colour. Drain the oil and immediately drop them in the warm syrup. Let it stand for an hour to soften. Gokul pitha is ready to be eaten and celebrate Poush Sankranti.

Khejur Gurer Shoru Chakli ( Jaggary Rice Dosa)

This is made with rice flour and all purpose flour, mixed together with jaggery water an made into a batter. Then the batter is cooked into a kind of a sweet dosa.
Ingredients 
1/2 cup Rice Flour
1/4 cup All Purpose flour
1/4 cup Date Jaggery
Pinch of Salt
Pinch of Cardomon powder 
Ghee for Drizzeling on the pan

Method 
Take the Jaggary, salt, Cardomon powder and add a cup of water , let it boil till the Jaggary melts. Take it off the  flame. Take a bowl, add both the flours and mix it. Add the Jaggery water into the flour and mix it to make a thin batter. Let it rest for 30 minutes. Take a pan, drizzle ghee, pour in 1 or 2 ladle of the batter and swirl the batter in the pan so that the batter spreads out evenly, keep it on low flame for 3 or more minutes, so that the batter gets cooked. Keep checking, once one side is done, turn it and cook for another minute. Shoru Chakli is done...

Bhaja Puli

This Pitha is made with rice flour which is kneaded into a dough. A lime size portion is taken from the dough and stuffed with coconut and jaggary. Then it is given a shape and fried in oil.
For the Stuffing 
Ingredients
1 cup Coconut grated
1/2 cup Date Jaggary grated
1/4 tsp Cardomom powder
Pinch of Salt

Method
Take a pan, add the Jaggary, Cardomom and salt, stir it on a low flame till it melts. Add the coconut and stir on low heat till the mixture becomes dry. Switch off the flame and let it cool down.

For the Rice Dumplings 
Ingredients
2 cups of Rice Flour
1 Pinch Salt
Warm water

Method 
To make the dumplings, take the flour and add the salt in a mixing bowl, add warm water little at a time. Knead it into a soft dough. Keep the dough covered as the dough will becomes hard if kept open.

For the Final step
Ingredients 
Stuffing 
Rice Dough 
Oil or Ghee for Frying

Method 
Take lemon size balls from the dough. Flatten the balls with your fingers in the shape of a bowl. The shell would be medium thin. Fill the stuffing into it. Close, fold and seal the edges of the dough. Give it a boat shape with 2 edges pointing outwards. Heat oil or ghee in a wok, Heat the oil or ghee. Add the stuffed dumplings in the oil and fry it till golden brown.

Dudhpuli

This Pitha is made with rice flour which is kneaded into a dough. Then the little portion of the dough is stuffed with coconut and jaggary. Then it is given a shape and boiled in milk.
For the Stuffing 
Ingredients
1 cup Coconut grated
1/2 cup Date Jaggary grated
1/4 tsp Cardomom powder
Pinch of Salt

Method
Take a pan, add the Jaggary, Cardomom and salt, stir it on a low flame till it melts. Add the coconut and stir on low heat till the mixture becomes dry. Switch off the flame and let it cool down.

For the Rice Dumplings 
Ingredients
2 cups of Rice Flour
1 Pinch Salt
Warm water

Method 
To make the dumplings, take the flour and add the salt in a mixing bowl, add warm water little at a time. Knead it into a soft dough. Keep the dough covered as the dough will becomes hard if kept open.

For the kheer
1 liter  Full cream Milk
1 cup Date Jaggery 
Pinch of Salt 
Pinch of Cardomon Powder

Method
Add the milk in a pot and keep it on low flame till it reduces a bit. Add salt, Cardomon powder and Jaggary and let it simmer for 15 minutes. Meanwhile we will get the dumplings ready.

For the Final step
Ingredients 
Stuffing 
Rice Dough 
Kheer

Method 
Take lemon size balls from the dough. Flatten the balls with your fingers in the shape of a bowl. The shell would be medium thin. Fill the stuffing into it. Close, fold and seal the edges of the dough. Give it a boat shape with 2 edges pointing outwards. Once the kheer has simmer for 15 minutes, add the dumplings into the kheer. Let it simmer for 10 to 15 minutes more, till the dumplings are cooked.

Nolen / Notun Gurer Roshogolla... Date Jaggery Rasgulla...

This Rasgullas are made with Notun / Nolen Gur / Date Jaggery. Date jaggery is made in winter season and is sold in the market either in liquid form called Jhola Gur or solid blocks called Patali / Nolen Gur or Notun Gur. 

The recipe of the Rasgulla is the same, only date jaggery is added to the syrup. Rasgulla making is a easy task, only few tips to be remembered. Cow milk is best to make the rasgulla. While making the cheena / paneer, after the sour agent is added don't over boil the milk after it curdles other wise the cheena will become hard. Squeeze out the whey completely from the cheena, but at the same time cheena should be moist enough to bind into a smooth soft dough. Knead the cheena very well by rubbing the cheena with the help of your palm on a flat surface. Knead the cheena for 10 minutes. If you feel that the cheena has become hard and it is not binding, then add few drops of milk or water while kneading. I have added suji and sugar. You can also replace suji with flour. 

I am sure you will enjoy making them too. 

Ingredients

Cheena / Paneer made out of 1 1/2 litres Cow Milk

1 tsp Suji / Fine Semolina 

1 tsp Sugar 

For the Syrup

2 cups Sugar

1 cup Nolen Gur / Date Jaggery 

7 cups of Water 

Method

Take a deep bottom pot. Add the sugar, date jaggery and water. Let the jaggery and sugar melt. Let it simmer. Meanwhile on a flat surface, start kneading the cheena, suji and sugar for 10 minutes rubbing the cheena with the heel of the palm until smooth and it binds into a dough. Make small lime size portions and roll them into balls. Drop the balls into the syrup. Cover and cook for 15 minutes on medium heat. Open the lid and let it cook for 5 minutes on low heat. Switch off the flame, wait till it cools down before serving. 

Orange and Beetroot Jam...

Jam and Jelly making is so much fun. More over it is  home made and without any preservatives added. Only we should know the right time to remove it from the flame. If undercooked it will not set and if overcooked it might be then difficult to use it.

This jam can be used for applying on breads and also can be eaten with parathas and rotis. 

It is an experiment in my kitchen. 

Ingredients 

2 cups Orange juice (strained through a muslin cloth)

2 tbsp Lime juice 

1 cup of Water 

1 small Beetroot grated and excess juice squeezed out 

2 cups Sugar 

2 pinches of Salt 

Method 

In a heavy bottomed pot, add sugar, water, lime juice and salt. Stir and let the sugar dissolve on low flame. Add the orange juice. Stirring it occasionally let the orange juice simmer on low flame. Take a fine skimmer and keep clearing  the scum at the top. Also keep clearing the sides of the pot. Let the juice reduce and thickens up, add the grated beetroot and let it continue to simmer. To check if the jam is ready, take a small steel plate, keep it in the fridge and cool it. Take the plate and pour 1/4 tsp of the jam, if the jam starts to set then it is done. Cool it a bit. Take a clean glass bottle and pour the jam in the bottle and let it set in the bottle. Enjoy it with bread, roti or paratha.

Bhetki Macher Kanta Chorchori...

Bhetki or (Barramundi) is quite a popular fish. We Bengalis have many preparations made from Bhetki. The small size is used to make jhol or jhal. And the big size ones are cut into fillets and made into cutlets, paturi, chops, fish fingers etc. Moreover even the remaining bone along with some flesh and head are also not wasted and it is made into Kanta Chorchori. You will not find this delectable dish in any of the restaurants. It is a very simple traditional dish cooked at home. Simply have it with hot steaming rice and it is divine... 

Ingredients 

Bhetki head and bones cut into pieces marinated for 5 minutes with 1/2 tsp Turmeric powder and salt.

1 tsp Garlic and Ginger paste 

2 Green chillies slit 

2 big size Onions sliced 

2 big size Potatoes cut into wedges 

1 Tomato cut into wedges 

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder 

1/2 tsp Chilli powder 

1/2 tsp Cumin powder 

1/2 tsp Coriander powder 

1/4 tsp Garam Masala powder 

1/2 tsp Sugar 

Salt to taste

1 small stick Cinnamon 

1 Green Cardomom

2 Cloves

1 Bay leaf 

1/4 cup Mustard Oil 

Method 

Take a wok. Add mustard oil. Heat it till the smoking point.  Reduce the flame. Fry the bone and the head till golden brown in colour. Remove it from the wok and keep it aside. In the same oil add the cinnamon, green cardomom and cloves. Let it crackle. Add the bay leaf and the green chillies. Add the onions and sauté it till light brown in colour. Add the ginger - garlic paste. Sauté for a minute. Add the potatoes. Stir fry the potatoes for a minute. Add the tomato. Stir it. Add the salt, sugar, turmeric powder, chilli powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and garam masala powder. Stir it and add the fish bones. Stir and add 1/2 cup water. Cover and cook till the potatoes are cooked and the water has evaporated. Server it hot with hot steaming rice.

Bata Mashala diya Mangsher Jhol....

Mangsher Jhol is known to all Bengalis. It is cooked on all occasions. In earlier days and still in some household fresh spices are ground for the masala, but now a days mostly powdered spices have taken over. In this recipe in addition to the garam masala used in Bengali kitchen, I have used few more other spices as an experiment in my kitchen, This dish can be eaten with hot steamed rice or paratha or luchi. 

For the Bata Mashala / Wet Paste

Ingredients 

1 Onion chopped 

12 Garlic cloves 

1 medium Ginger piece 

1 medium Fresh Turmeric piece

12 Pepper corns

4 Cloves 

1 medium stick Cinnamon 

3 Green Cardomon 

4 Kabab Chini 

4 Dry Red Chillies

4 Dry Kashmiri Chillies

1 tsp Cumin seeds 

2 tsp Mustard seeds 

1 tsp Coriander seeds 

1/2 tsp Celery seeds (Optional)

Method 

Add all the above ingredients into a grinder and add little water. Grind all the ingredients into a fine paste. 

For the Mangsher Jhol / Mutton Curry 

Ingredients

1 kg Mutton Pieces 

2 Big Potatoes cut into big chunks

1 Onion sliced

2 Tomatoes chopped

2 Green Chillies slit 

2 Bay Leaves 

Salt to taste 

1 tsp Sugar 

1/2 cup Curd 

Bata Mashala / Wet Paste 

1/2 cup Mustard Oil 

Method 

Take a pressure cooker. Add mustard oil. Let it heat till the smoking point. Reduce the flame. Fry the potatoes till brown in colour. Remove it from the oil and keep it aside. In the same oil, add the onion, chillies and bay leaves. Fry the onions for a minute, add sugar and fry till light brown in colour. Add the mutton pieces, stir fry for 2 minutes. Add the bata mashala and salt. Stir and cook for 5 minutes. Add the curd. Stir and cook for 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes. Stir, cover and cook for 10 minutes on low flame. Remove the cover and add the potatoes. Stir and add 6 cups of water. Close the lid of pressure cooker. Give 4 whistles. Switch off the flame. Let all the pressure release. Serve it hot.