A MINIMALIST CHICKEN BIRYANI

I BELIEVE I MADE THE COOLEST BIRYANI LAST WEEK!

All along I insisted Biryani is royal & there should not have any shortcut to it! But, I deviated from my stand a bit & wished to create  an all in one dish that we can cook any day, at any place without searching for the exotic spices that goes into a biryani! Later in the post you would see I have used regular kitchen staples in the making of this homely biryani; yet it yielded a good taste & I am happy; the cook's happiness matters! Okay, my family enjoys Biryani & Fried Rices, in this sense they are clean eaters! I am thinking of trying exactly this recipe of Biryani in my Kolkata home in few days! It's too hot there, I have to stay carefully, eat out less! I am trying to remember if I have sustained a 41-42* heat in Kolkata earlier! That I may have long back! Usually, I used to visit Kolkata with the son during the winters, T would join in every alternate year! After the son has joined the college, I go at a time when there is no rush & the air tickets are reasonable, I refuse to visit the Kolkata Markets before any occasion; Christmas, Eid, Durga Pooja, Bengali New Year! I just cannot roam amidst indisciplined crowd anymore! In fact, earlier too I used to shop for Pooja in the months of July-August to avoid the shopping crowd! People are talking about the heat there in a manner that I am fearing! Then, there is my brother who would pick me up from the airport; wants me to lock myself at home, order food from outside and then after a month he would leave me at the airport! I know it is hot, but I need to get repair works done, meet few people, do considerable amount of shopping! There is no point visiting Kolkata if I cannot go out! Also, those who work they are going out of home, right? Let us use umbrellas & take other precautions!

I AM EXTREMELY BUSY TODAY!

I am to cook a platter to offer our father, today is his 6th death anniversary! I just do not wish to do the mention of this occasion in different forums! I would definitely share there the food I offer him today but at a later date! I am to share an Eid friendly Biryani recipe tonight, the daddy did like biryani but not more than a "mach er jhol"! I am not cooking his favourite fish curry today! As told I am caught up with many things at this time! I am cooking for him & writing this blogpost simultaneously!Once offered, I would share the platter here! The platter today is small & simple! I have to go out in the evening for small buys & a standard walk! T is at home, he does not bother for anything but I have to serve him lunch at a decent time, though it gets delayed every weekend! Again today, I served T his lunch post 3 pm! But my men are too used to it, even the son never created a ruckus if food was served late! My child has to arrange each of his meals, mumma is sad about it!Even our daddy never shouted if the mother was late! He would just keep asking for food every five minutes! It is six years, he left us! I believe he would have lived a few more years had his hard earned money not gone into the drain; I would never ever vote for any political party in India! I cannot ever forget how a chit fund robbed him of his finance & peace! The fault is his, he easily trusted people; I never do, my brother never would!

The flowers here in this island do not please me; also the miser self do not spend enough on buying flowers & garlands of choice! Tomorrow, I would cook meat & fish but I just could not manage an elaborate cooking given my schedule for the day! I just made a small effort to make an offering with our father's favourite snacks! Okay, he loved beaten rice with milk & banana, mango but our home never made a "chirer payesh"! Today, I made a "chirer payesh" for the first time & it is good! I thought only Southern India eats this dessert, now I see even the Bengalis do! The rest are "luchi, aloo-potol er dalna, aam-kola-muri"! I would have them after sometime, T had "Luchi with Aloo-Potol er Dalna"!

WHAT IS THIS "A MINIMALIST CHICKEN BIRYANI"?

It is Hari Raya Pausa celebrations all over the island, actually Eid is to be celebrated all over the world, I enjoy being a part of any celebration that speaks of happiness & peace! I do not advocate celebrations where there is involved torture of man & the animal world! These should stop! I did not fix any specific recipe to share for the muslim world, including my close ones! But I cannot share something that they wouldn't be able to eat! As a food blogger, this share thing holds important! It is only last Saturday, after cooking & having a simple, homely meat-potato-egg biryani did I decide to share the recipe! It is a deviation from my stand that Biryani should be royal whose making should be laborious! But in this fast paced world, when quinoa biryani is doing the rounds, I would not hesitate to get A MINIMALIST CHICKEN BIRYANI; I too have to be a part of the race!

INGREDIENTS :

CHICKEN : 6-8 STANDARD SIZED PIECE

PLAIN YOGURT : 200-250 GM

POTATO : 2-3 MEDIUM SIZED

TOMATO : 1-2 MEDIUM SIZED

GREEN CHILLI : 6-7

FRESH CORIANDER : 2-3 SPRIG

EGG : 3-4

LONG GRAINED BASMATI RICE : 1 COFFEE MUG

ONION : 3-4 MEDIUM SIZED

GINGER PASTE : 1 TBSP

GARLIC PASTE : 2 TBSP

CUMIN POWDER : 1 TBSP

CORIANDER POWDER : 1 TBSP

RED CHILLI POWDER : 1 TBSP

TURMERIC POWDER : 1/2 TSP

CINNAMON POWDER : 1 TSP

GREEN CARDAMOM POWDER : 1 TSP

CLOVES POWDER : 1/4 TSP

BAYLEAF : 6-7

CINNAMON STICK : 7-8 MEDIUM LENGTH

GREEN CARDAMOM : 6-7

CLOVE : 7-8

SALT : AS REQUIRED

ROSE WATER : 1 1/2 TBSP

GHEE / CLARIFIED BUTTER : 1 SMALL TEA CUP

OIL : 1/2 SMALL TEA CUP

PROCEDURE : 

Chop the tomatoes, slit 3-4 green chillies; wash them! Clean & wash the chicken pieces!

Marinate the chicken pieces with cumin+coriander+red chilli+turmeric powders+beaten yogurt+salt+slitted green chillies+chopped tomatoes! Mix well & keep covered for an hour! 

Peel, wash & cut each potato half, marinate with some salt & keep aside for few minutes! Thereafter, add them to the chicken marination & mix well!

We are to cook the rice! Wash the rice well! Put for boil enough water & add to it half of the mentioned bay leaves, green cardamoms, cinnamon sticks, cloves, salt!

As the water boils hard, add to it the washed basmati rice & stir! Cook at medium heat until 60% done & pass through a colander! Let all of the water drain!

Peel, slice the onions & wash! Heat half small cup of oil & ghee in a wok, a bit flattened at the bottom! Temper that with the rest of the bay leaves, green cardamom, cinnamon sticks cloves!

Add the sliced onions & fry at low to medium heat until golden brown & crisp! If you fry them at minimal heat, they would become soft instead of been crisp! Take out half of the fried onions!

Add the marinated chicken & potatoes! Fold in well & cook at minimal heat, covered! In between, remove the cover & gently stir! Switch off the gas burner once they are 70% done! Transfer them to a bowl along with the curry!

Boil, peel, wash the eggs! Marinate with little of salt! Discard the roots; chop the fresh coriander & wash!

Grease the same but washed & dried wok with some ghee! Add half of the cooked rice & spread evenly! Add the chicken, potato pieces, boiled eggs & half of the curry!

Add half of the rest of the ghee & few green chillies[if you wish]!

Cover with the rest of rice & spread evenly! Sprinkle the rest of the ghee, the rose water, the fried onions, chopped fresh coriander! Cover it with a heavy lid!

Place a roti pan atop your gas stove & switch on! After about 5-6 minutes, place the covered wok full of rice & chicken in layers, cook in dum at minimal to low heat for 45-50 minute! Switch off the gas burner! We should be done! 

Keep covered for 10 minutes before serving & having! I was running out of enough yogurt for a raita! I prepared a salad with raw mango-peanuts-cucumber-olive oil! Though I am against aerated drinks, a Sprite bottle stays in the refrigerator regular, may be for other purposes!

 

SPICED FISH & CHIPS

I AM PRETTY BUSY THIS WEEK BUT THE BLOGPOSTS SHOULD COME IN TIME!

There is no compulsion though, I just enjoy the exercise! What else fruitful do I do? That is a hurt is true! It is also true I do not find myself eligible enough to go and seek for a job! What to do with a computer I do not know, I fear! I only know to update a blogpost & search stuffs! How I wasted the father's hard earned money taking admission in the British Institutes there at the Dalhousie Square! That was the early 90's I remember! It is 2023, the same fear conquers me! Except for literature, Sociology, History, Psychology; no textual subjects interest me! Why did I study Political Science I do not know! I was a good employee for the school managements I worked for until every work was done manually & kids learnt by rote! The moment computer took over, I felt like I do not fit in! Yet the school wanted me but I had such a feeling of inadequacy that I left! Had I not leave, I might have learnt technology as much as required for my job! But they were not letting me teach my choice of subjects! My readers know this all, because I met an ex-colleague yesterday, all the wrong decisions I took with regards to my academics shrouded my mind! To top that, it was too hot the entire night & that lingering neck & shoulder pain! Do not know what more the Kolkata weather has to give me! I am not bothering much, I would meet my family, friends, the doctors and one month would go! I hear people are staying indoor there, this is what pisses me off! I visit Kolkata once a year, I should be able to go out freely & roam around!

I AM BASICALLY A LAZY BRAT!

Else no excuse is strong enough not to earn independently on the present day! Who ever we are, what ever the family situation is, we must earn! We must unless the family owns a company & everyone in the family has been given some position in it! I liked it how Messi's entire family is involved in making what he is today! I really like how the parents spotted his talent, struggled to get him here & now when it is paying back time, the sports star is doing it royally! The middle-class that I am, I have no idea the amount of money he earns, but I like it that his entire family including the in-laws are part of his empire! At this time, my only aim & urge is to get my son good education & job without any disturbance; this is a requirement for himself to upgrade way above the family! Also, he has to live his father's dream wherein the academics is concerned! Until my death, I would believe T had to have a lot more degrees before plunging onto a job! He had the capability; every child with fair brain should get the opportunity to attain higher academic degrees! Also, those with average brains should be at least a graduate! Else, the world may not be able to move forward! I indulge in such discussions by default, because our mother & grandma immensely respect academics! If by academics they mean degrees after degrees, be it; what is the harm? It has been proved time & again degrees are important, let us not equate it with the wealth one has attained! Two are different & both are required for a good life! How I wished the brother to have that urge to do better in life, he had the capability too! Mumma sleeps well because the son has this urge, only that she cannot be at peace having a mental ailment of anxiety!

WHAT IS THIS SPICED FISH & CHIPS?

I am too fond of the traditional fish & chips! In fact, I am fond of fish & choice of meats' breaded fries, okay batter fries too unless I get to see oil on the top layer! For long, I did not know Kolkata Caterers' style "fish butter fry" is actually 'fish batter fry"! I am too fond of fries & fritters, even the Kolkata street vendor's lentil fritters! But I do not eat out much whilst in Kolkata, I fear stomach ailments & now I hear about the unbearable heat there! Also, the fries of Malancha have lost the pride! The parents did not take us to eat out much, I hardly would want to travel to Mitra Cafe or Allen's Kitchen or Golbari! Truly speaking; on this day, I cook a meat or fish fry at home; well cleaned & marinated! I would stick to that! Only that, I do not get to feed exotics to my family & friends in Kolkata; I do not enjoy working hard there; I just want to roam around there; have Bhelpuri, Chitrakut, Mishti Doi, Biryani, Pattice & Pastries! But Kolkata cakes seem too sweet to me! The stomach refuses too much of outside food! You can call it both a poor digestive system & taking pride in my cooking spree! If I buy a Moglai Porota at 4-5 pm, who would share it with me? Then, those flies, dust, logged water! Listen to me, try my style SPICED FISH & CHIPS! No restaurant would wash the fillets this well & marinate this good, the actual recipe does not call for mixed spice marination either! It is a non-vegetarian, fish fillet snack recipe which the West eat as a main dish along with French fries! But you can see, I did the plating differently! At this point, I left home for Kushi's at Hougang! There was a long queue for the Hari Raya, also I forgot to take the card! The girls told me there would be long queues until the weekend! I had my first meal, "bhaja bhuji", all veg items & tehC! Just because I missed adding the word teh-C-kosong, they added sugar!

As a first meal, it is a poison to have but I wanted it this way! On my way back, I walked & a 6:5 km took me 1hr15 minutes! The "sheem" were too young! On my walk, assisting me was an old time favourite, 'main na bhulunga, main na bhulungi"! "samay ki dhara mein, umar bah jani hai, jo ghari ji lenge, woh reh jani hai!" I have to learn this song!

INGREDIENTS :

FIRM WHITE FISH FILLET : 7-8 

LEMON JUICE : 1/4 SMALL TEA CUP

RED CHILLI POWDER : 1 TSP

CRUSHED BLACK PEPPER : 1 TSP

CUMIN POWDER : 1 TSP

CORIANDER POWDER : 1 TSP

CHAAT MASALA : 1 TSP

GINGER EXTRACT : 2 TBSP

GARLIC EXTRACT : 2 TBSP

SALT : AS REQUIRED

REFINED FLOUR : 1 SMALL TEA CUP

CORN FLOUR : 1/2 SMALL TEA CUP

OIL : 200 ML OR ENOUGH TO DEEP FRY

PROCEDURE : 

I used Nile fish cuts, boneless that I got from the Fairprice Xtra, it's good for batter & breaded fries!

I washed the fish fillets & marinated with salt alone for an hour & then washed thoroughly! This is done to get rid of any smell!

Thereafter, I marinated the fish fillets with crushed black pepper, salt, lemon juice, ginger & garlic extract / juice! Keep them in the refrigerator for 3-4 hours, covered! Take out half an hour before frying!

For the batter, I took the refined & corn flour, chilli+cumin+coriander powders+chaat masala+salt in a bowl & mixed well! I added water little at a time & prepared a thick batter! I kept it aside for 10-15 minutes!

I heated enough oil in the wok, dipped each of the marinated fish fillet in the batter, coated well & deep fried in medium to low heat, else the inside would not be done well!

We would keep them on the tissue paper before serving & having!

Instead of deep frying the potatoes, I washed & cut both the potatoes & broccolinis; marinated with salt+chilli powder+dry mango powder+oil & kept aside for 10-15 minutes! I placed them in an oven proof plate in a single layer & had put atop the wired stool, the low height one inside the oven! I cooked one side microwave+grill combo for 12-15 minutes! I turned them over & cooked for another 8-10 minutes! The broccolini got a little overcooked! Better you cook them separately! 

I served the platter with a Bengali style raw mango-chilli-mustard sauce!

DHONEPATA BATA TANGRA MACH

I WOULD KEEP UPDATING SUCH HEIRLOOM RECIPES AS LONG AS I AM CAPABLE OF COOKING!

Yes, I blog about such rustic, family Bengali recipes less these days! That is because I need to catch up with the speeding train, wanting to reach more & more people! You know what, even the Bengalis of today do not know much about their own food culture, that is annoying and sad! T knows all about it, just because his mother is not fond of rustic dishes with smaller fish & vegetables, these were not cooked in their home much! But their relatives cook! Okay, she cooks good a mixed vegetable & fried small fish medley & we all love it! Their's & my side of the family's cooking of the small fish varieties is different! They do not use fresh coriander paste in their cooking or a paste of radhuni / ajmod, whilst my family uses these a lot! Our winters must have curries with coriander paste! Because I am a foodie, I love the food from both sides of my family! I not only cook both side of my family's recipes; whatever recipes I come along & get hooked to, I would try at least one or two times in my kitchen! If one catches our fancy, I included the one in my regular to cook list!

CLICKING FOOD & SHARING FOOD STORIES WITH THE WORLD HAS BECOME MY OBSESSION!

Just because I do not earn from it, people do not consider it important, that they underestimate my passion! Till date my family has not helped me make considerable improvements in this area of my immense passion; not T, neither the son! But I would carry on with my limited technical knowhow! Had I been smart & up-to-date, my blog would have been getting thousands & lakhs of visitors & I definitely would be having a flourishing YouTube channel! Because I am not competitive, I do not suffer from frustration! I just enjoy what I do; cook, eat, sing, dance & repeat! We have watched the movie Gaslight & the series Indu[1&2]! They both are good thrillers, Indu would have a season-3, we do not know what would happen! We had satisfying meals yesterday! I had to go out to the mall, it's time to go to India & just a bit of extra shopping has to be done! On my way back, I got that salted bun to have with my evening tea! I know how to make it, have the recipe in the blog but would not do regular at home! Saturdays & Sundays are my cheat days!

For our dinner, I cooked some atta-semolina poori, they all were fluffy but a little more of semolina was required I felt! I no more mix gluten-free flours with a good amount of atta; on days I want to mix, I do it in a small amount! We had the poori with cabbage & potato sabzi! I was so engrossed watching Indu2 that the clock struck 2am, then I realised there would be a 3rd season! The son did not talk & mumma-babai slept with displeasure! The son is ferociously against wishing us on any special occasion, do not know why!

Today, the entire daytime what I did I do not know! I was singing, promoting my blogposts & went for a swim around 4:30 pm! I met good coach Joe training few kids! Back home, Cristine served me vermicelli upma & ginger kopi-o-kosong she made, it tasted fabulous!

And now I am all set to share with you a family style fish curry! It feels happy to be able to share a Bengali family recipe after quite sometime!

WHAT IS THIS DHONEPATA BATA TANGRA MACH?

Every winter, my family would have curries & vegetables cooked with fresh coriander paste! They claim it is typical of those hailing from the Comilla district of Bangladesh! I just love having any curry with fresh coriander paste or radhuni / ajmod paste added! I love that smell! For a curry with fresh coriander paste, my family would always use super fresh sweet water fish varieties that have not gone through the process of refrigeration! Also, we prefer not to fry the fish in this case, they get cooked in the curry! Last month, I got in hand some fresh Tangra mach / a small cat fish the wiki calls Gangetic Mystus or Mystus Tengara! I remember, I came back home around 6-6:30 pm, Cristine cleaned, cut washed them & then I cooked them without freezing! I relished & loved the non-vegetarian, gluten-free fish curry, DHONEPATA BATA TANGRA MACH with plain rice; Cristine & her Sir also had! There is a difference between loving a dish & having a dish! When it comes to fish, I mostly stick to pure Bengali fish varieties, else it's fish fillets for me!

INGREDIENTS : 

TANGRA MACH / SMALL CAT FISH : 400-500 GM

FRESH CORIANDER : 200-250GM

GREEN CHILLI : 3-4

RED CHILLI POWDER : 1 TSP

TURMERIC POWDER : 1 TSP

NIGELLA SEED / KALONJI / KALOJEEREY : 1/4 TSP

BAYLEAF : 1

DRY RED CHILLI : 1[HALVED]

SALT : AS REQUIRED

OIL : 2 TBSP + 1 TBSP [I USE MUSTARD OIL]

PROCEDURE :

Cristine did the toughest job of cleaning & cutting the fishes! 

Cut the tail end, whiskers, fins & the tip of the mouth with a scissor! With the fingers, take out the wastes from the stomach, also the gills! This fish has no scales! Wash inside-out thoroughly few times under the running water!

Marinate them with the salt, turmeric, red chilli powder, 2 tbsp mustard oil & keep aside for 1/2 an hour!

Discard the root end of the fresh coriander, roughly chop & wash along with the green chillies! Prepare a paste of them adding a little of water!

Heat a tbsp of oil in the wok & temper with the nigella seeds, halved red chilli & a bay leaf! Gently add the fishes along with the marinade! 

Carefully fold in & cover! After 5 minutes, remove the cover, fold in & cover!

After 3-4 minutes, remove the cover & add a coffee mug of water, cover again! Let cook for 5-6 minutes at low heat!

Remove the cover, add the chilli coriander paste & adjust the salt! 

Cover cook at low heat for 3-4 minutes, take down & have it with piping hot steamed rice! 

We also had a lentil curry, eggplant-paneer medley, salad alongside!

MY STYLE SHORPURIA

 I AM PLANNING TO COOK & BLOG ABOUT IT SINCE THE INCEPTION OF MY BLOG!

In fact this special sandesh should have been the first recipe in my blog! Why not? It is a speciality sweet of my birth place! It is so special that it is exported to the Bengalis worldwide! At least that was the scene in our growing up time! The township is famous for it's clay models & sweets! It is special not only because it is my birthplace; I have spent a considerable part of my childhood there in the lap of our maternal grandparents, uncles & aunts! Until the end of the 80's; I was emotionally detachable with the place, even though we shifted to Kolkata in 1976! Once in college, I was going less there! The brother has been always Kolkata's child! Also, he never wished to stay a single night without the mother, I would go for month long holidays! I have several memories attached to the place; the open space in the Judge's Court was where the uncle, aunts would sit with friends, we would have peanuts there! It is there where I saw my first movie, I was admitted to the Church's school, visits to the King's palace during the Durga Puja, the mehendi plant in the Muslim locality all are still afresh on my mind! Starting from the Railway Station to the river bank of the Churni river, everything would remain stored in my heart forever! People do not change, circumstances & priorities change; the place itself stands testimony of notable memories! The cousin sisters are already out of there, one cousin brother is there; the other frequents to his roots! The three maternal uncles, the youngest maternal aunt, the grandma are still there & unlikely to relocate permanently! I believe they cannot survive anywhere else! Everyone knows them there! Where? I am talking about Krishnanagar City Junction in the Nadia district of West Bengal!

I AM DEALING WITH NOSTALGIA TODAY!

Last year, when I went to see the grandma & off course the rest in the family; I had a hurried tour of the city, I need to scroll back the album to share some clicks; but I feel tired to! Also something happened within a year that  is not allowing me to go gaga about how special the place is to me! Let it stay within, outside of the public glare! But this recipe had to come, it's a tribute of a food blogger to her birthplace! Last year, I visited the sweet shop from where till date the family gets the sweet! I felt, it lost it's former pride! T had been there, he was born in another historic place near it, Nabadwip! The son I could not show my birthplace, do not even know if he has any interest! The kids of the present day are a bit different; technology has taken over them!

According to this gentleman, they do not use fresh milk cream / dudh er shor anymore due to the scarcity of supply, that top layer formed after boiling the milk! But that is an integral part of the Shorpuria sandesh sweet, hence the name! I have sweet memories not only of the place, it's people but also of this sweet and of shorbhaja & nikhuti! Krishnanagar is not only my birthplace, it was my playground until the late 80"s! I have not researched if the name of the city has any connection with one of it's rulers Raja Krishna Chandra!

WHAT IS THIS MY STYLE SHORPURIA?

As discussed, Shorpuria is a sweet that originated in the Nadia district of West Bengal, precisely in Krishnanagar! I think, I am having it since my rice feeding ceremony! Ever since I became a food blogger, I garnered the wish to blog about it! There were no proper & enough information in the internet & I held it until my visit to the shop that seem to have discovered the sweet hundreds of years back! Last year, I went & made one of the makers talk about it! I however felt it necessary to add a bit of malai / milk cream in the making of this sweet! They never divulge the exact recipe I believe but I could get the taste of it after few tries, I yet would name the sweet, vegetarian & gluten-free as MY STYLE SHORPURIA!

INGREDIENTS :

MILK : 2 LITRE + 1 LITRE

VINEGAR : 2 TBSP ADDED TO 4-5 TBSP WATER

SEMI SOLIDIFIED MILK / KHOYA / MAWA KHEER : 250-300 ML

CHENA / FRESHLY MADE PANEER / SOUTH ASIAN COTTAGE CHEESE : 400 GM

MALAI / MILK CREAM / DUDH ER SHOR : 150 ML

SUGAR : 150-200 GM [YOU CAN USE SUGAR-FREE ALTERNATIVES]

MILK POWDER : 1/2 SMALL TEA CUP

GHEE / CLARIFIED BUTTER : 2 TBSP

GREEN CARDAMOM SEED : 1/2 TSP

ROASTED CASHEWNUT : 1 1/2 TSP [CHOPPED]

ROASTED PISTACHIO : 1 TSP [CHOPPED]

PROCEDURE :

For long, I wished to store milk cream to cook ghee; no one at home have milk, when the son was around he had chilled milk, never boiled! You need enough milk cream to get a little of ghee! I kept the idea on hold & stored that little of milk malai, the top layer after boiling to make a sweet famous in my birth place!

We would keep boiling 1 litre of milk & take off, store the top layer until the milk changes colour & thickens! After taking off the top layer, we would add the ghee & milk powder to the thickened milk, mix well; microwave at high for 3-4 minutes, pausing & stirring in between to get the mawa / khoya kheer!

For the paneer / chana, we will boil 2 litres of milk, add a mixture of vinegar & water & switch off the gas stove! We would stir & pass the curdled milk through the clean, thin cloth placed over a strainer! We have to hang it for an hour to get rid of the whey!

Now, we have in hand the chana, milk malai / shor, khoya kheer / mawa!

Mix together the malai cream & khoya kheer & beat well, add to the chana / paneer! Also add the sugar, green cardamom seeds, roasted & chopped pistachio, cashew nuts! Now we are to knead it for sometime!

We would take a pan that is not used to cooking curries, add the dough & keep stirring at minimal heat for sometime! When we would see the dough leaving the sides; we would take out and transfer the mixture to a greased mould of our choice! We would keep it at rest for an hour, transfer to a plate, cut & serve! It tastes best when served fresh!

BENGALI CHATU MAKHA

 I SINCERELY WISHED TO BLOG ABOUT IT, TRUST ME!

And why not? It is essentially a part of my journey as a Bengali Blogger! Sattu / Chatu / Roasted Gram Flour had been a must have item in our family pantry! On days when the mother felt unwell & could not cook roti-prata, our breakfast was this recipe, that I would be sharing today! I indeed enjoyed it, still do! After relocating to this island, the diabetic me tried to eat it the other way quite popular in India; with salt, mustard oil, chopped green chillies & onions! I could not have it! Saying this, I do not intent to hurt the sentiments of those unfortunate daily wagers back in Kolkata whose staple was / is it! Near our college, there were a couple of such non-Bengali speaking daily wagers, who in the afternoon would sit & do the mixture, have it accompanied by a "lota" full of water! Also, on my way to & from school, I would see this, less because it was Bengali crowd there! I used to watch closely and couldn't just take the scene, it was tough! Even in the present day, the scene remains the same, I do not get to see as I hardly walk the streets of Kolkata in that manner! What I want to say is having malls after malls throughout the country is not development alone! But there is certainly a development because beggars are less seen in the roads; also it got hard to get house helps at a meagre amount! That means there have generated work better than working as a house help or begging on the roads! What it takes to betterment are a corruption free political set up, sincere hard working selves, population control! I hardly can do any good to the society, I do not wish to talk much on these topics! I eat, roam, relax, listen to few genres of music!

THAT IS WHAT WE ATE YESTERDAY!

It's being long I do not go out on a Sunday & get an outside lunch or dinner pack for us; actually for T as I keep eating outside! The reason is nothing but lethargy! Several requests of mine to go out together on a Sunday had been rejected! He enjoys his beer & whisky with peanuts & cheese respectively; more than outside food! I find it difficult to believe if this is the same person who took us to restaurants frequently during his holidays! No, the son's education is not demanding this amount of restrictions I can say! I do not wait for when he would, I go out alone and do what I enjoy! It is 3 pm now, at 4pm I would go out to eat my lunch, rest a bit & walk! Then I would come back, take a good shower, do the night prayer, blow the conch and finish off with the blogpost! T says because I cook a variety at home & quite good; he doesn't want to eat out regular! What we had for lunch & dinner yesterday are these :

There was a stale dough for one porota & I had! At night, I cooked luchi sans any amount of semolina in the dough! The dough got softer than required and I was finding it difficult to fry them! I think I enjoy a choice of fish over the lamb & mutton in this island! Tell me what to eat after an hour for a late lunch? I again went back to having dinner at 9:30pm-10pm! I felt it is too much of a hassle arranging dinner for myself at 6:30pm; eating before the bread earner at home is causing me discomfort, the family women never did! I have no contribution in the family expenses! We enjoy eating together, a little of chitchat that includes bullying me! If I sing, he calls me Pata Kumari; he calls my degrees fake, my physique that of an elephant! I do not take to the heart, he is an extremely honest & responsible person! Do not try his stunts on me! Every person is different and we deal with different person in different manner, at least I do! I did not like my mother-in-law literally throwing her half eaten fish on my plate, because I love fish bone & head! She had to understand that is showing disrespect to me! She saw me eating T's leftovers, but she had to understand she had to give me a lot of good vibes before expecting me to eat her leftovers! I would want to deal too carefully with my son's girl! I even offered him to get his present girlfriend if any, with him this summer! He is not agreeing to come before his graduation! I can understand his mind, I know he is sincere about his life at this time! Mumma finds out good activities for herself, she dances to Bombay Jayashri's "Zara Zara Behekta Hai", I am both Dia Mirza & R Madhavan fan! The islanders see me regular grooving with my headphone on! Neither Dia nor Maddy can pull a seductive number well, such innocent features they have! Come on, do not make out exact literal meanings of the lyrics of a song, we hum just for the love of it!

WHAT IS THIS BENGALI CHATU MAKHA?

As told, the mother kept chatu always in her pantry! It is roasted gram flour powder! You can say it is the Organic Bengali Protein Powder! The Bengali body builders' favourite drink was this powder added to water with a bit of jaggery or salt & lemon juice! It helps beat the summer heat! Even, in our family the young male cousins had the drinks! We did have exactly the powder this way with milk, banana, sugar, adding beaten rice & puffed rice to it! It is extremely filling and you must prepare it less for yourself! Once you have it you would not feel hungry for long hours! It is purely organic, gluten-free, if you use non-diary milk, it gets to be vegan too! Let us name it BENGALI CHATU MAKHA, one of my favourite breakfast item! At this point, I left for my first meal & walk! I had a banana paratha & onion paratha with teh-o-kosong! Such meals go against any weight loss program! That is why I am round!

I loved my meal except for that tomato sauce, I like a chilli infused sauce! Also, only on request they would add green chillies to the onion in the paratha! Now, I would go for my shower! I wished to share in the blog today something for those who would be fasting coming Thursday on the occasion of Neel Sashti! We keep fast for our child! Not only I  would fast for my son on Thursday; on Friday, the last day of the Bengali Calendar, we would prepare a ball with this powder, sugar, water mixture and place outside seeking blessings for the brother, asking for him a trouble free life! Actually, we are to place the food at the juncture where three roads meet, I would do in our ledge! If you are having it as a fasting food, skip adding the grains like puffed rice & beaten rice!

INGREDIENTS : 

SATTU / CHATU / ROASTED GRAM FLOUR POWDER OR BARLEY POWDER / JOB ER CHATU : 1 MEDIUM TEA CUP CUP

BANANA : 1 OR 2 STANDARD SIZED

PUFFED RICE : A FISTFUL

BEATEN RICE : A FISTFUL

MILK : 1 1/2 COFFEE MUG [USE NON-DIARY MILK FOR A VEGAN VERSION]

SUGAR : 2-3 TSP [I USED BROWN SUGAR]

PROCEDURE :

I used this brand of chatu!

The Neogy family gave me before leaving for Abu Dhabi! My family also uses Barley Flour [Job er Chatu]!

Take the roasted gram flour in a bowl! 

Wash the puffed rice & beaten rice under running water taken in a colander, let all the water drain away! Add them to the chatu!

Mix well! Wash, peel & add the banana to the bowl & mash! Mix everything well!

Add the milk & sugar, fold in well & enjoy your breakfast meal! I would always use chilled milk for this!

If you are having it as a fast breaking meal; skip using the grains like puffed rice & beaten rice!