Exotic Hilsa Fish Curry

Pohela Boishak is the Bengali New Year.  Pohela means first, and Boishak means the month.  It is usually celebrated the during the middle of April.  For Pohela Boishak people clean their homes so that they can start the year with a clean slate, dress in fine clothes, and visit friends and family.  We also eat desserts during the New Year so that the rest of the year will be as sweet as the desserts.  One of the main lunch dishes is Hilsa (fish).  During Pohela Boishak it is a must to have Hilsa because it is a time honored tradition.

Ingredients:

One whole Hilsa: cut it into small pieces
Ground mustard: 3 tablespoons
Whole green chillies: 6
Chilli powder: 1 teaspoon
Turmaric powder: 1 teaspoon
Ground onion: 4 small ones
Salt: 1 teaspoon
Oil:  1/4 cup

Process of making:

Marinate the Hilsa fish for 30 minutes with half a teaspoon of salt and a quarter teaspoon of tumeric.  After that grind the mustard and green chillies together with 2 tablespoons of water.  Mix in all the ingredients with the fish and put it in a shallow dish and cook it on the stove top on medium heat for a 30 minutes, or until you see the layer of oil floating on the top.  Be sure to cover the fish while cooking.  Serve it with white rice and enjoy.

Zesty Borhani

No wedding can be fulfilled if there is no borhani served. Borhani is a fresh mint yogurt drink that is served with biryani (layered rice and meat).  The flavorful seasoning of mint, black pepper, sugar, and green chili gives you the little bit of hot, sweet, and zesty flavor.  Borhani could be served as a summer drink too.


Ingredients:

yogurt:
water: 1/2 cup
ground cumin: 1 teaspoon
ground cumin: 1/2 teaspoon
ground ginger: 1/2 teaspoon
chili powder: 1/2 teaspoon
ground black pepper: 1/2 teaspoon
ground mustard: 1 tablespoon
mint leaves (paste): 1 tablespoon
green chili (paste): 2 teaspoons
sugar: 1 1/2 teaspoons
salt: 2 1/2 teaspoons
black salt: 2 teaspoons

Making process:

In a blender blend the yogurt with water.  Mix in with all the ingredients. Adjust the salt, sugar, and the chilies on your own taste. Pour it in a pitcher and refrigerated until serving.

Sweet and Sour Mango Achar

Don't feel like eating dinner or tired of eating the same food?  Just add little bit of achar in your food and you will enjoy your meal.  Achar has always been a part of our cuisine. The mango achar is the most prominent one in my country.  Mangoes are seasonal fruit that only grow in summer.  During the summer there are so many kinds of achar are made, but to me the most favorite one is sweet and sour mango achar.

Ingredients:
green mango sliced: 2 cups
sugar: 1 1/2 cups
vinegar: 1/3 cup
chopped dried whole red chili: 2 teaspoons
ginger sliced: 2 teaspoons
salt: 1 tablespoon

Making Process:

Marinate the mango with salt, cover, and keep it aside for four hours.  Rinse the mango and pat it dry with a paper towel.  In a saucepan mix the mango with all the ingredients and put it on a low heat on the stove. Stir frequently and when the mango is boiled and gravy seems sticky remove from the stove. Cool and keep it in a bottle and enjoy for the whole year.

Light, Flaky Daal Puri

In my country, daily breakfast foods are called roti, puri, and parathas. They are made from whole wheat or plain flour.  Rotis are what we eat for daily breakfast, but puris and parathas are made occasionally, such as when we have company. To me nothing beats a simple dal puri for breakfast. With its light and flaky taste it is also great for snack too.

Ingredients:
Pink lentils or daal (available in Asian aisle): 1/4 cup
Ground ginger: 1/4 teaspoon
Ground onion: 1 small
Green chillies (optional): 1
Dry chillies (optional): 3
Fried onion: 1/2 cup
Coriander or Mint leaves: 1 tablespoon
Salt: 1/2 teaspoon
Flour: 1 1/2 cups
Vegetable oil for frying: 2 cups

Steps to make Dal puri:

Boil the daal with 1/4 cup of water, ginger, ground onion, and green chilli on very low heat.  Mash it with both hands when it is fully cooked and dry.  Fry the dry chillies in oil and pat it dry and mix it with the fried onions and mash it little bit.  Mix all the ingredients with daal, besides the flour. In a big bowl combine flour with 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt, 3 tablespoons of oil, and make into dough with a 1/4 cup of room temp water. Making sure the dough is not too soft. Cover for 30 minutes.

Make 8 balls of flour and daal mixture.  Flatten the flour dough with hands and put the daal in the center and close the opening.  Then cover it with a wet towel.  Dust the rolling surface with flour and roll the dough with it face down on the opening.  In the mean while heat the oil into 350 degrees and fry the daal puri until they are golden brown.  Serve it sauce or ketchup.

Warm, Steaming Pulao

Pulao is a simple and easy dish to make.  It is usually made when one has company or when there is a celebration, so it is not something you would make everyday.  It is something anyone can make because it takes so little time and doesn't require that much effort.  Either way it is delicious and made in a snap.

Ingredients:
Basmati Rice: 4 cup
Ghee: 1/2 cup
Cinnamon: 4 small pieces
Cardamom: 4 pieces
Cloves: 2 pieces
Ginger paste: 2 teaspoons
Salt: 1 tablespoon
Boiled water: 7 cups
Kewra water: 2 teaspoons
Green chilies: 5 (optional)
Fried onions: 3 tablespoons

Cooking process:
Rinse the rice and keep it in a colander. In a big pot heat the ghee, and lightly fry the cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves in the ghee. Mix in the ginger with 2 tablespoon of water. Pour the boiled water and salt and then close the lid.

When the water starts bubbling pour in the rice and stir.  After a few minutes pour the Kewra water and green chilies, and sprinkle the fried onions into the pot and close the lid.  In the meanwhile preheat the oven to 350 degrees and then place the pot in the oven for 30 minutes.  Serve it warm with meat or vegetable curry.  Enjoy!

Spicy Beef Curry

Beef curry is a versatile dish because you can eat it with pulao, biryani, or just plain rice.  It has many spices in it which gives the flavor a kick.  You would normally make beef curry if you had guests over because it is not something you would eat everyday.  Most people also serve this at their weddings because it is a special occasion.  When I entertain guests I usually create this dish; most people seem to really enjoy it.  Whether you have company or just want to try something new, beef curry is a delicious food to make.

Ingredients:

Beef with bones: 5 pounds
Ground onions: 1 cup
Ground ginger: 4 tablespoons
Ground garlic: 3 tablespoons
Cardamom: 6 pieces
Cinnamon: 6 pieces
Plain yogurt: 1 cup
Ghee (melted butter): 1 cup
Sugar: 1 tablespoon
Salt: 3 teaspoons
Green chilies: 15 whole
Kewra water: 2 tablespoons
Orange food color: a pinch

Cooking procedure:

In big pot, mix all the ingredients except food color, green chilies, and Kewra water.  Cook everything else on medium heat.  Stir half an hour later.  When the meat is fully cooked and tender pour in the Kewra water and then cook it for 10 minutes.  When you see the ghee (butter) creating a layer on top mix the food color with 1 teaspoon of water and then pour it into the pot.  Then place all the green chilies in the pot and let it simmer for another half hour.  Enjoy this with rice, pulao, or biryani.

Pleasurable Pitha (home made cake)

In my country one of the most famous winter food is pitha.  It is a traditional food item. The winter morning is the best time to eat it, because the warmth of the pitha is more appetizing in the cold morning.  In Asia, rice cultivation occurs the most during November and December and they use that rice to make the pithas.  Some well known pithas are Vapa, Patisapta, Chitoi, and Teler Pitha.  It is a traditional winter breakfast in our culture, and also served in weddings too.  When I was a child they did not sell any pitha in the stores, and now we can even find it in Indian stores here!  They sell it like a hot cake. What can I say about pleasurable pitha?  It is tasty and delicious!

Ingredients:
Rice flour: 2-1/2 cup
Flour: 1/2 cup
Salt: 1/4 teaspoon
Sugar: 1/2 cup
Water: 1/4 cup
Vegetable oil for frying

Directions:
In a big bowl mix all the dry ingredients. Mix in the water.  The flour mixture should be thick.  Cover it for the 30 minutes. Heat the oil in the pan, and pour 1 tablespoon of the flour mixture in the hot oil.  Fry it on low heat, until it turns light brown. Serve it hot and enjoy!

Mouth Watering Rasgolla

 In my culture we treat our guests with Misti (sweets) when there is something to celebrate.  We believe that a wedding is incomplete when there is no Misti.  Misti is one of our authentic and cultural traditions.  There are varieties of luscious sweets, such as rasgolla, chom chom, kalojam, rasmalai, etc.  The finest ingredients are used to make these authentic sweets.  Rasgolla is one of the most popular sweet in my country.  It originated from the eastern part of the India then spread out all over the southern part of Asia, becoming popular along the way. Pohela Baishak (Bengali New Year), one of the largest cultural celebrations in my country.  People take at least a bite of misti, because they believe that their life will be sweet as the misti throughout the whole year.

Recipes of Rasgolla:
Milk: 1 liter
Vinegar: 4 tablespoons
Sugar: 1 cup
Flour: 1 tea spoon
Sugar: 1 tea spoon
Powdered cardamom: 1/8 teaspoon
Rose water: 1 teaspoon
Water: 3 cups

Boil milk, and in a separate bowl mix the vinegar with 4 tablespoons of water.  After the boiling the milk for 5 minutes, pour the vinegar mixture in to the milk.  Remove the pot from the stove.  After 5 minutes pour the milk mixture in a colander.  Leave it outside for 3 hours. Pour sugar and 3 cups of water in a shallow pan, bring it to a boil.  Keep it to a simmer for 5 minutes.  Mash the channa (milk mixture) with your palm, and mix it with the dry ingredients.  Make 16-20 balls with the channa.  Dump all the balls in the sugar water.  Turn the heat up.  After 10 minutes put the lid on.  Keep boiling another 20-25 minutes.  Pour the rasgolla in the serving dish with the rose water, and serve the mouth watering dessert.

All about Eid

Eid-Ul-Fitr is a celebration after the end of Ramadan (30 days of fasting dawn to sunset).  It is one of the two festivals for Muslims.  Lots of dishes that are rich in flavor are prepared for sharing with friends and families.  Shemai is one of the traditional foods of Eid-Ul-Fitr.  It is prepared by using fine vermicelli (a thin type of pasta), milk, ghee(butter), and dried fruits.

Ingredients for Shemai
shemai (vermicelli): 1.25 cup
Ghee: 1/4pound
Milk: 4 cup
Sugar: 1 cup
Almonds: 1 tablespoon (thinly sliced)
Pistachios: 1 tablespoon (thinly sliced)

In a non stick fry pan pour the ghee.  In the mean while cut the shemai into 1 inch long sections.  Pour the shemai in the pan, and fry it for few minutes until it turns light brown, and then set aside. Pour the milk in a pot and bring it to a boil.  Add the fried shemai into the milk and boil it for 3 minutes, and then lower the heat.  While stirring, pour sugar little by little.  Keep it to a simmer for another 4 minutes, but keep stirring.  Then pour the shemai into the seerving dish.  Sprinkle the nuts on it, and put it in the fridge for 4 hours before serving.

Ramadan Specials

Ramadan is a 30 days of fasting period from sunrise to sunset. Fasting is the fourth pillar of Islam. It is Fard (required) to fast during this month. Fasting help us to understand the suffering of the unfortunate people, and help us to appreciate the blessings we got from Allah.  Before the sun sets, everyone gathers around the table, and when the sun sets make Du'aa (prayer).  Then we eat our meal.  The meal we eat is called Iftar. We break our fast with dates and water.  Lots of dishes are prepared during this time.  One of the Ramadan treats is Piazu. This is a dish we make for the whole 30 days of Ramadan. We make this dish before the Iftar, so we can eat it fresh and crispsy.

Recipes for Piazu
Red lentils: 1 cup
Chopped onions: 1 cup
Turmeric powder: 1/2 teaspoon
Ground red pepper: 1/2 teaspoon
Green chillies (chopped): 2 small
Mint or coriander leaves: 1 teaspoon
Salt: 1 teaspoon

Soak the lentils for an hour or so.  Blend the lentils in the food prosessor with 1/4 cup of water.  Add all the ingridents to the lentil mixture.  On the stove, heat 1 cup of oil at 350 degrees.  While the oil is heating up, take about golf ball size amount and flatten it with your palm.  The shape should be circular, but flat. Then deep fry it until they turn brown and crispy.  Serve it with ketchup or hot sauce.

Luscious Mango Kulfi

Mangoes are seasonal fruits that only grow in the summer time.  You can use the green mangoes, since they are not ripe yet, to make chutney or pickles.  When they are ripe you can eat them by themselves or you can make mango lassi or kulfi.  Mango kulfi is an Indian version of mango ice cream.  It is a cool, delectable treat that you can eat or serve at any time.  This dessert is a great party snack that will surely wow your guests!

Items you will need:

1-16 oz container of Cool Whip
3/4 cup of evaporated milk
1 1/2 cup of condensed milk
2 cups of canned mango pulp(available in the asian aisle)

Makes 10 servings

First leave keep the Cool Whip at room temperature for half an hour.  In the meantime you can mix the mango pulp, evaporated milk, and condensed milk.  Make sure you blend all the ingredients well.  Then add the Cool Whip to the mixture and mix it.  After that put it in the freezer for about 5 hours or until the kulfi is set.  You can serve it with Cool Whip or fresh fruit.  Enjoy!

Delicious Beef Samosa

Indian spices are delicately used in dishes to accentuate the taste of the main ingredient.  Although most people use spices in food, there are more uses for them.  Over 3,000 years ago Ayurvedic writing prescribed these spices for therapeutic and medical functions.  Indian beef samosa is a crispy and crunchy treat perfect for any occasion.  You can serve it as an appetizer or just have it as a snack.  You can also add vegetables or enjoy  it with dipping sauces such as chutney or hot sauce.

Items you will need:

1/2 pound of ground beef
1/2 cup of chopped onions
1/8 cup of oil
3/4 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of chopped mint leaves
1teaspoon of chopped coriander leaves
1 teaspoon of ground ginger
1 teaspoon of garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon of black pepper
1/4 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon of ground cardamom
1/2 cup of water
1 green chilli (optional)
5tea spoon of flour
1 cup of vegetable/canola oil for frying
Spring Roll Shells(available in any asian store)

Makes 8 servings

In a large frying pan mix ground beef, salt, ginger, garlic, black pepper, cinnamon, cardamom, oil and water. Cover and cook them over low heat. Mix them all up with onions, green chilies, coriander and mint leaves and 1/2 teaspoon of flour,when the ground beef dries up. Make a paste with the reamining flour and water.This will come in handy when you are making the samosa.

In the meanwhile leave the spring roll wrapper at room temperature for 30 minutes.When they are easy to peel, cut one sheet in the middle making it look like a long rectangle.Cover the  remaining shells with a damp paper towel.Take the upper left hand corner of the left half and fold it down so that the bottom edges meet and so it looks like a triangle.  The whole left side will not become a triangle, only 3/4 of it will.  Then fold the triangle over to the right, still making sure that the bottom edges are aligned.  After that fold the triangle upward, now making sure that the top edges are aligned.  When you have finished folding you should have created a pocket.  In the pocket pour 3 teaspoons of the beef mixture and dab the flour paste that you made before on the outside edge of the pocket and press it close. Then there should be a part of the wrapper that has not been folded.  Dab a little flour paste mixture on that piece and fold it downward. In the meanwhile heat the oil to 350 degrees. Deep fry them until they are golden brown.  Store the left over shells in the freezer. Serve the delicious beef samosa with hot sauce or chutney.