Finally, I could prepare something similar to "kashundi"..... that Bengali style mustard sauce. This is the sauce the grandmother never made at her home, so I never had seen the process of it in person. I have always heard that it calls for stricter rules and regulations, it spoils if you do not abide by them. Kashundi was not even a regular affair at our home, I mean it was not so that we could not have "shaak bhaja and bhaat without a kashundi and sliced onion alongside." The mother would occasionally buy it and never thought of trying it at her two roomed rented flat where there was constant monitoring by the land lord on what we were doing. I mean that interference could not stop her from preparing a variety of pickles though, its all about preferences. May be that 19 years of humiliation made my father build a decent two storied home in Barrackpore after retirement. Once I reached an age when I could speak on family matters, I told them if you occupy someone's home for near two decades, they would get scared and act weird. I still wonder why the daddy did not shift to a better neighbourhood after his first promotion. Its all about your mental setup, how you want your life to be. Moreover, we are a generation who would never understand the value of a hundred rupees note... how important, what difference it could make in a man's life.... our very middle class parents knew the value of it. The reason why I consider the father-in-law nearer to me in that family..... he definitely is not my father, never can be but we could have been good friends.... that did not happen under family pressure. Even after the son of the house made a triple forward leap and changed the family's financial scenario, his father lived a bare minimal life, till date he is concerned about the son's huge amount of responsibility. In that family.... only the father-in-law cares about our future.... always he has to enquire about the grandson.... thinking about his future. Worrying about his son.... how he would manage the huge responsibility entrusted on his skeletal structure, he fell more sick.... only he cares for his son and knows that all those printed paper notes are result of sheer hard work and a lot of sweat. That gives him a place in my heart, he need not be my father for that.... I have seen his struggle and sacrifice throughout his life, one who did not change his lifestyle even after the son brought a sea-change in the family set up.... I have always seen unequal treatment in their family and have argued with the husband "why so?"
I am like my father-in-law, had I have freaked around with friends, carry nothing less than a Gucci or a Guess at least, start my day at the nearest Starbucks..... the husband would not have been able to save enough to take care of his parents.... his family should feel that, admit that, not really do they. What is my bargain with the husband? "See boss, I am too mean, never a social worker.... I want uninterrupted educational aids for my son, his dreams of building his own life his way should in no way be disturbed"..... So, there you are, I have no regrets carrying a 25$ bag, wearing a 20$ dress most of the time, saying a stricter 'no' to a 'Shaukh' or a 'Gahonaz'.... which is quite an exercise given I am a saree and antique silver jewelry lover..... However, I have a profile picture coming up wearing their products, before pujo I hope. You see, if I am not working, I should respect other's labour.... if I am working, I should respect mine..... a spendthrift's home hardly gets to thrive. So, mutton, salmon, giant tiger prawns, good hilsa do not come together at our home.... two at a time, all in turns. Okay, preparing chutney, sauces, condiments at home is not the result of a miserly act or exercise, I really find the homemade stuffs tastier these days.... take the example of this AAM SHORSHE KANCHALANKAR CHUTNEY, I did it better , mine is tastier than any store bought average quality "Kashundi" done hygienically if not wearing "shuddho kapor on a shuddho shorir." I did not name it kashundi because I did not consult any kashundi recipe and just took the liberty to go my way with a similar kind.
I find making jams and sauces at home very relaxing. They rarely occupy much of your time and energy. If you are starting your day looking at your home grown greens, you feel fresh all day.
One was yesterday morning, one today. Yes, I do spend on them, they give me the necessary boost. Without spending too much on them, our mother grows wonders in her terrace. I requested her for a vegetable garden in her space this year..... so long she does not listen to me, the people around keep me alive with their lovely produce. Once I get the necessary energy for the day, preparing a fried rice for their lunch is not a problem because Cristine gets everything ready on the kitchen top. The magic of a fried rice is that you can prepare it with any combination of ingredients..... I either like very authentic, simple Chinese fried rice or the Southern Indian variety of rices. Doing an easy fried rice and a vegetarian condiment with raw mango and black mustard seeds like this AAM SHORSHE KANCHALANKAR CHUTNEY is not a hard job, I mean even if you are a minimalist cook.
Shall we proceed with the easy, no cook recipe?
INGREDIENTS :
RAW MANGO : 1BIG OR STANDARD SIZE [SHREDDED]
BLACK MUSTARD SEED : 50GM
GREEN CHILLI : 10-12 [ALTER AS PER THEIR HEAT LEVEL]
GARLIC CLOVE : 6-7
WHITE VINEGAR : 100-150ML
LEMON JUICE : 2-3TBSP
SUGAR : 2TSP
SALT : AS REQUIRED
MUSTARD OIL : 5-6TBSP
PROCEDURE :
We will peel the mango and shred it well. Wash it thereafter. Then we will take the ingredients on the kitchen counter.
Thereafter, we will wash and soak the green chillies in half of the vinegar required. Later I used more of the chillies as per the requirement.
Then, we will wash the black mustard seeds taking on a strainer and soak in water for 1/2 an hour.
After 1/2 an hour, we will take the strained black mustard seeds, green chillies along with the vinegar it was soaked in, the garlic cloves and salt in a blender.
We will pulse at high for a minute, then pen the lid. With help of a spatula, we will get the content together.... add more of vinegar and pulse at high for a minute.
Now let us open lid, add the rest of the vinegar, sugar, turmeric and the shredded raw mango.
Now let us pulse at high for a minute and take down and transfer to a bowl. Then we will add the mustard oil.
Let us add the lemon juice, adjust the salt if required and beat well.
At this stage, I felt it requires more of green chillies. So I added them and blended well.
Before transferring it to a sterilised bottle, I kept it under the sun for the entire day.
Now refrigerate and enjoy for a month.
RAW MANGO : 1BIG OR STANDARD SIZE [SHREDDED]
BLACK MUSTARD SEED : 50GM
GREEN CHILLI : 10-12 [ALTER AS PER THEIR HEAT LEVEL]
GARLIC CLOVE : 6-7
WHITE VINEGAR : 100-150ML
LEMON JUICE : 2-3TBSP
SUGAR : 2TSP
SALT : AS REQUIRED
MUSTARD OIL : 5-6TBSP
PROCEDURE :
We will peel the mango and shred it well. Wash it thereafter. Then we will take the ingredients on the kitchen counter.
Thereafter, we will wash and soak the green chillies in half of the vinegar required. Later I used more of the chillies as per the requirement.
Then, we will wash the black mustard seeds taking on a strainer and soak in water for 1/2 an hour.
We will pulse at high for a minute, then pen the lid. With help of a spatula, we will get the content together.... add more of vinegar and pulse at high for a minute.
Now let us open lid, add the rest of the vinegar, sugar, turmeric and the shredded raw mango.
Now let us pulse at high for a minute and take down and transfer to a bowl. Then we will add the mustard oil.
Let us add the lemon juice, adjust the salt if required and beat well.
At this stage, I felt it requires more of green chillies. So I added them and blended well.
Before transferring it to a sterilised bottle, I kept it under the sun for the entire day.
Now refrigerate and enjoy for a month.
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