I keep on experimenting on a variety of flavoured rice and most of the time I have not failed. Fresh ingredients and flavours put me on, anything artificial is not my thing.... flavour or people. I do store artificial colours & flavouring agents in the refrigerator, hardly use them.... not unless required. The above rice plate is extremely nutritious I felt, we need not do any research to make this statement. I prepared it on a day when cooking was less & way simpler. I always had a feeling that we may not like a palak / spinach rice alone at this home, something has to be added to suit our family's tastebud. I kept thinking what can it be. A bunch of coriander leaves was resting in the refrigerator that needed to be used at the earliest and I felt like "eureka, I have found it!" Fresh Coriander is an extremely loved herb of mine, to that I have added another favourite of mine, my home grown Culantro leaves / bilati dhonepata. You can now well imagine how flavourful and healthy could be this rice main PALAK DHONEPATA RICE. Be it preparing a vegetarian main or a side, I have to plan the platter I am going to serve my men. They are less fond of vegetarian food, I was too but in the past few years I am enjoying those my family is preparing for ages. However, me too cannot have vegetarian food continuously.... that is impossible. Last Saturday, I cooked my family dishes and there had to be more of the dishes my men would enjoy. If they get meat, egg, fish... then they will eat the vegetarian dishes. You all know how poor I am in mathematics, but I manage my kitchen pretty well. The husband thinks I am disorganised, I accept but very few can cook ten items for hours and then set out for attending an event even if they have a help. Cristine indeed is a great help, I only cook but she arranges everything and wraps up too. Why do I take so much hassle in one single day of a week? So that on a Monday morning I only have to prepare the chapatis fresh and just reheat the veggies to be packed. After I am done, the junior most says there is no school today. That is why I call it a weird creature.
Food wrapping is an important part of setting up a lunch box, remember people would be eating it hours later. Now what? This lady and Cristine has to eat his share of chapati reheating them. I have to set out for the Indian neighbourhood both today & tomorrow, so Cristine would make some fresh porotas for lunch.
Did you notice I am writing & romancing & day dreaming less in the blog if not cooking less. I will go public with the reason sooner. Remember one thing, spending time in the kitchen never causes me irritation. Last Saturday evening, the friends found me pretty tired in the venue which was natural after a good amount of cooking. I usually relax on a Saturday evening up to the entire Sunday. Thereafter, the week is for experimenting with simple bakes & sweets or dishes that are less of family like. So, I am okay with the extra sweat on a Saturday. I have to change the routine if we have invitations for Saturday Lunch like next week we have. What I do is cook few dishes on the Friday evening so that I skip cooking till Monday evening. This routine works good for me and the yummy, healthy, vegetarian rice main PALAK DHONEPATA RICE should suit you too. I kept a chicken curry, fulkopi+aloor dalna and shorshe+lanka bata diye begun jhol on the sides to choose from. However, I felt the rice dish is a meal in itself that can be paired with pickle and raita alone.
INGREDIENTS :
BASMATI RICE : 1 COFFEE MUG SERVES 4 OF US
SPINACH LEAF : A BUNCH
CORIANDER LEAF : A SPRIG
CULANTRO LEAF : 2-3 [GIVEN IT'S RARITY, YOU CAN SKIP IT, IT IMPARTS FLAVOUR]
SLICED ONION : 1MEDIUM TEA CUP
GREEN CHILLI : 2-3
MINCED GARLIC : 1TBSP
MINCED GINGER : 1TSP
CRUSHED BLACK PEPPER : 1TSP
CHAAT MASALA : 1TSP
LEMON JUICE : 4-5TBSP
SALT : AS REQUIRED
OIL : 3-4TBSP
PROCEDURE :
Let us wash and cook the rice in enough water until 70% done and pass it through a colander. Keep that way for half an hour, let all the water drain away. I think I used left over rice on that day.
Wash the green chillies, spinach leaves, coriander and culantro leaves discarding the root ends. Take them in a blender and blend to a paste.
Peel and wash one big onion, slice. Peel few cloves of garlic, one finger length ginger, wash and mince.
Heat oil in a wok, add the minced garlic & ginger. Stir for half a minute.
Add the sliced onions and stir fry at low heat for a minute. Let them turn just golden brown.
Add the green paste now and stir for 2 minutes, the raw smell has to go off in a Bengali home.
Add the chaat masala and salt, stir further for a minute at medium heat.
Add the crushed black pepper now and fold in well.
That is Cristine's soft, supple, fair palms.... not worn out like maam's who is holding the ladle.
Add the rice slowly, less amount at a time. Keep folding in gently, it is not Chinese Stir fry.... oh! what a skill that is.
Just fold in well all of the rice gently at medium heat for 3-4 minutes.
Serve it fresh and hot with a side of your choice or have just with raita & pickle.
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