It was only yesterday morning when I was planning something similar to this rice dish for my dinner. As told earlier, I went for a quiet lunch date yesterday and the plan was to have a chaat platter... I love it way too much served chilled... not always willing to gather five things to prepare a plate for myself! Anyway, I think every police station of Philippines have my photo in their record book... I do not wish to add more to it asking Cristine to have papri chaat for lunch. If I buy a 500gm packet of papri, I finish it in 4-5 days and shout at the poor girl when she fails to get the two ends of the measuring tape meet at my N... haha! "A" marked joke?... ok ok lah... not to go further. Now, if I eat junk for the day, I have to have some rice before retiring to the bed .... I mean it is a "bheto bangal's" take... my system stops working otherwise! Since, I am a sit at home worthless, I feel more the heat on days when I am out for longer periods.... I need coolers all day... that made me prepare those vegetarian, stuffed rice balls... served chilled to myself... GARLIC TEMPERED FRESH HERBS & MUSHROOM TEMPERED RICE BALLS Yesterday, I had it with a glass of iced tea around 10:15pm! I enjoyed it way too much. In this rarest of the rare case, my men had full Bengali dinner, I enjoyed the Oriental inspired meal.... "bewda hoon kya isko authentic boloon?".... Eight years on, I still stand in front of the rack full of Oriental Sauces and wonder which is what.... Look at those Pomfrets. Standard sized Silver Pomfrets are quite pricey here... I get them home because my men love it. I am not fond of it... I ate it and felt that I will not enjoy it with dal & rice... I have to have something of my choice.
Yes, my men love their "alu sheddo" with a generous amount of ghee and I keep nagging "how come you guys even have ghee or butter without a green chilli".... By the way, the thickness of the soya sauce & chilli padi dip is due to the tamarind pulp I added... I loved it.... One ball was for Cristine off course.
The reason for this idea of GARLIC TEMPERED FRESH HERBS & MUSHROOM STUFFED RICE BALL may have borne of my likeness to having rice with soya sauce and chopped green chillies. I laughed out loud the day I discovered myself christened into a "halfway islander".... I still cannot have clams & mussels. Did I ever think in my childhood I will one day fancy those "dheki chata chal" varieties? Yes, this dish has been prepared with red rice, although I love the brown rice variety the local Tamil Minimarts sell... We have two in our neighbourhood! In one, its either the lady or her husband sits in the cash .... one day she told me how to prepare appam in a normal pan... I do like building relationship this way who I think may serve my soul. In between going ahead with the preparations for this vegetarian main dish, I was talking to Mani ... The mother as usual got a scolding .... its just recently that she has recovered from a weeklong flu and she went out on a day tour to one temple in Rishra and one in Sreerampore. Its just early spring, she might have set out around 5am, went to the Barrackpore Ferry Ghat and crossed over on a boat.. Thank God that she rode toto & auto for the purpose... no her kids do not tell her riding public vehicles may go against their "status symbol".... haha... we are non-pedigreed!
I rebuked the mother because she over does it ... she has not learnt anything from the humanist she was married to... "dharmandho manusher tyamon kono tatporjo nei aajker prithibitey.... dharma kokhono manusher urdhey noy"..... his wife may not have but I have taken some good lessons from my father.... who throughout his life has practiced humanism.... it is for him that shallow minds do not excite me neither can I utter filth just like that... Recently, someone told me something I found derogatory..... I have the guts to say straight on face "you are making me feel uncomfortable, please leave me alone." I have nothing to fear or lose because I hate "moshahebi, chatukarita, abhinoy".... I cannot be a double standard... one as you see and something else once you turn your back! I do not claim myself to be a good human being altogether ... no one can be only good but I am better than anyone who bad mouths. Coming to the dish... it was planned yesterday morning, the mushroom, parsley , fresh tamarind were bought on way back from my date... and done between 9pm and 10pm.... because I had cooked red rice in store!
COOKED RED RICE : 2MEDIUM SIZED TEA CUP [FOR ONE PERSON, ONE CAN USE ANY VARIETY OF RICE]
CHOPPED MUSHROOM : 1/2MEDIUM SIZED TEA CUP [ANY FRESH VARIETY]
CHOPPED PARSLEY : 2TBSP
CHOPPED MINT LEAF : 1TBSP
CHOPPED CORIANDER : 3TBSP
CHOPPED FRESH CHILLI : 2TSP [USE 1TSP IF USING CHILLI PADI LIKE ME]
CHOPPED SPRING ONION : 1-2TBSP
MINCED GARLIC : 11/2TBSP
MINCED GINGER : 1TSP
SLICED ONION : 2TBSP
LIGHT SOYA SAUCE : 2TBSP + 2TSP [ USE A GLUTEN-FREE VARIETY]
BLACK PEPPER POWDER : 1TSP [FRESHLY GROUND]
BLACK SESAME SEED : 1/2TSP [I missed, you should not]
SALT : AS REQUIRED
OIL : 2TBSP
PROCEDURE :
Take the rice on your plate, add little salt, 2tbsp soya sauce, black sesame seeds and freshly ground, coarse black pepper.
When I was mixing the content well, lightly pressing it with my palm so that I can bind the ball without refined flour, rice flour, corn flour or egg.... Cristine chopped and washed rest of the ingredients required for the filling ... the fresh flavour indeed made me happy.
Tear out a bigger portion of the marinated rice, flatten with your palm and add some filling atop.
Cover it to get the shape of a stuffed rice ball. Relax, we do not have to roll and make parathas. The initial plan was to prepare smaller balls and batter fry them. I thought there is no point after having a chaat platter for lunch.
When I refrigerated the rice cutlets to get chilled, I prepared the sauce with soya sauce, tamarind paste and chopped chilli padi.... what a celebration of my tongue...
In a tropical climate, it is not a crime to have chilled, stuffed rice with a glass of iced tea around 10:15 pm!
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