Mutton Curry / Mangshor Gravy

In earlier days, in most of the Bengali households, Sunday meals were always mutton curry … Mangshor Jhol and rice… I am sure many houses still makes it… but somehow due to the health reasons, nowadays we rarely have red meat at home… today after a long time made mutton curry, a bit different from the regular mangshor jhol… I added the marination as per my mood… marinated the mutton and slow cooked it… 

For Marination 

Ingredients 

500 grams Mutton pieces 

1 big size Onion sliced 

3 tbsp Onion Birista 

5 Garlic cloves 

1 small piece of Ginger 

1 Green chilli

1/2 cup Hung Curd 

Salt to taste 

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder 

1 tsp Cumin powder 

1/2 tsp Coriander powder 

1/2 Fennel seed powder 

3/4 tsp Garam Masala powder ( ground cloves, cinnamon and green cardamon)

1 tsp Chilli powder 

4 to 5 Almonds soaked in water and peeled 

1 tbsp Mustard Oil

Method 

Grind the birista, garlic, ginger, green chilli  and almonds with very little water into a paste. Take a bowl, add mutton, salt, turmeric powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, chilli powder, garam masala powder, fennel seed powder, hung curd, ground paste, sliced onion and mustard oil, mix all the ingredients together, cover and keep it aside for 3 to 4 hours. 

For the Mutton Curry 

Ingredients 

Marinate Mutton 

2 Cloves 

2 Green Cardamom

1 small piece of Cinnamon 

Few Pepper corns

1 Bay leaves 

1/4 cup Mustard Oil

1 tsp Ghee

Salt if required 

1 tsp Sugar

1 big or more cup of Hot Water 

Method 

Take a wok, add mustard oil, let the oil heat up, lower the flame and add the ghee, add sugar,  bay leaves, cloves, green cardamom, pepper corn and cinnamon. Let it crackle, add the marinate mutton, on medium  low flame, cover and cook the mutton and keep adding little hot water stir the mutton occasionally until the mutton is cooked. Add more water as required for the gravy, simmer for 2 to 3 minutes and switch off the flame, serve with rice, roti, paratha etc. 

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Poee / Poi

This is a popular Goan flat bread eaten with curries or vegetable. It’s delicious. 

Ingredients 

2 cups Wheat flour 

2 cups All Purpose Flour (Optional) 

Can replace with whole wheat flour 

2 tsp Instant Yeast

Salt to taste 

2 tsp Sugar

1/4 cup or as required Wheat bran

Luke warm water as required 

1 tbsp Oil

Method 

Take a bowl, add both the flours, sugar, yeast and add little water at a time, and start to knead the dough. Take 1/2 tbsp oil and salt, add the ingredients to the dough and continue to knead the dough until the dough is soft and smooth. Apply the remaining oil, cover the dough and keep the dough to rise double in size. Once done take the dough and knead the dough once more for few seconds. Divide the dough into 10 portions. Keep the rolled ball aside covered for 10 minutes. Remove the center rack of oven and place it on the lowest rack. Preheat the oven at 250 degrees celsius. Take a portion of the dough, take the wheat bran on a plate,  apply the wheat bran on the dough, and either roll the dough out or pressure the dough with the help of your hand, make a thick disc about 5 inches. Repeat the process with other portions. Place the rolled dough on the baking tray. Cover and keep the disc aside for 45 minutes. Now bake the poi on the lower rack of the oven for 8 to 10 minutes at 250 degrees celsius, depending upon your oven temperature.  The poi will fluff up and turn brown in colour. Remove the poi from the baking tray and keep it on the cooling rack to cool it down further. Enjoy the poi with any kind of curries.. 

 

Apple and Beetroot Spread

 

Ingredients 

1 1/2 kg Apples peeled and cut into pieces 

2 Oranges cut and seeds removed

1 Beetroot peeled and cut into small star shape

Some Mint leaves

1/2 tsp Grated Ginger 

Sugar equal quantity as the pulp got from the apples

1/2 tsp Salt

1 Stick Cinnamon 

1 Star Anise

Method 

Boil the Beetroot stars with a tbsp sugar and little water for 5 minutes, discard the juice and keep the Beetroot stars aside. 

Take the Apple pieces and Oranges… blend them into a pulp. Strain the pulp through a strainer. Take a pot, add the pulp, salt, sugar, cinnamon and star anise.. let the ingredients simmer and cook until it reduces. Stir occasionally. To check, take a small plate, pour few drops of the spread. The spread shouldn’t be runny. Once done, switch of the flame.. add the grated ginger, Beetroot stars and mint leaves.. stir.. while warm, pour the spread in a glass jar. Let it cool, then close the lid, this stay good in the fridge for about 8 months.. 

Shola Kochur Korma / Colocasia Esculenta - Taro Corms Korma

Shola Kochu can be cooked in many ways, it can be fried, bata/ mashed, cooked into gravy with fish etc. 

Today we are making korma with shola kochu. It’s a simple, yet delicious recipe. This can be eaten with pulav rice or paratha. 

Ingredients 

 8 round pieces of Shola Kochu after peeling 

1 medium Onion made into paste

1 tbsp Ginger - Garlic - Chilli paste

1 Green chilli slit

2 Cloves 

1 Green Cardamom 

1 small piece of Cinnamon 

1 Bay leaf 

1/2 tsp Cumin seeds 

Salt to taste 

1/2 tsp Sugar 

1/2 tsp Cumin powder 

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder 

1/2 tsp Chilli powder 

1/2 tsp Garam Masala powder 

1/2 cup Coconut Milk 

2 tbsp Curd 

1 tbsp Mustard Oil 

1 tsp Ghee 

 

Method 

Take the pieces of shola Kochu, poke the pieces with a fork. Pressure cook  the pieces of the shola kochu for one whistle. Remove the pieces from the pressure cooker.  Heat the mustard oil in a pan, fry the shola Kochu pieces until light brown in colour. Remove the pieces from the pan, in the same pan add the cloves, cardamom, cinnamon, bay leaf and cumin seeds. Let it crackle, add the onion paste, ginger - garlic - chilli paste, salt and sugar. Sauté the masala for a minute, add the curd, cumin powder, turmeric powder, chilli powder and green chilli. Continue to sauté and cook until the oil releases from the masala. Add little water and cook the masala for 2 minutes. Add the shola Kochu pieces, let it cook in the gravy for another minute. Add the coconut milk and let the gravy simmer for another few seconds. Switch off the flame, add ghee and garam masala powder. Garnish with fried onions (optional) and a little coconut milk. 

Taler Bora / Sugar Palm Fritters

 

Taler Boras are very popular in Bengal during this month, specially during Janmashtami as it’s supposed to be favourite of Shree Krishna. Ripe sugar plum pulp is extracted and made into various types of traditional sweets like Taler bora, Taler luchi or pitha. The golden pulp of the sugar palm, wheat flour, all purpose flour, semolina or rice flour, sugar, salt and grated coconut is used to make the batter, which is then dip fried to make fritters.  Some people add mashed bananas into the batter. This can be enjoyed as snacks, but it’s so delicious  that you can’t stop eating until it’s over. 

Ingredients 

1 Sugar Palm

1/2 cup Wheat Flour 

1/2 cup Rice Flour 

1/4 cup Grated Coconut 

1/4 cup Sugar

1/4 tsp Salt 

Oil for frying 

Method 

Take a bowl, add wheat flour, rice flour, salt and sugar. Add the sugar palm as required to make a thick batter, whisk until the sugar dissolves. Add the coconut, stir and mix the batter well. Rest the batter for 10 minutes. Heat the oil in a wok, drop small portions of the batter into the oil. Fry the fritters until golden brown in colour. Remove the fritters on a paper towel. Enjoy.