CURRY AND SPICE: MUTTON STUFFED BREAD ROLL

SNACKING AT THE TIME OF MEALS IS FAVOURITE WITH US!

Is it too wrong to have a snack of choice with salads & yogurt dip at dinner time once in a while? I mean, we should not make it a habit and avoid high usage of oil as much as possible! Like I try to cook the final step of most of the starter recipes in the oven, brushing a little of oil instead of deep frying! My choice of dishes may terrify the extreme health watchers but I am an out n out Bengali / Indian / South Asian foodie; I cannot be too calculative about the calorie intake! We want taste on our plate! What is this life for if that salad bowl you see at far becomes prime on the dining table? My family is not used to have salads & couscous, soups & quinoa with broccoli! I am not keen to cook bland, healthy food for my family; even if you accuse me of not loving my family! I love to cook, also I must enjoy what I am cooking! The entire process of cooking has to be relaxing for me! Okay, I have got a little of alterations in my cooking; I use a bit less of oil in my cooking as compared to what is done in an usual Bengali Home! If you say so, our mother has always used less oil in cooking! The in-laws been obsessed with top to bottom of their body & medicines; had been having lightly spiced Bengali Food for many years now!

THE THING IS I COOK A VARIETY OF FOOD AND NOT BENGALI ALONE!

But any day, I am capable of treating you with kochur shaak to loti to doilla pitha to shutki mach; all of the primitive, rustic Bengali Food! I was born and grew up in such a family! Any day, I would enjoy trying different cuisines, dishes that would suit our tastebud, that in my capability! I am not a versatile cook but my first attempt at an instant Appam was decent last night!

Although I need a lot of practice to blog about an appam; we enjoyed our dinner with Appam & Achar! We are known for eating weird combinations! Our lunch yesterday was mutton curry & elephant foot yam mash! Both being my love, I ate double the rice I eat usually or say, I am allowed to eat! And then a dinner with rice appam was too much but I could not resist myself!

Last Saturday night we had a meal of choice, an earlier blogpost about a spiced coriander poori got updated! Cooking keeps me engaged, else I keep worrying about the son! Though I do not cook with guilt, the dishes keep reminding me of the fact the son loves Mumma made food, just that the distance is too much for us to travel to each other often!

Not even today, I can put myself into some restrictions; I would be cooking Hilsa, I cannot think of restricted diet in such a scenario, that's impossible!

WHAT IS THIS MUTTON STUFFED BREAD ROLL?

Not today, not yesterday; I cooked this dish some 7-8 years back when some friends in this island visited us! I wasn't particular about the look of the food I cooked in those days! But my visiting friends liked it and last year, they ordered from me the same bread roll stuffed with spiced minced mutton! At that time, I was not ready to cater it, I mean I did not learn until then to give the best possible shape to this amazing non-vegetarian snack! But my friend insisted to take this snack item! MUTTON STUFFED BREAD ROLL requires bread slices, mutton mince, boiled potato, selective spices! You can consider it a non-vegetarian snack / starter / appetiser. We had it for our dinner alongside fish kebab & salad!

INGREDIENTS : [FOR THE MINCED MUTTON]

MINCED MUTTON [GOAT OR LAMB MEAT] : 500 GM PLAIN YOGURT : 150 GM

LEMON JUICE : 2-3 TBSP

ONION PASTE : 2-3 TBSP

GINGER PASTE : 2 TSP

GARLIC PASTE : 11/2 TBSP

CHOPPED FRESH CORIANDER : A HANDFUL

RED CHILLI POWDER : 2 TBSP [USE AS PER YOUR TOLERANCE LEVEL]

CUMIN POWDER : 1 TSP

CORIANDER POWDER : 2 TSP

TURMERIC POWDER : 1/2 TSP

CINNAMON POWDER : 1/4 TSP

GREEN CARDAMOM POWDER : 1/4 TSP

CLOVES POWDER : 2-3 PINCH

SALT : AS REQUIRED

INGREDIENTS FOR THE FINAL DISH :

THE COOKED MINCED MUTTON

BOILED & MASHED POTATO : 1 BIG

CHOPPED ONION : 3-4 TBSP

CHOPPED GREEN CHILLI : 1 TBSP

MINCED GARLIC : 1 TSP

MINCED GINGER : 1/2 TSP

CUMIN SEED : 1/4 TSP

RED CHILLI POWDER : 1 TSP

DRY MANGO POWDER : 1 TSP

GARAM MASALA POWDER : 1 TSP

CHAAT MASALA : 1 TSP

SALT : A LITTLE IF ONLY REQUIRED

OIL : 2-3 TBSP

PROCEDURE :

THE MINCED MUTTON CURRY :

We will take the minced mutton on a strainer and wash thoroughly. I do not like any residual blood on it. We will transfer it to a bowl.

To it, we will add the beaten yogurt, ginger+onion+garlic pastes; turmeric+cumin+coriander+red chilli powders+salt & marinate well. We will keep it covered in the refrigerator, anywhere between 2 to 3 hours. We will take it out half an hour before cooking!

We will heat a wok and add the marinated minced mutton to it along with the marinade. We will stir cook at low heat for 2-3 minutes!

We will reduce the heat to minimal and cover cook for 15-16 minutes. We must remove cover and check the status every 3-4 minutes. We must check the level of water release.

After about 20 minutes, it will look like the above. We will add the lemon juice+cinnamon powder+green cardamom powder+cloves powder+1 coffee mug of water.

We will give a stir and slow cook for another 4-5 minutes, add the washed and chopped coriander and again give a stir. We should be done!

Our minced mutton curry should be ready by now to be had with a variety of bread or plain steamed rice or on some days you can try it to stuff a bread with it & enjoy a roll like this!

THE MUTTON STUFFED BREAD ROLL :

We have the cooked minced mutton curry ready on the kitchen top, also the washed onion, green chilli, garlic & ginger, boiled & mashed potato!

In a wok, we would heat the oil & temper it with the cumin seeds! We would add the minced ginger & garlic & stir fry until golden brown!

We would add the onions & green chilli; stir fry until golden brown!

Thereafter, we are to add the boiled & mashed potato, all the spice powders and fold in well! We would keep stir cooking for 5-6 minutes and add the minced mutton curry!

We would fold in well and stir cook until dry, may be for 4-5 minutes! We would transfer the filling to a bowl!

We would cut off the sides of the bread slices, press each with a rolling pin! We would place some filling on one end and roll! The other end we would apply some water and seal!