Ilish Macher Mathar Bhorta / Ilish fish Head Bhorta

 

This time my travel to Delhi was a bliss, as we could enjoy Hilsa to the fullest. My sister in law’s cook, belongs to a village in Sundarbans, where the Bangladesh border is very close by.  They make Bhorta with fish head at their home. This recipe has been shared by her.. 

We at home normally make Ilish head with malbar spinach / Pui Saag and vegetables or with kotchur loti / Taro Stolon or with Laau Saag / Bottle Gourd stem or with Cabbage etc. We as urban inhabitants don’t know many rustic dishes that are cooked in the villages. 

 It’s so scrumptious that just one plate of rice is required to finish the meal. 

Ingredients 

2 Hilsa fish head cut into 2 halves 

1 Big Onion sliced 

2 to 3 Garlic Cloves 

2 Green Chillies chopped as per your ability to eat spices 

Handful of Coriander Leaves chopped 

2  Dried Red Chillies 

Salt to taste 

1 tsp Turmeric powder 

1/2 tsp Nigella seeds

Mustard Oil to fry the fish 

Method 

Apply some salt and turmeric powder to the fish head. Take a wok, add and heat up the mustard oil. Add the fish head and fry the fish head until golden brown in colour from both the sides. The fish head has to be crispy fried. Remove the fish head and keep it aside. Reduce the oil and keep only 1 tbsp of mustard oil in the wok. Add the nigella seeds and dry red chillies, once the nigella seeds crackles and the red dry chillies are roasted well, remove the dry red chillies and keep it aside.  In the same wok add the onions and the garlic. Meanwhile once the red chillies have cooled down, crushed them. Sauté the onions until golden brown in colour. Once done, remove the Onions and garlic in a bowl,  add the crushed red chillies, chopped green chilli, coriander leaves and salt in the bowl, mix all the ingredients well. Take a mortar and pestle, add the fried head and crush them well into a paste. I have used a grinder to grind the fish head. Add the ground fish into the bowl, take out the thorns as much as you can, now mix all the ingredients very well with hand. Serve this dish with rice. It’s best eaten during lunch. 

Chicken Tikka Pulao with Cranberries and Dry fruits

 An easy peasy Chicken Tikka Pulao with Cranberries and Dry fruits for dinner. This recipe is inspired from the Persian Pilaf. 

For Chicken Tikka 

Ingredients 

500 grams Boneless Chicken cubes

1/2 cup Curd

1 tsp Garlic paste 

1 tsp Ginger paste 

1/2 tsp Chilli paste 

1 tsp Lemon juice 

Salt to taste 

1 tsp Kashmiri Chilli powder 

1 tsp Cumin powder 

1/2 tsp Pepper powder 

1 tbsp Olive Oil 

1 cube Butter 

Method 

Marinate the chicken cubes with all the above ingredients except butter for 5 to 6 hours. Take a grill pan, apply butter in the pan. Place the chicken cubes into the pan. Cook the chicken from both the sides until the chicken cubes are brown in colour and has cooked well. 

The chicken cubes can be grilled in the pre heated oven at 200 degrees for 15 minutes after applying butter, then turn the chicken cubes, apply butter and grill for another 15 minutes until the chicken cubes are cooked. Remove and keep it aside. 

For the Pulao 

Ingredients 

Chicken Tikka cubes

250 grams Basmati Rice

1 big Onion thinly sliced 

1 Red Dry Chilli 

2 tbsp Dried Cranberries

1 tbsp Almond Flakes

1 tbsp Raisins 

1 tsp Dried Rose Petals 

1/4 cup Hot Milk with a pinch of Saffron 

Salt to taste 

1/2 tsp Cumin powder 

1 tbsp Sugar

1 tbsp Butter

1 tbsp Olive Oil 

Method 

Wash and soak the rice for 30 minutes. Take a pot, boil 2 cups water. Add little salt and 1/2 tsp oil, once the water boils, add the rice and cook the rice until it’s 75 percent cooked. Drain the water out and keep it aside. Take another pot, add remaining oil and butter, let the butter melt, add sugar, stir until the sugar melts, add the onion and dry red chilli, stir fry the onions until brown in colour. Add the salt to taste and cumin powder, stir for few seconds. Add 1/4 cup water. Stir and let it cook for a few seconds. Add the chicken and the rice. Gently stir, add the saffron milk, cranberries, raisins, rose petals and almond flakes on top, cover the pot. Cook the rice until it’s completely done. Remove the cover of the pot and let it stand for 10 minutes before serving. 

Kakara Kosha / Crab Sukha (Bengali Style)

While driving towards the outskirts of Mumbai during the rainy season, we get to see land filled with water getting ready for the rice cultivation, small water streams and small water bodies flowing around.. there are lots of small fish and mud crabs that you get to see being sold by the locals which are freshly caught. They are great in taste. We managed to get  some mud crabs and cat fish. 

Here is a recipe of  Kakara Kosha. It’s a Bengali way of making crab Sukha..  

While cleaning the crabs, separate out the crab legs from the body, gently crush them. Keep the crab fat and eggs in separate bowl.    

Enjoy this dish with rice or paratha. 

Ingredients 

5 medium size Crabs cleaned 

Keep the crab fat / tomalley and crab eggs separately 

2 medium size Onions sliced 

1 big Tomato chopped 

5 to 6 Green Chilli crushed 

10 to 12 Garlic Cloves crushed 

1 medium piece of Ginger crushed 

2 Bay leaves 

1 Green Cardamom 

2 Cloves 

1 small piece of Cinnamon 

1 tsp Turmeric powder 

Salt to taste 

1 tsp Sugar 

1 tsp Cumin powder 

1 tsp Coriander powder 

1 tsp Kashmiri red chilli powder 

1/2 tsp Garam masala powder 

1 tsp Ghee

1/2 cup Mustard Oil 

1/2 cup Water 

Method

Add salt and little turmeric powder into the crabs and mix them. Take 1/4 cup of Mustard oil, let it heat, on a medium flame stir fry the crabs until it changes its colour. Remove and keep it aside, add the remaining oil in the same wok, add the cloves, cinnamon, cardamom and bay leaves, stir, add the sliced onions, sauté the onions until translucent, in between add salt and sugar, continue to cook. Add the crushed ginger - garlic and chillies, stir and continue to cook for a minute, add the  chopped tomato, stir, add turmeric powder, cumin powder and coriander powder. Stir and continue to cook, add Kashmiri red chilli powder. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally until the oil release. Add the crab fat and crab eggs if any. Stir and cook for another minute. Add the water, let it simmer, add the crabs. Stir and continue to cook for 2 minutes. Add the ghee and garam masala. Let it cook for another minute. Once done switch off the flame. Enjoy the crab bhuna with rice or paratha. 

Mango Whole Wheat Cookies

 

Here are cookies made with Mango Pulp. I have used Alphonso mango. A tbsp of Oats can be added while roasting the flour. It’s delicious, can’t stop at one..

For Mango Paste 

Ingredients 

1/2 cup Mango Pulp made fresh 

Method 

Add the mango pulp into a pan, cook on a medium low heat until the liquid from the pulp has reduced to 3 tbsp spoon 

For the Mango Cookies 

Ingredients 

1 cup Wheat Flour 

1 tsp Almond Flakes  - Optional 

1/4 tsp Salt 

1/4 tsp Baking Powder 

Pinch of Cardamom Powder - Optional 

1/2 cup Sugar 

1/2 cup  Ghee 

3 tbsp Mango Paste 

Method 

Take the whole wheat flour in a pan, dry roast the flour on a low until an aroma releases, but the flour shouldn’t change colour. Switch off the flame, let the flour cool down, add cardamom powder, salt and baking powder, mix the flour. In another bowl add ghee, sugar and mango paste. Whisk all the ingredients together until the sugar dissolves. Add in the flour. Mix and knead it into a soft dough. Take a baking tray, take small lime size portion of the dough and roll the dough into small ball. Pre heat the oven at 180 degrees celsius .Place the dough ball on the baking tray and gently press the center of the dough ball to create a small cavity. Keep a gap between the 2 cookies. Repeat the process until all the dough is over. Place an almond flake in the center cavity and press the flakes gently. Bake the cookies at 170 degrees celsius for 15 minutes, depending upon the oven temperature. Remove the cookies from the oven. The cookies will look soft, but once it cools down it will crunchy from top. Let the cookies remain on the hot tray until the tray cools down completely. Once the cookies have cooled down then keep them in an air tight container and enjoy.

Ripe Jackfruit Cake

 

Rustic jackfruit cake made with leftover ripe jackfruit. It’s healthy and delicious. 

Ingredients 

1 cup Wheat flour 

1 cup Fine Semolina 

1 cup Powder Jaggery 

1 tsp Baking Powder 

1 tsp Baking Soda

1/2 tsp Cardamom Powder 

1/4 tsp Salt

2 tbsp Almond Flakes 

1/2 cup Ripe soft Jackfruit 

1/2 cup Ripe firm Jackfruit chopped 

1/4 cup Oil

1/4 cup Curd 

1 cup Coconut Milk 

Method 

Take wheat flour, semolina, jaggery powder, cardamom powder, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Take a sieve mesh and sieve all the ingredients together. Take a bowl, pour oil, curd and coconut milk and whisk it together.  Pour the liquid into the dry ingredients, and whisk all the ingredients together into a thick dropping consistency. Add the almond flakes and both the types of jackfruits. Mix the ingredients together. Take a grease baking mould. Pour in the batter up to 3/4 the size of the mould. Bake the cake at 180 or 200 degrees temperature depending upon the oven temperature for 55 to 60 minutes. Insert a toothpick and check. Once done remove the cake and cool it. Unmould the cake and let it cool completely before cutting.