Mutton Pulao

          This pressure cooker method of preparing mutton pulao is absolutely a no-fuss recipe that can be dished out at short notice and when you wish to keep it simple. It is a one-pot delicacy that goes well with just a raita and some salad as accompaniment. You just don't need anything else. It is perfect when you are craving for some non-veg. dish.

          It requires just basic ingredients available in your kitchen, nothing fancy. I have added a potato but it is purely optional. The addition of coriander & mint leaves gives a nice fragrance to the dish. This quick recipe is ideal for a kitty party, bachelor party or for a picnic. So do give it a try by following a quick step by step pictorial recipe to prepare this amazing dish.

• 500 gms. mutton with bones
• 1 cup basmati rice, soaked for 30 minutes
• 1 potato, cut into half
• 3-4 tbsp. ghee
• 2 bay leaves
• 1" cinnamon stick
• 2-3 green cardamoms 
• 4-5 cloves
• 1 tsp. cumin seeds
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 tsp. ginger-garlic paste
• 1/2 tsp. turmeric powder
• 1 tbsp. coriander-cumin powder
• 1-2 tsp. red chili powder
• 1 tsp. garam masala powder
• salt to taste
• 1 tomato, chopped
• handful of mint & coriander leaves, chopped

          Pressure cook the mutton in 1 cup water and a pinch of salt for 20-25 minutes on a low flame after the first whistle. Separate the mutton pieces from the stock and keep aside. 

          Heat ghee and sauté the potatoes till light brown. Drain and keep aside. Temper the same ghee with cinnamon, cardamoms, cloves, bay leaves and cumin seeds. Sauté for a few seconds. 

          Add the onion and stir fry till light brown. Then add the ginger-garlic paste and all the dry spices mixed with some water. Sauté till the ghee separates. 

          Add the tomato and continue to fry till it is mashed well. Now add the drained mutton followed by the soaked rice. Mix everything well and sauté for 2 minutes.

          Add 1 & 1/2 cups stock / hot water, coriander-mint leaves and the fried potatoes. Pressure cook for 2 whistles. 

          Allow the pressure to release on its own. Then fluff it up with a fork and serve with some raita and salad for a sumptuous meal. 

                     Pressure cook mutton in 1 cup water & a pinch of salt for 20-25 min. on 
                     low flame after the first whistle. Separate mutton pieces from the stock 
                     and keep aside. 

                     Heat ghee & sauté potatoes till light brown. Drain & keep aside. Temper
                     same ghee with cinnamon, cardamoms, cloves, bay leaves & cumin seeds. 
                     Sauté for a few seconds. 

                       Add the onion and stir fry till light brown. 

                     Add ginger-garlic paste & all dry spices mixed with some water. Sauté till 
                     the ghee separates. 

                       Add the tomato & continue to fry till it is mashed well. 

                       Now add the drained mutton. 

                       Add soaked rice. Mix everything well & sauté for 2 min.

                     Add 1 & 1/2 cups stock / hot water, coriander-mint leaves & fried potatoes.                                         Pressure cook for 2 whistles. 

                       When done, fluff it up with a fork.

                                Serve with some raita and salad for a sumptuous meal. 

Rosh Bora (Lentil Dumplings in Sugar Syrup - Bengali Sweet)

          This is a traditional Bengali homemade sweet not usually sold commercially. Rosh means syrup and bora means fritters / pakoras. So it is a simple recipe of deep fried pakoras made of  split urad dal (black gram lentil) and dunked in saffron infused sugar syrup. It is not so popular compared to other Bengali sweets, but nevertheless it is very yummy. For some variation, you can put few raisins inside the pakoras before frying them. Garnish with some chopped nuts and enjoy them chilled or at room temperature. 

• 1/4 cup urad dal (split black gram), soaked overnight
• 1/2 tsp. fennel seeds (saunf)
• 1/4 tsp. cardamom powder
• 1/4 tsp. baking soda
• pinch of salt
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 cups water
• pinch of saffron 
• 2-3 green cardamoms
• chopped dry fruits to garnish 
• oil to deep fry

          For the syrup, take water, cardamoms and sugar in a pan and bring it to a boil. Simmer for 8-10 minutes. Add the saffron and keep aside. 

          Grind the urad dal to a smooth paste by using very little water. Add the fennel seeds, salt, cardamom powder and baking soda. Mix everything well and beat for a while to make it fluffy.

          Heat oil. Make small round balls out of the dal mix and deep fry them in batches till golden brown in color. Drain and add them to the syrup. 

          Soak for a couple of hours. Garnish with the chopped nuts and serve at room temperature or chilled. 

Fried Paneer Wontons

          Fried Wontons are crispy appetizers, very popular in Chinese restaurants. They are usually stuffed with chicken mince or shrimp paste and served with a lip smacking sweet chili garlic sauce. 

          So come lets learn a vegetarian version with some paneer filling. These visually appealing small bites are in fact very easy to prepare. So give it a try by checking for a step by step pictorial recipe to prepare them right in your own kitchen and enjoy with your loved ones. 

Dough - 

• 1 cup plain flour 
• Pinch of salt
• water to knead

Stuffing - 

• 100 gms. paneer, grated
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1 tsp. sesame oil
• 1 tbsp. coriander leaves + stems
• 1 tbsp. fried onion
• 1 tbsp. tomato ketchup

Sweet Chili Garlic Sauce - 

• 1/2 cup sugar syrup
• 1 tsp red chili powder
• 2 tbsp. red chili flakes
• 1 tsp. garlic, grated
• pinch pf salt

Other Ingredients - 

• Oil to deep fry
• 1 tsp. coriander leaves, chopped

          Sweet Chili Garlic Sauce - In a bowl, mix together all the ingredients for the sauce and keep aside.

          Dough - Make a dough with plain flour, salt and water. Cover with a muslin clothe and keep aside. 

          Stuffing - In a bowl, mix all the ingredients and keep aside. 

          To make wontons - Divide the dough into equal portions. Roll out into a large thin circle. Cut small roundels with the help of a cookie cutter.

          Take one roundel and place 1 tsp. of the paneer filling in the centre. Add some water around half of the edge and fold in a half moon shape. 

          Pinch the edges to seal tight and pull the two corners of the triangle and seal them with some water. Make similar wontons with the rest of the dough and stuffing.

          Heat oil in a pan and deep fry till they turn light golden in colour. Drain on a kitchen towel and enjoy with the sweet chili garlic sauce. 
      

          

                       To make wontons - Divide dough into equal portions. Roll into a large 
                       thin circle. Cut small roundels with help of a cookie cutter. Take one
                       roundel and place 1/2 tsp. of the paneer filling in the center. 

                      Add some water around half of the edge & fold in a half moon shape.

                      Pinch the edges to seal tight.

                       Pull the two corners of the triangle and seal them with some water. 

                       Make similar wontons with the rest of the dough and stuffing.

                      Heat oil & deep fry till light golden in colour. Drain on a kitchen towel.

                                 Enjoy with the sweet chili garlic sauce. 
      

Mocha Chingri (Banana Blossom cooked with Prawns - Bong style)

          This is a traditional homemade Banana Blossom / Flower curry called 'Mocha Chingri' cooked along with prawns in an authentic Bengali style. It is quite a popular dish among most of the Bengali crowd and is actually an age old recipe. Earlier it was a simple homemade curry, but in recent times it made its way into many Bengali restaurants, especially outside West Bengal. 

          Banana Blossom / Flower has a lot of health benefits as it contains vitamins and minerals. A lot of time goes into cleaning the blossom, but it definitely is worth every effort when you relish this exotic delicacy either with rice or chapatti. It is just irresistible. So check out the step by step pictorial recipe to prepare it.

          First I recommend you to put on disposable gloves as the iron content in these flowers will discolor your nails and fingers. Then peel the layers of the banana blossom and remove the florets. Then from each floret discard a thick stamen from the centre and a translucent outer cover. All this process is pretty time consuming so be patient as the end product is just irresistible. So Happy Cooking !!!

• 1 medium size mocha / banana blossom, cleaned & chopped finely
• 10-15 prawns, deveined & washed
• 3 tbsp. mustard oil
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 whole dry red chilies
• 1" cinnamon stick 
• 2-3 green cardamoms 
• 4-5 cloves
• 1 tsp. cumin seeds 
• 1 potato, cubed
• 1 onion , chopped
• 1 tsp. ginger-garlic paste 
• 1 tomato, chopped
• 2-3 green chilies, slit
• salt to taste
• 1/2 tsp. turmeric powder
• 1 tsp. sugar (opt)
• 1 tbsp. coriander-cumin powder
• 1 tsp. garam masala powder
• 1 tsp. ghee

         Soak the chopped banana blossom in salted water along with a pinch of turmeric powder and juice of 1/2 lime for an hour. 

          Marinate the prawns with a pinch of salt, turmeric powder and red chili powder for 10 minutes. 

          Wash the soaked banana blossom well and drain. Pressure cook in required quantity of water in which a pinch each of salt and turmeric powder has been added. Drain and mash well. Keep aside. 

          Heat oil in a pan and fry the potatoes till light brown. Drain and keep aside. Fry the marinated prawns till they changes colour and keep aside.

          Temper the same oil with dry red chilies, bay leaves, cumin seeds, cinnamon, cloves and cardamoms.

          Add the onion and sauté till light brown. Then add the ginger-garlic paste and all the dry spices (except garam masala and salt) mixed with some water. Sauté till the oil separates.

          Add the chopped tomatoes and stir fry till it is mashed. Now add the fried potatoes and prawns. Mix nicely and cook on a low flame for 2-3 minutes. 

          Add the boiled mocha (banana flower), salt and green chilies. Give it a stir and cook, covered on a low flame till done. Sprinkle water at intervals if needed.

          When done, add the garam masala and ghee. Give it a toss and switch off the flame. Serve with hot steamed rice or chapatti.

                      

                      Heat oil & fry potatoes till light brown. Drain and keep aside.

                       Fry the marinated prawns till they changes colour and keep aside.

                     Temper same oil with dry red chilies, bay leaves, cumin seeds, cinnamon, 
                     cloves and cardamoms.

                       Add the onion and sauté till light brown. 

                      Add ginger-garlic paste & all dry spices (except garam masala & salt) 
                      mixed with some water. Sauté till the oil separates.

                       Add chopped tomatoes and stir fry till it is mashed. 

                        Add fried potatoes & prawns. Mix & cook on a low flame for 2-3 min. 

                      Add boiled mocha (banana flower), salt & green chilies. Stir & cook, 
                      covered on a low flame till done. Sprinkle water at intervals if needed.

                        When done, add garam masala & ghee. Toss & switch off the flame.

                                  Serve with hot steamed rice or chapatti.

Bhaja Muger Dal diye Lau Chingri - Bengali Cuisine

          Lau Chingri (lauki / Bottle Gourd - Prawn Curry) is a simple and a traditional Bengali homemade delicacy. The addition of prawns cooked with bottle gourd and a medley of spices tastes simply yummy. But I gave a twist to it by adding some dry roasted green gram lentil (moong dal). 

          This combo turned out very delectable and tastes awesome when paired with hot steamed rice or chapati. This recipe has minimum of spices and is light on the tummy. So a perfect curry for the summer. For a veg. version, prawns can be substituted with some bori / dried lentil dumplings to prepare this curry. 

• 1 medium size bottle gourd, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup moong dal, dry roasted, washed & drained
• 8-10 medium size prawns, cleaned, washed & drained
• 3 tbsp. mustard oil
• 1 tsp. cumin seeds 
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 green chilies, slit
• salt to taste
• 1/2 tsp. turmeric powder
• 1 tsp. sugar (opt)
• 1 tsp, roasted cumin powder
• 1 tbsp. ghee
• handful of coriander leaves, chopped

          Marinate the prawns with a pinch of salt and turmeric powder for 5-10 minutes. Heat 1 tbsp. oil and saute the prawns till it changes colour. Drain and keep aside.

          Heat remaining oil and temper with cumin seeds and bay leaves. Saute for a few seconds. Add the chopped bottle gourd, roasted dal, fried prawns and all the dry spices.

         Mix everything well and cook, covered till done. Sprinkle water and keep stirring at intervals.

          When done, add ghee and coriander leaves. Give it a stir and serve with plain steamed rice or chapatis.