If this is not a bliss, what is? This applies only to shutki maach / dried fish lovers. Only they will understand how a bliss called "hudki" enters our body and gets spread all over it and take over our sensory organs... yes, the heat has to come out of the ears nah? 'Arey yaar itna to hai yaad... body ke andar pachtho hai woh wala organ... kuch to hai thori bahut bheje mein".... Beyond several layers of silly emotions, there is little something.... I got / get to see a lot of things... one of the few famous Bongs around plays a favourite Hindi song on a special occasion... their biggest confidant shares hi fi sci fi something in another forum to show solidarity with science & "app-tap".... "pata hai mujhey Gabbar, bahut yarana hai"..... and I am that lunatic, nut head running here & there urging people... "koi apna banaya hai yaar, page like kar do... humko to samajh mein nehi aati hain yeh sab"..... No one asked me to, I felt like...... but this "special child" of my parents has a strong digestive system... she takes everything with a pinch of salt & black pepper.
Of late, I has decided that she will respond to only those things that satisfies her ego! As I always say my life is an open book, whether people read it, get hold of my weaknesses and use it to sharpen their knives to stab me or not I do not care... I will not live life in a cage.... pleasing every other person. "Apne andar jo aag hai bujhane ke liye yaar LOITTA SHUTKIR TARKARI chahiye"... haha! Excuse my nuisance, but this is my space where I will take the liberty and I can see well the wild in me is not letting me go ahead with a two minutes microwave cake done in two beautifully decorated cups with love hearts embossed in them. As I head towards senility, I am finding it hard to reconcile with anything that I am not willing to. Last year, when I blogged about a dried fish dish, I made it a combo with dal palak... my concern was traffic then.... Overcoming that fear with an "I do not care"attitude ... I feel extremely liberated! In a way I should be thankful to certain social forums' rules.... just do not understand why their rules apply to poor food bloggers like us and not on the soft porn kinds that do a free run in front of our noses.
LOITTA SHUTKIR TARKARI, a non vegetarian side dish with dried Bombay Duck fish is not something that my 'shutki' loving men or my Valentine Sanak Chottopadhay love. They prefer a "shutkir bharta".... I do parcel "shutki maach" at homes where it is not cooked... Ipsita sends me often. I sent her this one too, yet to get a feedback.... Actually, we are still under the magical spell of Nawazuddin Sidiqqui who can alone carry forward a movie on his shoulder without allowing us to blink for a while.... neither he or the character he played would eat / ate dried Bombay Duck.... "Mumbai stason ma humko utarne nehi denge"..... as I said... this 'today', I dedicate to the self.... henceforth I will do it often.... I do not get thousands of blog visit or hundreds of likes on a post that I have to sacrifice something to taste "success"..... that is somewhat similar in taste to black pepper crab or mutton pasinda or ilisher tel jhol!
This dish with dried Bombay Duck fish and few vegetables like eggplant, radish, broad beans is authentic of my side of the family. Most of us love it except the brother's wife who does not touch dried fish, neither does my paa-in-law. I try not to include veterans in my social media accounts... I do not serve him shutki or seafood either, he should be ok. So far B is concerned, she needs to know more of my vices and the extreme case of an egoist that I am! We also use long beans in this dish, I just forgot to get it from the market. I wished to have it that particular night for dinner.... hence....
DRIED BOMBAY DUCK FISH : 5-6
SMALL SIZED EGGPLANT : 5-6 [CUBED]
BROAD BEAN : 8-10 [CUT EACH INTO 3 PIECES]
MEDIUM SIZED RADISH : 3-4 [ PEELED, HALVED, CUT LENGTHWISE]
CRUSHED GARLIC : 1 SMALL TEA CUP [ OF 15-16 CLOVES]
SLITTED GREEN CHILLI : 4-5
SLICED ONION : 1COFFEE MUG [OF 3-4 MEDIUM SIZED]
DRY RED CHILLI POWDER : 2TBSP
TURMERIC POWDER : 11/2TSP + 1/2TSP
SALT : AS REQUIRED
OIL : 6 TBSP [WE USE MUSTARD OIL]
PROCEDURE :
Discard the head and tail rear of the dried Bombay Duck / loitta shutki. Cut lengthwise, each into 3-4 pieces. Wash thoroughly several times.
Now soak in hot water for an hour.
Peel, wash and crush the garlic cloves.
Wash the cut vegetables, the radish pieces taken in a separate bowl.
Rub 11/2 tsp turmeric & salt in all of the cut vegetables and keep aside for 15 minutes.
We have sliced the onion, slitted the green chillies. They are washed and kept ready to be used.
Heat the oil in a wok. Add the crushed garlic and stir cook for 11/2 to 2 minutes.
Add the sliced onion now and stir until they turn light brown. Add the green chillies and give a stir.
Now, we will add the dried fish pieces and red chilli powder. Stir well and cover cook for 10-12 minutes adding very little water at a time. Slow cook at lowest heat.
Remove the cover, add the marinated radish pieces.... fold in well and cover cook at the lowest heat for 7-8 minutes.
Remove the cover, add the rest of the vegetables along with the marinade. Fold in well and cover cook at lowest heat for 13-15 minutes. We require no water as the vegetables will release a lot of water. The cooking has to be very slow.
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