Mix dal tadka....

Mix dal tadka....
Very easy, simple and quick to make and very tasty....
Ingredients :-
250 grams of mix dal
1 big onion chopped
1 tomato chopped
4 garlic cloves crushed
1 inch ginger cut into long thin juliennes slices
2 red chillies
1/2 tsp cumin seeds
Salt to taste
1/2 turmeric powder
1 tbsp ghee
4 cups of water depending on the thickness of the dal wanted
2  tbsp home made tadka masala powder and to make the masala powder, grind
( 1/2 tsp of whole Coriander seeds and cumin seed, 2 red chillies, 2 clove, 2 green cardamom, 1 black cardamom, 1 small cinnamon stick, 1/2 tsp of amchur powder, 1/4 tsp of dry ginger powder, 1 bay leaf, 2 big pinch of nutmeg powder)
For garnishing
1 big green chilli cut in to half
2 tbsp chopped coriander
2 tbsp fresh cream
1/2 tbsp ghee
Few long thin juliennes slices of ginger
Few tomato slices

Method
Take the mix dal and wash it. Soak the dal in water while you prepare and chop rest of the ingredients for the dal. Take 1 tbsp ghee in a pressure cooker. Add 1/2 tsp cumin seeds, red chillies, chopped onions, few ginger juliennes slices and crushed garlic. Saute it for 5 minutes till it is light brown in colour. Now add the tomatoes and saute it for another 5 minutes on slow flame. Now add the soaked dal, salt to taste, turmeric powder and the tadka masala powder. Mix it. Add 3 cups of water. Pressure cook it on slow flame for 15 to 20 minutes. Once the pressure is out. Open the cooker. Add water according to your requirement. If the water has dried up then add more water and cook it for 10 minutes more on a slow flame till the dal has mixed well and has become into a medium thick gravy.
Before serving add 1/2 tsp ghee and  garnish it with fresh cream, green chillies, few long thin juliennes slices of ginger, tomato slices and coriander. Serve it hot with steam rice or paratha.

Sourdough bread recipe

Sourdough bread recipe

To make the starter, follow the link... 

https://www.suskitchenbysumitra.com/2020/06/the-story-of-sourdough-starter-lockdown.html?m=1

To make multi grain sour dough
250 grams of multi grain mix
500 grams of flour + extra flour to dust
2 tbsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil
Method
Mix the starter with all the above ingredients except for the 500 grams of flour and leave it to rise over night.
Next morning sprinkle some flour on your working area and take the dough and keep folding with your hands gently. At this stage the dough is very sticky so as you are working take the remaining flour and little by little as much requiered and keep adding the the mixture and keep folding the dough with your hands till you are able the handle the dough easily. Now take a tbsp of olive oil and apply it to the vessel. Lift the dough and keep it in the vessel and apply some olive oil from top.
Cover it and leave it for 2 hours. Sprinkle some more flour on your working area and take the dough and very gently cut the dough in to parts as required. The rest of the dough can be kept in an air tight container. Now the cut parts of the dough which can be shaped in to desired sizes and design. To make scored bread cut the resting dough from top to make diffrent designs. Grease the tray and sprinkle some flour. And keep the shaped dough in the tray and rest it for 30 minutes.  Preheat the oven at 200 degrees with a empty vessel inside. Add water in the small container which was preheated and keep it in the oven to retain moisture. Keep the tray to bake for 30 minutes.
After cooling the bread variation made
Hand painted sour dough bread
Stenciled sour dough bread
Pasto sauce and cheese braided bread
Bread roll

Khejur Gurer Sandesh (Sandesh made out of Date jaggary)

Khejur Gurer Sandesh (Sandesh made out of Date jaggary)

Ingredients:
Full fat milk: 2 liter
Juice of  a lemon
Gur: 6 tbsp
Method
First you need to boil the milk and then pour the lemon juice. Mix and stir. The milk will curdle, keep on boiling till a clear whey separated from the cheese.
Pour this in a muslin cloth and wash under running water to get rid of the lemon smell.
Tie the loose ends of the cloth and hang to drain all the water. Keep the cottage cheese on a flat surface and keep something heavy on top to drain out water completely.
After a hour take this cheese in a flat plate. And start kneading with  your palm. Once the cheese becomes smooth (approx 5 minutes) Add the jaggery and  kneading the dough for another couple of minutes.
Take this in a non-stick pan and on very low heat cook this for 5 minutes. Do this by stirring the dough continuously. Don’t panic if you find the dough  little soft, it will harden as it cools.
To give shape to the sandesh use the stone or terracotta moulds. Press a little bit  to transfer the design.

Notun gur or Khajur gur (Date jaggary) payesh.

Notun gur or Khajur gur (Date jaggary) payesh.
This jaggary is produce only  in Bengal. It is also called “Noton Gur” in Bengal or “New Jaggery” and is only extracted from the date trees during the Winter months.
This is a Bengali Special Sweet dish Recipe . What makes it  special is the use of date Jaggary or Notun gur as sweetener instead of sugar. And is made most in winters as the juice from the date tree is extracted only in the winter months and made in to date jaggary or Notun gur.
Ingredients
1 liter milk
1 cup grated date jaggary or add according to the sweetness
1/2 cup gobindo bhog rice or broken basmati rice
2 tbsp rasins
2 tbsp broken Kaju
2 green cardomon crushed
2 bay leaves
A pinch of salt for balancing the sweetness.
Method
Wash and dry the rice. Boil the milk with bay leaves for 10 minutes on a slow flame. Now add the rice and cook it for 10 minutes stirring it periodically. Now add a pinch of salt, raisins, crushed green cardamom and Kaju and boil it till the rice has cooked and the milk consistency has become thick. Now add the grated date jaggary according to the sweetness required. Keep on stirring on a slow flame till the jaggary has dissolved. Garnish it with grated jaggary from top.  It is ready to be served  hot or cold.

Bitter gourd vegetable ( Karele ki Sabji)

Bitter gourd vegetable (Karele ki  Sabji)
I had got this recipe from my friend long time back. It is a very tasty recipe which can be had with rice or chappati.
Ingredients
500 grams bitter gourd thinly sliced
1 big onion sliced
1 big tomato chopped
4 to 5 Curry leaves
1/2 tsp mustard seeds
1 red chilli
Salt to taste
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp chilli powder
2 tsp jaggary
1 tsp tamarind paste
2 tbsp oil
Chopped coriander for garnished
Method
Take a pan and add oil. As the oil heats up add curry leaves, red chillies and mustard seeds. Once the mustard seeds crackles then add the sliced onions. Saute the onions for 5 minutes. Add the thinly sliced bitter gourd. Saute it for 5 minutes. Add salt and  cook it till the bitter gourds are half cooked stirring it periodically. Add the chopped tomatoes, turmeric powder, coriander powder, chilli powder and cumin powder. Cover the pan and cook it on a slow flame stirring  the vegetables in between till the bitter gourds are cooked. Now add jaggary and tamarind paste and cook it for 5 minutes more. To serve garnish it with chopped coriander leaves.