All my readers have known by now that I am not fond of chicken anymore. The moment a lot of spices, tomato paste, onion paste, butter or ghee go to the wok along with it, a feeling of aversion occurs inside. One reason may be that I am a typical Bengali, I always prefer a "halka jhol" with fish and meat. I am getting pissed off because I am unable to get that red colour to my mutton curry and keep it light. Ask me why? One cannot do that with mutton or lamb coming from the kangaroo land. To hide that smell, I cook it for way longer period with more spices and garam masala. The moment I add more amount of home ground "labanga, darchini, elach guro," the curry turns brown. Back in Kolkata, I can still eat chicken. Garlic and onion also has a role to play in this matter. Here the garlic variety we get has no scent.
Chemical Fertiliser assisted farming has robbed us of a part of our childhood pleasure with regards to food. Our mother used to buy coriander leaves only from the "choto khato chashi bhai ba mashi" who came to the DumDum Bazaar with small amount of their produce from Bongaon, Bashirhaat, Hasnabad, Shantipur. She never would buy those giant, dark coloured coriander bunches which hardly had any scent. This winter I did not visit Kolkata, obviously I am missing "khal-bil-pak theke tola shit er koi", "pukurer charapona." In Kolkata, you will get "koi maach", climbing perch in two different price range and sizes. The bigger sized are less priced and farmed which you should not buy. The smaller & medium sized are the real catch which sells at what price at this time I have no idea. Some ten years back, a good quality live climbing perch sold at 450-500 rupees per kilogram during winter. Here, the ones that come from Thailand and Malaysia are not near to the taste of those and the mother asked us not to eat frozen "koi". Its better to have pomfret, salmon, and for me there are "amodi, mourala, kaikka, magur." I do not know what would have happened if the husband had been posted in an unearthly place where Bangladeshi traders could not reach. They have to venture out from their own land because their own cannot provide them the basics. It is also true that they drove away my forefathers from their own land, no one can deny this fact. Anyway, here they do not provide people like me much. The frozen fish that come are of very poor quality which is not the case as in Australia, "Bahargaon" or UK. These Bangladeshi Brothers have told me so.
The couple at this home have agreed on a point that Bengalis living for 3-4 decades in the "Bahargaon" are way more of a Bengali than those living for the same amount of time here. I see Bengalis gladly buying "joto samudrer maach" here if I chance to visit the wet market on a Saturday. The other reason is definitely the size of this island, the reason why the smaller Indian Bengali Community cannot afford to get performers from the West Bengal Cultural Circuit often. Most of their fame and etc. depend on their tour of Bangladesh & "Bahargaon." I follow the WestBengal Cultural Circuit to a bit, I mean as much as possible online but do not usually go and sit beside them. I am no Shylock but I know pretty well whilst I attempt at it, they will have a "shartho naki" kind of feeling. Moreover, my studies say if I go and kiss them, they in turn will go and kiss my famous co-workers. This tendency I have seen in some among the Bengali circuit here in this island and I am strict about not trying to bring them into my confidence, will not. My work, which in this case are my recipes should speak enough volume. There should be nothing else but only food and her stories revolving life which should bring people to CURRY AND SPICE. I am to gift you every day cooking solution and here is one on the similar lines SHOBJI BHAAT O MURGIR KEEMAR JHURO. I cooked this combo meal last Saturday for our lunch. I have found that chicken if cooked with less spices can get through my food pipe a bit; rice if cooked with spices and vegetables, the latter gets through the rest of the family's. So why not share this non-vegetarian combo meal recipe with my readers?
Look at the time of the day! I so love early mornings, when I am awake and the rest of the surroundings sleep. I sip from my morning cuppa and soak in the silence or say the break of the silence as the birds start chirping is kind of a music to my ears. I thoroughly enjoy this moment every morning.
Do not categorise that man as a "poor husband", sleeping there is his choice because he is in love with his television set or do I snore? We both love to be an unconventional couple and truly so; "mathai matha thekiye chobi tola, roj niyom korey ghorey dhukey dorja bondho kora, loker shamney honey boley daka tarpor bari firey jhogra kora", we are not in this habit. Leave that, after sometime I engaged Cristine to thoroughly clean the weed from our greens.
There may not be anything called winter here but the routined barren look of the greens continue to remind me of a winter eons back. Did someone say to oneself,"there should come no winter in my lifetime when I would want to meet you, we will never cross each other at any juncture." In my me time I enjoy reminiscing, as much as I hate the sight of those "mukh bhyatkano shomudrer maach gulo" in some forum. Some people were born to negate each other. I run to the Bangladeshi & Indian Markets to feel happy looking at what I grew up having. In Turkey, I felt happy in midst of the spice bazaar, that tour took me to the pages about "nabik Sindbaad ba Sheherazad er Arobyo Rajani ba Aladdin er ashchorjo Pradip." Look at this home, still so much into dinosaur like in childhood.
Where was I? Okay, an overdose of religion causes so damage to one's self that I can never attempt to apply for a visa to visit Iran even if I wish to see the land. Fear took over the human kind. Where has the world come to? Can any Hindu think of taking up even a lucrative job offer in Iran today? I doubt. Let us do our bit to keep the humankind in track. I will do it my way without depriving anyone or using filth because I believe in peace and harmony.
Our today's share is a vegetarian main and a non-vegetarian side combo meal with chicken, rice, broccoli, cauliflower, carrot, coriander, etc. I named the nutritious meal SHOBJI BHAAT O MURGIR KEEMAR JHURO.
MINCED CHICKEN : 1KG
SLICED ONION : 2MEDIUM TEA CUP
MINCED GARLIC : 2TBSP
MINCED GINGER : 2TSP
CUBED TOMATO : 1SMALL TEA CUP
CHOPPED CORIANDER : 1MEDIUM TEA CUP
CHOPPED GREEN CHILLI : 2TBSP
CRUSHED BLACK PEPPER : 1TSP
CHAAT MASALA : 1TBSP
TURMERIC POWDER : 1/2TSP
LEMON JUICE : 1/2 SMALL TEA CUP
SALT : AS REQUIRED
OIL : 4-5TBSP
INGREDIENTS : [THE RICE WITH VEGETABLES]
COOKED RICE : 3-4COFFEE MUG
CAULIFLOWER FLORET : 2SMALL TEA CUP
BROCCOLI FLORET : 2SMALL TEA CUP
CARROT CUBE : 1SMALL TEA CUP
ONION CUBE : 2-3TBSP
SLITTED GREEN CHILLI : 5-6
TOMATO PASTE : 1/2SMALL TEA CUP
CUMIN POWDER : 2TSP
CORIANDER POWDER : 2TSP
AAMCHOOR / DRY MANGO POWDER : 2TSP
GARAM MASALA : 1TSP
TURMERIC POWDER : 1/2TSP
CINNAMON STICK : 4-5 OF TWO INCH SIZE
GREEN CARDAMOM : 4-5
CLOVE : 4-5
BAY LEAF : 2-3
SALT : AS REQUIRED
OIL : 4TBSP
GHEE / CLARIFIED BUTTER : 2TBSP
PROCEDURE :
Let us prepare the Minced Chicken dish first.
Take the mince chicken in a big strainer and wash under running water. Discard the water and take it in a bowl.
Marinate the chicken with salt, turmeric, lemon juice and crushed black pepper for an hour.
Heat oil in a wok and temper with washed minced garlic+ginger and fry them light brown. Add the slitted green chillies and sliced onions after a wash.
Once the onion turns golden brown, add the marinated chicken. Fold in well and cover cook at minimal heat for 7-8 minutes.
Open cover, add the tomato pieces and stir. Keep breaking the meat using the edge of the ladle. Again cover cook at minimal heat for 10 minutes, open cover and repeat what you did. Cover cook again for 5-6 minutes and check to see if the released water have dried.
Add the chaat masala and washed chopped coriander. Adjust the salt if only required. Fold in well and keep stirring at high heat for 3-4 minutes.
We are done. Transfer to a bowl.
About the Rice with Vegetables, we can use left over cooked rice or cook it fresh in enough water up to 70% done and strain.
We will wash the cauliflower, broccoli florets and carrot cubes after been cut. There after, we will marinate them with little salt and turmeric.
We will wash the green chillies too before slitting, the onions too before we cube. Also wash the tomatoes before getting the paste of it.
Heat oil in a pan and temper it with green cardamom, cinnamon, clove, bay leaf. Add the slitted green chillies and cubed onion. Stir for 3-4 minutes.
We will now add the tomato paste and stir for 2 minutes. We will add the cumin+coriander+aam choor+garam masala+a little of salt & turmeric powder to it.
We will stir the mixture for 1 more minute at low heat. We will add the carrots now and stir continuously for 3-4 minutes at minimal heat.
We will now add the cauliflower and broccoli florets and stir at low heat for another 3-4 minutes. Add the cooked rice gradually and gently mix using two ladles bringing them together. Add the ghee and fold in loosely.
We are done! Serve them together along with some salad. We had some baked onion rings too.
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