Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Tofu/ Soya meat, Red Bell pepper, Corn and Mushroom Soup

Feeding R is the toughest job as yet. The day she eats properly at least once or twice, I really feel great. One can compare this achievement with that of conquering Mt. Everest.

What not I do to feed her!!! Watching Cartoon Shows to Bal Ganesh to Chkini Chameli, playing with water, adding new flavors to everyday’s dish and what not!  Still my daughter’s prompt reaction to her plate is ‘R khabe na’ (R will not eat). Imagine! After your day long tiring sessions you come back and try to prepare the tastiest dish, with high hopes you serve and the little devil says that she’ll not eat. Anyway, I’m the mother. I place her on my lap and sit in front of the TV or the laptop with any of the shows that she has not watched for at least few days or start creating stories of all imaginary creatures. As she’s amused with either of the things I start feeding her. There are some days when things go smoothly and she finishes her plate without any tantrums. Then there are few days when she’s adamant and nothing can make her eat.

Last night was one such when she finished her dalia with Tofu/ Soya meat, Red Bell pepper, Corn and Mushroom Soup. To my surprise she had even asked for another helping of the soup.

The recipe is very easy and it takes hardly 30 to 40 minutes to make it.

Corn Kernel
Tofu

Ingredients

1 Red Bell Pepper
1 Capsicum150 gms Tofu1 Onion4-5 button mushroom50 gms corn kernel4-5 garlic clovesSalt as per taste1 table spoon olive oil/ Sunflower oil10 cups of water1 tea spoon white or any vinegar1 tea spoon soya sauce


Cooking

Finely slice all the vegetables including the garlic cloves.
Chop the Tofu and the mushrooms.
Heat a pan with 1 table spoon olive oil/ Sunflower oil.
Saute the onions. Add the vegetables and the corn kernels. Cook in a medium flame for 5 minutes.
Add tofu, water, salt, white vinegar and soya sauce at this time and cook for a few minutes until it is boiling. Turn the heat to low and cover the pot.

Cook the soup for at least 20 minutes and serve.

Friday, June 14, 2013

Jamaishashti Special

Jamai-shashthi is an occasion in Bengal where the mother-in-law prays for long life and well being of her son-in-law or Jamai.  Shasthi-ma is considered to be the goddess who takes care of the children and mothers worship her keeping a morning fast.

Courtsey: http://gobindaroy.files.wordpress.com/2012/05/jamai-sasthi.jpg

In my place Jamai-shashthi was never celebrated with any such fervor. There was no jamai in our family, as I have no pishi (father’s sister). We used to get new clothes. Ma used to tie a yellow thread and distribute fruits after her morning puja. That is what dida (father’s ma) taught her.

My mother did not know much about jamai-shashthi as she hails from Barishal, a place surrounded by rivers in East Bengal, now in Bangladesh. Barishali’s don’t have Jamai-shashthi.  It usually falls in June or the month of Jaishtha, which is the beginning of the monsoon.  Barishal by its geographical position is subject to devastating cyclones, originating over the Bay of Bengal. In those days small boats were the only means of transport. Often accompanied by surging waves, these storms would cause great damage and loss of life. This was the reason why Jamai-shashthi got banned in Barishal. 

However, we used to gather in mamabadi (mother’s place) if Jamai-shashthi was on Sunday or the immediate Sunday following. It was a grand feast day.  Breakfast was essentially luchi, alurdam with bonde/boondi and often accompanied by various sweets brought by mashis and mamas (mother’s sisters and brothers). Lunch was plain masoor dal, with jiri jiri alubhaja (fried shredded potato), fried fish, any leafy vegetable, patal/or any other curried vegetable, mutton, aamer chatni (mango chatni), doi, and mishti. After this grand lunch the only thing you can do is a sound sleep.

Gone are those days…

I was in Kolkata on this day in the first year of our marriage. Ma celebrated it with extra excitements. After the feast S was like- no eating for atleast a week. Anyway he never did that.

Now shashthi means a phone call from ma. I know her eyes are wet. Though she never says but wants us sometimes to be with her on such special days. May be sometimes we’ll be ma.

Not feeling to do anything today; blame it on monsoon moodswings. A story book and a blanket or some old friends, adda and coffee would be enough to make myself satisfied. But!!!!


So, returned to recipes to turn on my mood. Today I’ll give two special recipes of ma. I will not be able to make any of these today. Satisfying my taste buds remembering ma’s dish.

Kucho chingrir bada (small prawn pakoda)


Ingredients


  1. Kucho chingdi/small prawns 500 gms
  2. Fresh ginger paste
  3. Jeera powder 2 tea spoon
  4. Green chili paste as per taste
  5. Red chili  powder as per taste
  6. Salt as per taste
  7. Turmeric powder 1 tea spoon
  8. Besan/ Gram flour
  9. Oil to fry

 Process

Put the prawns in hot water with salt. This will help to clean them easily. Wash them and remove the shells. 

Once cleaned put them in a mixer grinder. Roughly ground the prawns.

Now in a pan heat some oil. Add the ground prawns and all the above mentioned spices one by one. Cook till the mix dries up and releases oil.

Let the mix cool.

In the mean time add salt, turmeric, ajwain, little oil to the besan flour. To it add water in small amount of water constantly stirring the besan. The besan will not be too runny.

Now make small balls out of the prawn mix. Dip them in besan and deep fry.

Let me know if you loved it or not

Mutton ma’r mato (Mutton ma’s style)


Ingredients


  1. Mutton 1 kg
  2. 3 big Onion
  3. 1 Tomato
  4. 2 big potato
  5. Fresh ginger paste
  6. Fresh garlic paste
  7. 2-3 garlic cloves
  8. 2-3 green chili
  9. Turmeric Powder 1 tea spoon
  10. Red chili  powder as per taste
  11. Salt as per taste
  12. Tejpata
  13. Cumin seeds/jeera
  14. 2 table spoon lemon juice
  15. Mustard oil
  16. Fresh garam masala (Grind black and green cardamom pods, cinnamon and cloves in a mortar and pestle with little water )
  17. 1 table spoon Ghee

Process


Wash and clean the mutton in luke warm water. 

Cut onions and the tomato into 4 big pieces. Slit the chilies.

Keep mutton in a big bowl. Add onion, tomato, chilies, salt, turmeric, lemon juice, red chili Powder, ginger paste, garlic paste, tejpata and 1 table spoon mustard oil. Mix all the ingredients well and marinate for atleast 30 minutes.

Now cut potatoes into 4 equal pieces breadthwise.

In a deep-bottomed pan heat 2 table spoon of mustard oil. Add the potatoes, salt and turmeric and fry the potatoes in medium flame till they are half cooked.

Remove the potatoes and to that oil add jeera powder and crushed garlic cloves. I love this smell. To this add the marinated mutton and cover and cook and occasionally stir. 

Remember the essence of the dish is this part. The more time you cover and cook it in a low flame more tasty it will be. You will get the smell of the cooked mutton. At this time ma used to give me two pieces to taste whether it is cooked, whether something more is needed to add etc. I used to wait for this moment. 

Check whether the mutton is cooked or not. When it is half cooked and had released oil transfer the whole thing in a pressure cooker. Add the fried potatoes and hot water. The amount of the water depends on how much curry you want to keep. Mutton will also release water; so keep the amount less than whatever you need. Keep the flame low. After a whistle remove the pressure cooker from heat. 

Do not hurry to open it.  After it opens naturally add fresh garam masala and ghee and close the lid again. 

After 5 minutes open and serve the mutton with steamed rice.