Piyaji - Onion Fritters

I was proud of the speed at which I had mastered Bengali. My ears were (and are) all open to grasp any new word that was not in my Vocabulary yet. I had a colleague, Nilanjanda – he was the master of Bengali proverbs. He would mutter a quote apt for any situation, and immediately I would start bugging him to know what it meant and in what context it can be used. I would then be on the lookout for the right situation at home to declare the newly learnt proverb. And everybody at home would be taken aback to hear the proverb coming from ME! All thanks to Niluda for strengthening my Bangla literally!

These are some I still remember:

‘Bel paakle kaaker ki’

‘Baar kheye khudiram hoye jaoa’

‘Gache kathaal gope tel’

‘Joto dosh Nanda ghosh’

While I took pride at my newly honed language skills, I was in for a shock. Those days we were looking for a cook at home coz kids were barely few months old and I was going to join back work soon. Requirement was spread by word of mouth through maids. And anything that goes into one of their ears spreads like forest fire. They have such high bandwidth and network speed. Bang came a lady to check about the vacancy. Ma handled the interview and final negotiation. Compensation was bargained and settled at a ‘Not yours - not mine’ amount. The lady had a demand apart from the salary offered. She said that we must offer her with ‘Jal Khabar’ daily evening. And there you are! Me being the silent spectator scratched my head as I didn’t know what that meant. Jal means water and Khabar means Food. Now what on earth does ‘Water Food’ mean??? Later on, I found out that that it’s an expression that means the light (?) snacks that we have along with evening tea. Hmmm, learning never ends…

Piyaji or Onion Fritters are my favourite Water Food! (You know what I mean) Few months back when we were staying along Bhabi, Kakima and Kaku (Bhabi’s parents) had also come down to stay with us. We had Piyaji on the platter and Kaku declared with contempt ‘Tomra Piyaji banaate paro na!’ (You guys are incapable of making Piyaji) He announced that he will make Piyaji one day and we were all to wait and watch. But there was a condition that nobody had to enter the kitchen while he was at work! Hmmm, we were all curious now as to what was that secret ingredient that he would add to make the so-called perfect Piyajis. On pestering him we were allowed entry into the kitchen and I witnessed the entire process. He did everything the way we would do. But the patience and passion with which he fried those beauties was unmatchable. Abbas and I are eagerly waiting for Kaku and Kakima’s next visit to hog on all the delicacies Kakima prepares, along with Kaku’s Piyaji…. (Oh have heard about Kaku’s famous Beguni as well which is long due)

Ingredients:

Onions – 3, medium sized, very finely chopped (The finer the better)

Green chillies – 2, finely chopped

Gram flour – ¾ cup or as required

Salt – to taste

Baking soda – a pinch

Nigella seeds – ¼ tsp

Water – as required

Oil – for deep frying

Method:

1. Mix all the ingredients expect oil.
2. Heat oil in a deep bottomed vessel.
3. Make thin patties out of the onion mixture on your palm and slowly slip it into hot oil. Fry on both side till they turn light brown.
4. Remove from oil and place on absorbent papers to absorb excess oil.

Note:

1. Can be served with evening tea.
2. I like it with Puffed rice and a dash of mustard oil.
3. Bengalis like to have it for brunch along with left over rice soaked in lots of water. They call it ‘Paanta Bhaat’.
4. We also like to have it with Rice and Dal as a side

Instant Oats Idli with Coconut Mint Chutney

Did you know that a single bowl of oatmeal provides all essential nutrients like complex carbohydrates, B vitamins, fiber, and minerals such as phosphorous, iron, selenium, and calcium? Sounds like music to ears but a bowl of oats porridge is a torment to me. I can manage swallowing not more than a spoon with utmost disgust! I experimented on my kiddos and their reaction after the 1^st spoon intake was sign enough for me to not give them the porridge again. I can’t torture the innocent souls with something that I myself detest…

But its health benefits haunt me all the time and I somehow wanna include oats in our diet. Best way is to sneak it in so that its presence is unknown and not felt. I started off by adding handfuls in my chapathi or puri doughs. I added them in my cookies. Now recently I came across instant oats idli in Madhuri’s blog and it was just the perfect breakfast for those lazy weekend mornings or for busy weekday mornings (if you have the mix preserved ahead). Accompanied with Coconut-Mint Chutney, it was a wholesome and at the same time yummy breakfast. Abbas who skips breakfast when there is idli or dosa (other than Masala Dosa) loved it so much that he said he would skip lunch as he had over-eaten his breakfast.

Here goes the recipe for Instant Oats Idli:

Ingredients:

Rolled oats – ½ cup

Rava or Sooji – ½ cup

Baking soda – ½ tsp

Curd – ½ litre

Carrot – 1 medium sized, grated

Green chillies – 1, finely chopped (I skipped this for my kids)

Coriander leaves – a handful, finely chopped

Mustard seeds – ½ tsp

Asafoetida – a pinch

Oil – ¼ tsp

Method:

1. Dry roast the oats for 2-3 minutes in a wok till they turn fragrant. Keep aside to cool.
2. Repeat the same procedure with the soji and keep aside to cool.
3. Once the oats have cooled, coarsely powder it in the mixer.
4. Grease idli moulds with oil and put a spoonful of grated carrot in each of the moulds in the centre. Keep remaining carrot aside to be mixed with the idli batter.
5. Make a tempering with asafoetida and mustard seeds.
6. Mix together all the ingredients in a bowl. The curd goes in last. Blend the mixture well and allow the batter to rest for 15 minutes.
7. Pour the batter into the prepared idli moulds and steam cook for 15-20 minutes, like you would your normal idlis.
8. De-mould once they are cool.

For the Coconut Mint Chutney:

 

Grind together the following ingredients with water as per required consistency

 

Coconut grated – ½ cup

Green chillies – 7-8 or as per spice tolerance

Tamarind – marble sized ball

Ginger – ½” piece

Mint leaves - about 15

Salt to taste

Temper the chutney with Coconut oil (1tbsp) + mustard seeds (1/2 tsp) + red chillies (1 or 2) + Curry leaves (10-12 sprigs)

This goes out to Bookmarkes recipes Every Tuesday hosted by Priya and Aipi

I found these Health Benefits of oats from here:

• Lowers Cholestrol
• Reduces high blood pressure
• Boosts immune system
• Reduces weight
• Good source of protein
• Improves digestion
• Reduces the risk of cancer
• Stronger bones
• Excellent for pregnancy
• Good for skin
• Reduces stress
• Energy booster

Begun Bharta - Mashed Smoked Brinjal

“Eeew”, “Eeeks”, ”Yuck” – used to be my reactions when my eyes would spot any food that’s slimy, gooey and the sorts! I would find ripe papaya, tomatoes even brinjals really gross. My mom would place a Brinjal in between the wood logs which were burnt to heat water. She would then delicately remove the smoked skin and mash it with her hand. I would nauseate at the sight of it! I have strongly inherited my Dad’s genes. He also hated to see these mushy food stuffs…

Fate had it that Brinjal was Abbas’s favorite! How was I to use my hand to mash the slimy veggie? Initial months post marriage; I was only the assistant in the kitchen (fortunately). I would only peel and chop. Bhabi (My SIL) used to do all the cooking. Abbas’ passionate love for this veggie tempted me to try it. And there was no looking back after that. I love Brinjal now and I hate using any equipment to do so other than my hand. After all, the personal touch added to any dish alleviates its taste by leaps and bounds!

Just a Trivia here, my Bhabi prepares this dish every Saturday coz it is believed that all evil vibes are burnt along with the Brinjal! Ummi, my niece used to suck the Brinjal’s stem as though it were a lollipop. Whenever I make Brinjal Bharta, Brinjal’s stem refreshes all those beautiful memories of the good times we had together!!!

Ingredients:

Brinjal – 1 big

Onion – 1 medium sized, finely chopped

Tomato – 1 medium sized, finely chopped

Green chillies – as per spice tolerance, finely chopped

Turmeric powder – a pinch

Red chilli powder – 1 tsp (optional)

Salt

Corainder leaves – a handful, finely chopped

Mustard oil – 2 tbsp (Mustard oil is recommended, you could substitute with any other oil)

Method:

1. Make deep incisions on Brinjal and smear mustard oil all over its body.
2. Smoke it on stove top. This could be done in an oven. But somehow I prefer to burn it in direct fire to get that authentic taste. Keep turning it to ensure its entirely cooked.
3. Delicately remove the burnt skin. Its easy to remove under running water.
4. Mash the cooked brinjal with your hand, or a masher.
5. Heat oil in a pan. Add chopped onion and sauté till golden brown.
6. Add tomatoes and sauté till mushy.
7. Add mashed brinjal, spice powders, green chillies, salt and combine.
8. Saute well till you get a well combined mass.
9. Garnish with coriander leaves.

Note:

Bharta can be made by simply mixing raw onions, green chillies, salt and mustard oil with the mashed Brinjal. This also is delicious.

Alu Bhaja - Crispy Potato Juliennes

Ma can live without water but not without Alu Bhaja! Shoot her a question “What shall I prepare for lunch/dinner?” and bang comes the answer “Ektu Alu Bheje Nao. Khaoa hoye jabe.” (Meaning – fry some potatoes and meal will be over”) Alu Bhaja is everybody’s favourite side at home along with Rice and Dal. Makes for a comfort meal and I prepare extra rice when there is Alu Bhaja and Dal coz quantity of rice consumed with these accompaniments is more.

Ma doesn’t like it when the potato juliens turn mushy. She wants them crisp and each one separate. Her description of it being “Mochmoche” in Bengali. My Alu Bhaja woud turn out as Alu Bhaji and I would always fail at getting that ”Mochmoche” texture! Lately when Kakima had come down to stay with us, she gave the secret behind crispy juliennes. Salt and spices are to be added once potatoes are completely cooked. I used to add along with potatoes which would release water content due to which the end product would be mushy. Well, I now know the trick of the trade!!!

Try this easy side and I guarantee you’ll like it!

Ingredients:

Potatoes – 3-4, medium sized, cut into thin juliennes

Salt – taste

Turmeric powder – 1 tsp

Red chilli powder – 1 tsp or as required

Oil – 4-5 tbsp

Method:

1. Heat oil in a pan.
2. Add the potato juliennes (flame should be high) and lightly stir till all the water content is evaporated.
3. Now cover with a lid and reduce flame.
4. After every 3-4 minutes, give a stir by removing lid and again cover.
5. Once the potatoes are cooked completely, remove the lid increase the flame to high. Add salt, turmeric powder and red chilli powder anc combine.
6. Now spread the juliennes evenly all over the pan and let them get roasted in high flame. If you are using a deep bottomed pan, the juliennes in the centre will get roasted. You have to keep shuffling and placing unroasted juliennes into the centre.
7. Drain the potatoes from oil and place on absorbent kitchen towel or tissues.

Note:

1. I generally use the oil left over after frying fritters to make this. The oil will be flavourful and makes the Alu Bhaja tastier.
2. Since we use a lot of oil for this dish, we will be left with oil after removing potatoes from them. Not all oil goes into the dish.

Kadahi Paneer

These days I’m trying to plan my Menu at home based on the on-going events in the blogosphere. When I come to deeply think of it, food bloggers’ kitchens dispersed geographically all over the world brewing in unison towards a common cause. How wonderful is that? It’s a great feeling to be a part of this selfless virtual world. We learn from each other, compliment each other, be there for each other. Blogosphere has become an inseparable part of my life and I am enjoying myself to the core.

Today’s dish is Kadahi Paneer bookmarked from Aipi’s blog. This dish impressed Abbas and Ma who dislike Paneer otherwise. It was a breeze to make and at the same time delicious. I modified it a teeny-weeny bit.

Ingredients:

Paneer - 1 cup, cubed

Capsicum – 1 medium sized, cubed

Tomato – 1 large, finely chopped

Coriander leaves – 2 tbsp, finely chopped

Tomato ketchup – 2 tbsp

Oil – 2 tbsp + 1 tsp

Ginger garlic paste – 1 tsp

Onion – 1 large, chopped

Cumin seeds – 1 tsp

Mustard seeds – ¼ tsp

Ajwain or carom seeds – ¼ tsp (I did not add just bcoz I forgot to)

Asafoetida – a pinch (I did not add just bcoz I forgot to)

Red chilli powder – 1 tsp or to taste

Coriander powder – 1tbsp

Kasuri Methi – 1 tbsp

Milk – ½ cup (optional, I added it to give this dish a semi gravy texture)

Salt to taste

Method:

1. Heat a tsp of oil in a pan and shallow fry paneer cubes till golden brown. Keep aside.
2. Heat rest of the oil in the same pan. Add mustard seeds, ajwain, cumin seeds and asafoetida.
3. Once the seeds start spluttering, add ginger garlic paste and sauté for a minute.
4. Add onions, salt and turmeric powder. Saute till onions turn golden brown in colour.
5. Turn heat to medium and add capsicum, red chilli powder, coriander powder and sauté for a minute.
6. Add tomatoes and coriander leaves and continue to sauté for 3-4 minutes. Add tomato ketchup, paneer, kasuri methi, milk (if using) and combine. Cook till you get the desired consistency.
7. Serve with flavoured rice or Indian breads.

Sending this to Bookmarked Recipe every Tuesday hosted by Priya and Aipi herself.

Also to "Tried and Tested - US Masala" hosted by Priya

Choco Nut Brownie

My first affair with brownie was ages ago. It was in a CCD that I ordered a Walnut Brownie with a scoop of vanilla ice-cream. And boy! I was bowled over. I would prefer a brownie any day over a slice of cake.

When Divya announced Brownie event, I had decided to participate in it. I had never attempted a Brownie at home till then. Hit Deeba's blog and settled with her Robert's Absolutely Best Brownies. The name of the brownie as well as the story behind it quite excited me. It is a one bowl recipe and needs a vigorous 1-minute stir which David Lebovitz has quoted as a life changing moment. I followed the recipe verbatim, but couldn't wait till the brownie cooled down to cut it. I just couldn't resist digging into it. I'm so glad I chose this coz this sure was the Absoultely Best brownie ever!!!

Makes 9 to 12 brownies
Ingredients
6 tablespoons (3 ounces) unsalted or salted butter, cut into pieces, plus more for the pan
8 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup walnuts, almonds, hazelnuts, or pecans, toasted and coarsely chopped (I had only walnuts and almonds)

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C).

2. Line the inside of a 9-inch square pan with 2 lengths of foil, positioning the sheets perpendicular to each other and allowing the excess to extend beyond the edges of the pan, or with a single large sheet of extra wide foil or parchment paper. Lightly butter the foil or parchment.

3. In a medium saucepan over low heat, melt the butter. Add the chocolate and stir until it is melted and smooth.

4. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the sugar and vanilla until combined. Beat in the eggs, 1 at a time. 5. Add the flour and stir energetically for 1 full minute—time yourself—until the batter loses its graininess, becomes smooth and glossy, and pulls away a bit from the sides of the saucepan.

6. Stir in the chopped nuts.

7. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and bake until the center feels almost set, about 30 minutes. Do not overbake.

8. Let the brownie cool completely in the pan—this is the difficult part—before lifting the foil or parchment and the block of brownie out of the pan. Cut the brownie into squares. {The brownies will keep well for up to 4 days and can be frozen for 1 month}

Valval - Amchi Vegetable Stew

Valval is a Konkani version of Vegetable Stew. It’s white coloured coconut milk based gravy stands for its purity. By purity, I mean that there are no onion-ginger-garlic like the usual curries or no garam masala or any other spices. Its just veggies cooked in coconut milk and a light tempering! A bowl of Valval is simply a bowl of goodness, nevertheless tasty.

I was a very picky eater and would hunt for cashews only in this stew. So my Amma would at times prepare Valval with only cashews just for me. Hmmm… Now that I have become an Amma, I like my kids to have all veggies. (Do I hear someone saying "How mean!!") And I am no more a picky eater coz my kids learn by following me. (Being a parent actually makes one a better person. I have even begun brushing my teeth before sleeping just so that my kids do it too)

Well, Valval is generally prepared during festivals. My Annamma (Grandma) would sit and scrape atleast 25 coconuts on such days at a stretch. She sure is a super woman. She is the best grandma any child can have and the best MIL in this world too. About being the best MOM, I doubt??? Coz all her children call her Honnie (meaning Bhabi in Konkani) and she never corrected them. Strange isn’t it? It was her birthday this month and she just completed 82 years. I love you Annamma from the bottom of my heart and miss you so very badly.

Each household might have a different Valval recipe. The basic outline should be the same but the choice of veggies and tempering might vary. This recipe is my version:

Ingredients:

Pumpin – cut into cubes

Ash gourd – cut into cubes

Beans – cut into an inch long pieces

Carrot – cut into cubes

Cashew – a handful

All the veggies together should amount to about 2 cups

Coconut Milk - 1cup think milk and 1 cup thick milk– I used Maggi Coconut milk powder sachet

Green chillies – 1 or 2

Salt to taste

For tempering:

Ghee – 2 tsp

Cumin seeds – ½ tsp

Curry leaves – 10-12

Asafoetida – a pinch (optional)

Method:

1. Cook all the veggies along with slit green chillies and salt in a pressure cooker or in a sauce pan. I added 2 tsps of coconut milk powder in the water. (Ideally veggies are cooked in thin coconut milk)
2. Now Add the thick coconut milk (I mixed rest of the of the coconut milk powder with a little more than half cup water) and give it a boil. (Adjust salt if required)
3. Heat ghee in a pan. Add cumin seeds. When they splutter, add asafetida and curry leaves. Pour the tempering over the prepared stew.

100th post, 10,000 hits and awards - I am loving IT!!!

I consider this to be a big milestone for me to have reached my 100^th post and 10,000 hits. I started blogging way back in 2008 but my blogs were meekly fed. My twin daughters were born in 2008 and all my free time was dedicated to them. Hence, blogging took a back seat. Last year when Ria, Divya and Maria announced ‘A Sweet Punch’, I sent in my nomination unaware that it would be a turning point for me in terms of blogging. I got to know so many wonderful people, learnt about wide variety of cuisines, cooked dishes that I hadn’t heard names of in my wildest dreams, I jumped with joy whenever my readers left comments. I daily watch my Blog Stats page and feel so elated to see the count increase.

I recently received some awards from fellow bloggers:

This is from Rachu of Amma & Baby:

This award galore from Sonali of Only Fish Recipes:

The pleasure that it gave me is beyond words. I did not post about the awards so far as I wanted to do it as part of this celebration. No food post today but 7 facts about me as per the award rules:

1. Although I am a Konkani married to a Bengali, if you ask me which cuisine I like more? I would be lying if I chose one. Both are close to my heart, errr tongue.
2. I wanna marry once again… but to my husband. Might sound crazy but it’s my dream… But it will be a Christian style wedding with me in a white gown and my two fairies as bride’s maid.
3. People might eat to live but “I love to eat and live to eat”.
4. I am not at all a religious person. I believe that if I do my work with honesty and dedication, not wish or do evil to others, God will always be by my side.
5. I hate the melodramatic daily soaps. I love to watch serials like Friends, Full House, Small Wonder, Popeye, Noddy, Chota Bhim, Roadies!
6. My hobbies include crochet, painting, mehndi, soft toy making, cooking, photography, reading, adventure etc
7. I dream to open a food outlet of my own someday….

I need to pass on these awards to 15 other bloggers. Now this is going to be very difficult to restrict the number to just 15. Yet here goes the list to the special ones who have influenced me in their own way

1. Nithya of 4^th Sense Cooking – For her creativity!
2. Suma of Cakes and More – For her undying passion for baking
3. Reva of Kaarasaaram – For her galore of recipes and breathtaking photography skills
4. Sushma of Authentic Food Delights – for coming up with so many recipes of her own origin
5. Nids of Wizard of Thought – for her inspirational writing
6. Srivalli of Spice Your Life (needs no intro) – for her dedication and contribution to blogosphere
7. Priya of Priya’s Easy and Tasty Recipes – for being an inspiration to all bloggers
8. Ushnish da of http://ushnish.blogspot.com/Cooking and Recipes – for his passion for food and a wonderful recipe collection
9. Geeta Baliga of Geeta Baliga’s recipes – For your contribution to my blog and as a good luck to your own blog
10. Chaitrali of I-am-not-a-Chef – For giving us easy access to restaurant style recipes
11. Mallika of Veg Bowl – for all those lipsmacking Veg recipes specially Eggless bakes!
12. Pree of PreeOccupied – for the way she writes, her paintings, pottery and trusted recipes
13. Savitha of Savitha’s Kitchen – for her active participation in marathons and other events in the blogging world and also for her other blog dedicated to her son
14. & 15. would go to none other than Ria of Ria's Collection and Divya of Easy Cooking for starting 'Sweet Punch'. I trust that whatever baking I do today, I owe it to the two of you. Keep rocking gals!

Thank you all you dear people who stop by my blog, care to leave comments, even to those of you whose visits I can sense only  in the blog Stats. I am enjoying blogging wih all your support and hope to do better with passing days.

Chilly Chicken

One of the widely spread Indo-Chinese dishes and liked by most! I am lost for words today and hence let's straight away dive into the recipe. This is inspired from Chaitrali's 'I-m-not-a-Chef'.

Ingredients

Boneless chicken - 1 cup (cut into bitesize pieces)

For marination:

Egg - 1

Cornflour - 1/4 tbsp

Dark soya sauce - 1 tsp

Pepper powder - to taste

Salt - to taste

For the sauce:

Garlic - 8-10 cloves, finely chopped

Onion - 1 medium sized, finely chopped or diced

Capsicum - 1 medium sized, finely chopped or diced

Red chilli sauce - 1/2 tbsp

Green chilli sauce - 1/2 tbsp

Soya sauce - 1 tsp

Cornflour - 1 tsp

Chicken / Vegetable Stock - 1/2 cup (I used Maggi Cube dissolved in 1/2 cup water)

Green chillies - 2-3, finely chopped (as per spice tolerance, increase or decrease)

Salt and sugar as required.

Method:

1. Marinate the chicken pieces with egg, pepper powder, salt, soya sauce and keep aside for 15 mins.

2. Deep fry in oil till golden brown and keep aside.

3. Heat a tbsp of oil in a pan. Add chopped garlic and saute for a while.

4. Then add green chillies and continue to saute.

5. Add onions and capsicum and continue to saute. Add all green chilli sauce, red chilli sauce and soya sauce and combine.

6. Add the fried chicken pieces and toss well. Add chicken stock.

7. Mix a tsp of cornflour in a little water and add.

8. Add salt and sugar and combine.

Note:

If you are serving this for a getogether, keep the fried chicken pieces and the sauce ready. Combine just before serving.

Methi Alu Parantha

Paranthas make for a filling and comforting meals. With a bowl of Curd and some pickle along their side, paranthas are very much relished by Abbas and I. My initial attempts at making them were super duper failures. As I would have the stuffing ooze out from all poosible nooks and corners of my paranthas. It would seem as though I was doing everything right but the outcome would turn out to be a disaster. In situations like these, marketing skills of Ma surface. She has the capability to promote anything under the sun but they never get sold. Even when it's obvious that something is not good, she would sing praises to cover the loop holes. Coz she is a kind of person who can never speak ill about anyone in front of them (Behind their back is something else). I, on the other hand pass honest (at times, nasty) comments whether you like it or not. I know it's not good always but I can't help it. That's the way I'm made!!!

There is this small outlet in my office cafeteria that has an open kitchen and sells paranthas. I would daily go there and order paranthas and watch them being made. They would make huge sized balls out of the dough, flatten them and place the stuffing, make pleats and cover the stuffing with the uncovered part of the dough. What I was doing wrong till then was I would make small balls and put lots of stuffing inside. Another thing I rectified was that I now saute the stuffing lighlty in a Kadai so that there is no moisture content in it. I have given a pictorial for people like me to overcome this parantha making barrier. Hope it helps!

Ingredients:

For the dough:

Wheat flour

Salt

Water

For the stuffing:

Fenugreek leaves - 1 cup (optional)

Onion - 1 medium finely chopped

Tomato kethcup - 1 tbsp

Potatoes - 2-3, boiled and mashed

Salt to taste

Red chilli powder - to taste

Coriander powder - 1/2 tsp

Cumin powder - 1/2 tsp

Oil - 1 tbsp

Method:

1. Knead the wheat flour, salt and water together to make a soft but firm dough. Keep aside covered.

2. Heat oil in a pan. Add fenugreek leaves and saute till they turn crisp. Add onion and saute till they are transparent. Add tomato ketchup, all spice powders, salt and mashed potatoes. Keep stirring to combine well. The mixture must be dry and not watery.

3. Make a huge ball from the kneaded dough, flatten it digging the centre a bit. Place a ball of stuffing in the centre. Rest of the dough has to be pleated to cover the stuffing on top. Roll this ball in wheat flour and delicately roll it using a rolling pin. No need to apply pressure. Lightly rolling is sufficient.

4. Fry on a tawa applying oil on both sides. Make sure both sides are cooked well.

5. Serve hot with curd and pickle or with any curry of your choice.

Stuffing:

Flattened ball with stuffing placed in the centre

Making pleats and covering the stuffing

Ball with stuffing secured inside

Delicately rolled

Roasted on a tawa

Palak Pathrado

Pathrado is one of the favourite sides on an Amchi platter. Having it along Rice and Dali Toy (Amchi Dal) is a heavenly experience for me and I believe for most Amchi population.

After marriage, I really missed this dish as I never saw Taro leaves in Kolkata. I couln’t even explain to my folks what it was as there are some varieties which are not edible. One day I googled Taro leaves for images and was showing Ma if she could identify it.  Sudden outburst from my kids’ nanny, Savitha at the sight of these leaves. “Didi, eigulo to kochu pata. Eigulo khao na ki?” (She could identify those and she wondered if we ate those?) I confidently (and proudly) announced, “Yes, we eat them. Do you know where these are available?” She said skeptically “There are so many near my home. I can get them for you. But… How …can you … eat …them?” Due to my persistence, she brought them for me and I jumped out of joy. I did not have a steamer with me then. So I made my Amma’s Phanna pathrado in pressure cooker. We had unexpected guests that day during lunch time. They too got to taste these and were stunned that something so delicious could be made out of Taro leaves! And Savitha would bring Taro leaves whenever she found fresh ones coz she too was hooked on to the taste!

Well, that was about Kolkata. Ever since we moved out of Kolkata, I never got to eat Pathrado. Never found Taro leaves in Chennai or in Bangalore. Had bumped into Divya’s Palak Pathrado some time back. Made those to subside my Pathrado craving. I must say they were yummy to the core. Didn’t miss Taro leaves at all. And the best part is that there is no fear of throat itching that occurs as after effect with some Taro leaves. The masala that I use is a bit different from Divya’s though. (I also drizzled drops of mustard oil instead of coconut oil to see if Abbas would like it. But as usual he didn’t like it. God Bless the Pathrado deprived soul!)

Ingredients:

Spinach leaves – 1 bunch

Rice flour – 2 tbsp (add little more if the masala turns runny)

Coconut oil – 1 tsp

For the Masala:

Grated coconut – 2/3 cup

Red chillies – 7-8 or as per spice tolerance

Tamarind – 1 small marble sized ball

Fenugreek seeds – a pinch

Turmeric poweder – ¼ tsp

Hing / Asafoetida – a pinch

Salt to taste

Method:

1. Wash the spinach leaves well and keep aside.
2. Grind together the ingredients called out in the ‘For the Masala’ section with a little water. Add rice flour and mix. The masala must have spreadable consistency. If it is too runny, add little more rice flour.
3. Take the biggest spinach leaves of the lot and place separately on a platform. Smear the masala over them. Place next smaller sized leaves over them and repeat the process of layering for about 6-8 times atleast. Roll gently and secure the rolls by tying them with a thread.
4. Steam in an idli steamer for about 20-25 minutes or till well cooked.
5. Serve hot right out of steamer with coconut oil drizzled on top. (And ofcourse do not forget to remove the thread tied around the Pathrados before serving.)

This recipe goes out to Bookmarked Recipes Every Tuesday hosted by Priya and Aipi.