Caponata

Its a classic Sicilian starter or a side dish. 

The sweet and sour dish is eaten with bruschetta,  meat or fish, rice or pasta. It’s a type of vegetarian relish, some add fish to the dish. It’s made with egg plants , bell peppers, celery, tomatoes, zucchini, onions, olives, capers etc. Apart from the vegetables white wine vinegar or red wine vinegar is added for the tanginess and honey, raisins or sugar is added to the dish for sweetness. Some time pine nuts are also added. Each house has their own variant of making Caponata. This dish is eaten when warm, room temperature or cold .. this dish can be cooked a day prior and refrigerated and eaten the next day. 

Ingredients 

3 Long Eggplant cut into cubes 

1 Yellow Zucchini cut into cubes 

1 small Red Bell Pepper cut into half and sliced 

1 Onion cut into half and sliced 

1 Celery stalk sliced 

5 to 6 crushed Garlic 

4 tbsp Green Olives sliced 

Few fresh Parsley for garnishing 

2 tbsp Capers or Pickled Green Peppercorn 

Salt to taste 

1/2 tsp Pepper corn crushed 

4 tbsp White wine vinegar or Red wine vinegar 

3 tbsp Tomato sauce 

1 tbsp Honey 

2 tbsp Olive Oil 

Method 

Sprinkle little salt and drizzle little oil on the egg plants and zucchini, grill the vegetables at 180 degrees Celsius for 15 minutes. Keep them aside. Take a pan, add the olive oil, add the onion, garlic,  bell pepper, and celery, sauté until the onions are lightly browned. Add the olives, capers or pickled pepper corn, tomato sauce, white wine or red wine vinegar, honey, salt and crushed pepper. Stir and sauté for few seconds, add the grilled egg plants and zucchini. Stir and cook for another minute. Sprinkle fresh parsley. Let the dish come to a room temperature, serve the dish with bruschetta. 

Cheesy Veggie Bombs

This is a very easy starter or snacks for the evening. I am sure children will love it too... vegetables like zucchini, brinjal, spinach, boiled raw banana are used with cottage cheese or grated cheddar cheese. To enhance the taste used mozzarella cheese cubes in the center of the veggie balls. Serve with tomato ketchup. 

Ingredients 

1 medium size  Brinjal peeled and chopped into small cubes 

1 medium size Zucchini peeled and chopped into small cubes 

Few Spinach Leaves chopped 

1 medium size Onion chopped 

5 to 6 Garlic Cloves chopped 

Few Green Chillies chopped 

Few Coriander leaves chopped 

1/2 cup  Cottage Cheese mashed or grated Cheddar Cheese 

Mozzarella Cheese cut into small cubes

Salt to taste 

1 /2 to 1 tsp Pepper powder 

1/2 tsp Curry powder or Cumin powder  (Optional)

1 cup + 1 cup Bread crumbs 

1 tbsp Oil + Oil to Fry

Method 

Take a pan, add 1 tbsp oil, once the oil heats up, add onion and garlic, sauté till the onions are translucent. Add the brinjal, zucchini, spinach and green chillies. Sauté and cook until the vegetables are cooked and the moisture has dried up. Add the salt, pepper and curry powder, stir and cook all the ingredients together. Switch off the flame. Let the veggie mixture cool down. Add 1 cup of the bread crumbs, cottage cheese or cheddar cheese  and coriander leaves. Mix and bind all the ingredients together. The mixture should not be wet,  as it has to form into a ball. Incase it’s wet, add more bread crumbs. Apply oil on the palms. Take a big lemon size portion from the veggie mixture. Create a cavity and add 1 to 2 mozzarella cheese cubes  into the cavity.  Roll the portion back into a ball. The mozzarella cheese should be well covered. Roll the ball in the remaining bread crumbs. Heat the oil, repeat the process with the remaining veggie mixture. Once the oil heats up add the veggie bombs into the hot oil. Fry on medium heat until golden brown on all the sides. Serve the veggie bombs with tomato ketchup  and a hot cup of tea. 

#starters #snacks #vegetarian #cheese #delicious 

Baked Chingri Begun

This is a side dish made with prawns and brinjal. Though the wet paste made with mustard seeds and other ingredients are commonly used in Bengali dishes to make Jhal, Paturi, Bhapa etc, and even brinjal is a common ingredient used along with fish to make curry, here I have tried out the recipe in a bit different way... 

This dish can be made with other small fishes. 

You can serve this dish with steamed rice.

Ingredients 

1 medium size Bharta Baigan / Brinjal 

10 to 12 medium size  Prawns cleaned and deveined
1 small Onion or 1/4 part of the Onion

4 to 5 Garlic Cloves 

4 to 6 Green Chillies as per the spiciness you require 

Salt to taste

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder 

1 tbsp Fresh or Desiccated Coconut  

1 1/2 tbsp Mustard seeds

1 tsp Poppy seeds

1 tbsp Coriander leaves chopped 

2 tbsp + 1 tsp Mustard Oil 

2 tbsp Curd (Optional)

Method 

Take the brinjal, cut the brinjal from the center horizontally leaving the end tail part of the brinjal intact. Scoop out the inner part of the brinjal on both the sides. Keep it aside. Now chop the scooped flesh of the brinjal and keep it aside. Take a grinder, add the onion, green chillies, garlic, mustard seeds, poppy seeds, coconut, turmeric powder and salt. Add little water and 2 tbsp of curd (optional), make a smooth paste. Rub little salt on the inner and outer parts of the brinjal.  Take a bowl, add the prawn, chopped brinjal flesh, coriander leaves, 2 tbsp mustard oil and the paste. Mix all the ingredients together. Now stuff the prawn stuffing on one side of scooped brinjal. Cover it with the other side of the brinjal. Tie up the brinjal with a thread. Keep the stuffed brinjal in the refrigerator for an hour, Remove the brinjal from the fridge.  Place the brinjal into a baking tray, pour the remaining mustard oil, and apply the oil on the brinjal. To bake, you can either bake it in a preheated OTG at 200 degrees Celsius for 15 to 20 minutes, turning the brinjal after 10 minutes to cook it evenly or to bake it on a gas stove, take a wok, place a pressure cooker stand into the wok, cover the the wok for 5 minutes on medium flame. Open the lid, place the tray on the cooker stand. Cover the lid and bake for 10 minutes on medium low flame, after 10 minutes turn the side then continue to cook for another 20 minutes with the lid covered. Remove the baking tray from the wok. Remove the thread, place the brinjal on a serving plate and open one side of the brinjal. Pour in the liquid of the baked brinjal and prawns. Garnish with coriander leaves and green chillies. Serve the dish with hot steaming rice.

Ram Rochak Tarkari

It’s a delicious Oriya vegetarian dish popular in the Baripada region of Odisha. This dish is made during Ratha Yatra. This a very simple dish. Mung dal dumplings are cooked with vegetables like brinjal and potatoes.  This dish can be served with rice.

This recipe is adapted from Sweta Biswal's blog Oriya Rasoi....

For the Dal Dumplings / Bara

Ingredients

1/2 cup Yellow Split Lentils(Mung Dal) soaked for 1 to 2 hours

1/4 cup Whole Green Gram (Whole Green Mung Dal) soaked for 4 to 5 hours

1/2 tsp Cumin seeds

2 Red Dry Chillies

A pinch of Asafetida

Salt to taste

Oil for fry the dumplings

Method

Add the cumin seeds, dry red chillies, asafetida, salt, yellow mung dal and green whole mung dal in a grinder. Add very little water as the batter should be thick. Grind the dal into a batter. Take oil in a wok and let it heat up. Add a tsp of the batter in the oil. Repeat the process for 3 to 4 times. Fry it till golden brown in colour. Remove it from the oil and keep it aside.

For the Masala Paste

Ingredients

2 to 3 small pieces of Ginger

2 Dry Red Chillies

1 small Green Chilli

1/2 tsp Cumin seeds

3/4 tsp Coriander seeds

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder

Method

Add the ginger, red chillies, green chilli, cumin seeds, coriander seeds and turmeric powder in the grinder and grind the ingredients. Add 2 to 3 tbsp water and grind it again into a paste.

For the Curry

Ingredients

Mung Dal Dumplings

1 cup Brinjal cut into medium cubes

2 medium size Potatoes cut into medium size cubes

1 Green Chilli slit

1 Green Cardamom

1 small piece Cinnamon

2 Cloves

Salt to taste

Masala paste

2 tbsp Oil

1/2 tsp Ghee

Method

Reduce the oil in which the dumplings had been fried to 2 tbsp. Add the cumin seeds, clove, cardamom, cinnamon and green chilli. Let it crackle. Add the masala paste. Sauté it till the oil leaves the masala. Add the potatoes. Stir and cook for a minute. Add the brinjal. Stir and cook for another minute. Add 1 1/2 cups of water. Stir, cover and cook for 10 minutes. Open the lid, add salt to taste. Stir, cover and continue to cook until the potatoes are 80 percent done. Open the lid, check if the potatoes are almost done. Add the dumplings and continue to cook for another 4 to 5 minutes. Drizzle ghee and switch of the flame. Serve it with hot steaming rice. 

Cholar Dal Diye Begun er Dolma.....

Picture Courtesy : Kamal Shah

 The small brinjals are suffed with chana dal and then added into the gravy. It can be served with rice or paratha. This recipe is a love from my kitchen. 

To make the suffing

Ingredients 

1 cup Split Bengal Grams / Chana Dal soaked in water for 30 minutes 

1 Onion sliced 

1 tbsp Garlic - Ginger  paste 

1 green Chilli slit

1 Green Cardomon 

1 Small Cinnamon stick 

2 Cloves 

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder 

1/2 tsp Cumin powder 

1/4 tsp Garam Masala powder 

Salt to taste 

1 tbsp Ghee 

Method 

Take a pressure cooker. Add the ghee. Add the cinnamon, cloves, cardamom and green chilli. Let the spices crackle. Add the onion. Stir and cook till translucent. Add the garlic - ginger - chilli paste. Sauté it for a minute. Add the chana dal, salt and all the spice powder. Add 3/4 cup of water. Pressure cook it for 2 whistles. Let the pressure release. Open the lid. If an water remaining, switch on the gas and dry up the water in the dal. Let it cool. Take a grinder. Discard the whole spices from the dal. Add the dal and pulse it for 2 to 3 times. It should be coarsely ground and some whole dal should be seen. 

For the Dolma 

Ingredients 

12 small size Brinjals 

Stuffing 

1/4 cup Onion paste 

1 tbsp Garlic - Ginger paste 

1 to 2 Green Chilli slit 

1 Bay leaf

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder 

1/2 tsp Cumin powder 

1/2 tsp Chilli powder 

1/2 tsp Coriander powder 

1/4 tsp Garam Masala powder 

1/2 tsp Sugar

Salt to taste 

1 Green Cardomon 

1 Small Cinnamon stick 

2 Cloves 

1/2 cup Curd beaten 

2 tbsp Ghee 

1 tsp Coriander leaves chopped 

Oil to fry 

Method 

Cut the brinjals from both the ends. Keep the top and discard the back end of the brinjals. Scoop out the centre part of the brinjals. Take a pan, add oil. Let it heat. Half fry the brinjals and the top edge of the brinjals. Remove it on a kitchen tissue paper. As the brinjals cools down, stuff the brinjals will chana dal stuffing. Take the top edges of the brinjals and cover the top of the brinjals. Insert a toothpick to secure the stuffing. Take a flat pot. Add ghee. Let it become hot. Add the bay leaf, cardamon, cinnamon stick, cloves and green chilli. Sauté it for a minute. Add the onion paste. Stir and cook for 2 minutes. Add the ginger garlic paste. Cook for 2 minutes more. Add the curd, salt, sugar, turmeric powder, chilli powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and garam masala powder. Stir and cook till the oil starts to separate from the masala. Place the brinjal one at a time into the pan. Add 11/2 cups of water.  Cover and cook on low flame till the brinjals are tender. Once the brinjals are cooked, remove the tooth pick before serving. Garnish it with coriander leaves. Serve it hot with rice or paratha.

Murg aur Baigan ka Achar...

Murg aur Baigan ka Achar...

At times when we are lazy to cook, that is the time this pickle comes handy with simple hot dal, rice and papads or fish fry. 

This dish is an experiment in my kitchen. Try it out and I am sure you will love it.

This is my winning recipe from #PlatterShare

For the Chicken Marination 

Ingredients

1 cup Boneless Chicken cut into small pieces 

1 tbsp Garlic and Ginger minced 

1/4 tsp Turmeric powder 

1/4 tsp Garam Masala powder 

1 tsp Red Chilli Powder

Salt to taste 

2 tbsp Vinegar

Method 

Mix all the above ingredients and marinate it for 6 hours.

For the Spice powder 

Ingredients

1 tbsp Coriander seeds 

1/2 tsp Cumin seeds 

1/2 tsp Fennel seeds 

1/4 tsp Fenugreek seeds 

1/2 tsp Mustard seeds 

1/2 tsp Carom seeds 

1/4 tsp  Asafoetida powder 

8 Red Dry Chillies

Method 

Grind all the above ingredients into a fine powder and keep this aside.

For the Pickle 

Ingredients

Marinated chicken pieces

1 medium  size long Brinjals cut into small cubes or 2 cups of cubed Brinjal 

6 Whole Garlic cloves crushed 

Few Curry leaves 

Spice powder

1/4 tsp Mustard seeds 

1/4 tsp Coriander seeds 

1/4 tsp Fennel seed 

2 Pinches of Fenugreek seeds 

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder

1/2 tsp Chilli powder 

Salt to taste 

1 tbsp Sugar 

1/2 cup Vinegar 

1 cup Sesame Oil

Method 

Add oil to a wok. When the oil is hot, add the brinjals and fry it. Remove it and keep it aside. In the same oil, add the mustard seeds, coriander seeds, fenugreek seeds and fennel seeds. Let it crackle. Add the curry leaves and garlic. Sauté it for 2 minutes. Add the marinated chicken. Cook it for 10 minutes or till done. Add the brinjals, the spice powder, turmeric powder,  chilli powder  and sugar. Stir it. Cook it for 5 minutes. Add the vinegar and salt. Stir and cook for 1 minute.  Remove from the fire and let it cool. Keep it in a glass container and store in the refrigerator. It stays for 6 month.

Baked Doi Begun (Brinjal)

Baked Doi Begun (Brinjal)
I wanted to give Doi Begun a twist...
Ingredients
3 Medium size Bharta Brinjals cut into cubes
2 cups Fresh cream
1 cup Hung Curd
1/2 tsp Red Chilli powder
1/2 tsp Bhaja Masala (Roasted Cumin Seeds and  1 Red Chilli made into powder)
Salt to taste
2 tbsp Mustard Oil

Method
Take a baking dish, add the brinjals, rub in salt, beat the hung curd and cream. Pour the beaten cream and hung curd and 1 tbsp of mustard oil and mix it with the brinjals. Sprinkle the Bhaja masala and chilli powder.. Bake at 200 degrees Celcius for 45 minutes  or more till the brinjals are  cooked, in between drizzle remaining mustard oil on the brinjals...  Serve hot.... Garnish with coriander leaves....

Aloo Begun diye Ilish Marcher Jhol Hilsa with Brinjal and Potatoes

Aloo Begun diye Ilish Marcher Jhol
Hilsa with Brinjal and Potatoes
Ingredients
6 pieces of Hilsa
2 Potatoes cut into thick strips
2 Brinjal cut into strips
1 Tomato cut into strips
4 Green Chillies slit
1 small pieces Ginger
1 tbsp Mustard paste
1/2 tsp Turmeric powder
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp Cumin powder
1/2 tsp Chilli powder
1/2 tsp Panch Phoren
1 Bay Leaf
Mustard Oil for fry
Coriander leaves for garnishing
Method
Marinate the  fish with salt and turmeric powder, let it rest for 15 minutes. Heat the oil. Fry the fish in mustard oil till brown on both the sides. Keep it aside. Remove the excess oil from the wok. Add Panch Phoren, bay leaf and green chillies, let the Panch phoren crackle. Add the vegetables, sauté it for 2 minutes. Add mustard paste, salt, turmeric powder, chilli powder, and cumin powder. Stir and cook for 2 minutes more. Add 2 to 3 cups of water as per the gravy required. Cover and boil till the vegetables are tender. Add the fish and cook for 2 minutes. Add coriander leaves for garnishing. Serve hot with rice.

Beguni (Eggplant Fritters)

Beguni is a traditional Bengali dish. This is served as a side dish with an afternoon meal – Dal and steaming hot Rice or with Khichuri. But it is a perfect rainy day snack too and eatten with Puffed rice. It is a very popular street food of Kolkatta... Comes under "Tele Bhaja"..

Beguni (Eggplant Fritters)

Ingredients

1 1/2 kg long Eggplant cut lengthwise and pieces should be of medium thickness.

1/2 cup Chickpea flour / Besan 

OR

1/4 cup All purpose flour / Maida + 1/4 cup Chickpea flour / Besan

A pinch of soda bicarbonate

1 Finely chopped Green chilli

Salt to taste

1/4 tsp Nigella seeds / Kalonji (Optional)

Oil for frying

Chat Masala for sprinkling

Method

Mix all the above ingredients with water except egg plant, oil and chat masala, whisk the rest of the ingredients well until fluffy. The consistency should not be too thick... Keep it aside. Take the eggplant and rub some salt on the eggplant. Take a fry pan. Heat the oil on medium low flame. Dip the eggplant into the batter and deep fry them until brown. Serve it hot sprinkling with some chat masala on top....