MOCHAR CHOP

"Kahan se shuru karein? .... Baat to kabhi khatam huyehi nehi..... har ek Khwaishyein kabhi dafna diye the hamne, yun lagti hain kafan kuch zordar nehi the... sab kuch nikal parey mujhe be abroo karne ki josh mein...." ..... No, the husband did not clap and say wah...wah... kya baat... kya baat while taking a heavenly bite on that MOCHAR CHOP with his favourite Earl Grey tea.... I do not blame him either, neither of us know how many grammatical errors are there in those two lines. The man of this house in fact said; "wife you feed your readers utter lies, you do not have a bit of romanticism in you"..... Why did he say this? Well, it was yesterday morning....  a Saturday morning indeed and I was juggling in the kitchen .... which vegetable to coordinate with what spice mix.... whether to cook the mutton with "ada roshun bata" or to follow a master chef's recipe, would that semi-frozen 'katla' go well with 'sheem and aloo'?..... It was 1pm when the husband had to call the wife by his side and say... "lets go out this evening wifey.... I will treat you with a wine of your choice"... The answer was an instant "no"..... I was then planning how to get a near perfect filling for the MOCHAR CHOP..... similar to what we get in the "Kolkatar Telebhajar Dokan"...... how could I say an yes.... and why should I? When I am in mood, I too call him at office and say "arey dil samhalta nehi kya karoon?".... he says take a shower, go to sleep or go for some shopping.... and then hangs the phone without saying a bye! 

When it comes to some "fry-shry" as yum as this MOCHAR CHOP, we do sit together with exactly the platter you see in the picture and bond over a good movie. Now, if you see the lady of this house in the roads always with her headphone on, totally oblivious of the people's reaction watching her foot tapping on a Bollywood number, it is not her fault. The police in this beautiful island are generous enough not to send her to an asylum till date! Once I heard Shabana Azmi saying in an interview her poet husband Zaved Akhtar ji has no romantic bones in his body, so I did not take any initiative to file a divorce against the man of this house. Before I take it on the senior, I need to settle score with the junior ..... It is a couple of months now that the son is getting a haircut that is bothering me too much.... one side of his head is shaven, the other side is wavy with too much of hair.... The mother gets him acne removal creams, he does not apply.... The mother gets on her nerves, the father is not bothered! The duo are actually up on speeding my way towards heaven.... I am such a good "o-men" you see, still frying "pakorey-shakorey".... fries, fritters, snacks for them, I had a little.... else they may feel bad... haha... thats a naughty girl you have come across.

On a bit serious note, the veteran Bengali actress Supriya Debi left for the heavenly abode day before yesterday. So many of her movies I have grown up watching.... be it "Meghe Dhaka Tara" or "Chowringhee" ..... She was a good cook, I was a teen may be or in the early 90's, she used to feature in cookery shows or her recipes were seen in the Bengali magazine "Sananda" with the caption "Tomader Dada Eta Bhalobashten"..... Dada here refers to the the iconic Bengali actor Uttam Kumar.... I liked the way how she referred his name while showcasing each of her creations... No, they were not a married couple, they lived in together... later got separated too.... That should not be my concern, they gave us master pieces / good amount of entertainment .... 

Yesterday, I saw the Bengali celebrity chef Rongon Neogi's obituary note on her and liked it .... he says just few days back she was with him judging a cookery contest.... She was old, sick but active till death.... that is how life should be.... A Bengali recipe is a must today! In fact, as I take a look at my Google photo library, 90% of the food photos are Bengali... except for some homemade jams and simple cakes.... Why on earth should I go for a three layered cheese cake topped with raspberry compote.... when I know I cannot manage it... "sref dhyarabo".... when there is a Bengawan Solo to Icing Room just opposite our home, when a "shorshe-narkol bata diye loti" cries for some recognition ...... 

Yesterday, someone called and told we did not talk quite for sometime S.... I told you fall in that bracket who I / we need not talk or be formal every other day.... we are just there for each other... Now I do not wish to mention names always... because it gets me to something I am averse to..... profile updates with swim suits on ... truly! Some bloggers have already blogged about MOCHAR CHOP earlier, I did not take a look at their's before trying it yesterday.... This tongue has tasted this bliss innumerable times till date, she should be able to do full justice to it. If you can consider the picture quality and the slightly distorted outer finish.... you will agree that I could get the "choper dokaner" taste. MOCHAR CHOP is a Bengali style savoury snack sold at every neighbourhood back in Kolkata. It is made with a filling prepared with chopped and boiled banana blossom, boiled and mashed potato, fried peanuts, ginger paste, roasted.... dry grind spice mix. It is then dipped in a batter made from corn flour and refined flour, coated with bread crumbs and deep fried to perfection till crisp. If you are a miser like me, you will not buy per piece for 5-8 rupees, that too made with a negligible amount of banana blossom. If you are an "only soups and salads".... kind of a person, this blog is never your destination!

INGREDIENTS :

Chopped Banana Blossom : 2-3 coffee mug 
Potato : 2medium [peel, boil, mash]
Peanut : 2tsp [halved]

Chopped Coconut : 2 tbsp
Green Chilli : 2[chopped]
Ginger Paste : 1tbsp
Cumin Seed : 1tsp + 1/4tsp
Coriander Seed : 1tsp
Fennel Seed : 1/2tsp
Cinnamon Stick : 2one inch size
Green Cardamom : 2-3
Clove : 3-4
Dry Red Chilli : 3-4
Turmeric Powder : 1/3tsp
Bread Crumb : 250-300 gm
Refined Flour : 1/2small tea cup
Corn Flour : 1/4 small tea cup
Sugar : 1tsp
Salt : As Required
Oil : Enough to deep fry

METHOD :

Wash the already chopped banana blossoms taking it in a strainer. Pressure cook it adding 11/2 coffee mug of water, little salt and turmeric. Let cool and then drain the water. Reserve it in a bowl.

We have the boiled and mashed potato ready in the counter.

Dry roast 1tsp of cumin seeds, coriander seeds, fennel seeds, cinnamon sticks, green cardamoms, cloves, dry red chillies and coarsely grind them.

Heat the oil in a wok, temper with 1/4tsp of cumin seeds. Add the halved peanuts and stir for a minute.

Add the ginger paste, salt, turmeric powder and stir for 2 minutes at low heat. Add the boiled banana blossoms and fold in well. Cover cook for 3-4 minutes.

Add the boiled potato.

Fold in very well, add the chopped green chillies and little more than half of the ground spice mixture or as you wish.

Fold in very well, and stir for 2-3 minutes. Add the sugar and stir further for a minute or two.

Our filling for the Mochar Chop is ready and we will transfer it to a plate. Let cool. Make shapes of your choice.

Prepare a thick batter with the refined flour, corn flour, water and salt.

Take the bread crumb in a bowl.

Dip the yet to fry MOCHAR CHOP in to the batter.

Repeat the same with all of them.

Refrigerate for few hours. Take out.

Heat the oil in a wok. Deep fry each side very well till brown.

Take out and keep onto tissue paper before you serve while still hot.

Enjoy it as a snack with tea / coffee!