MY HEALTHY DIP

It's 4:55 pm at this time, when to finish writing today? I don't know, I must share new blogpost today, my heart's call. My brain matter is insufficient, doesn't function well. I am led by heart; right or wrong I don't care; not fond of judgemental selves. My son is intelligent, sharp like his father, why good career start isn't yet shaping for him, mumma is tensed thinking son may get stressed in the situation. I don't know how far his friends live, distance is an issue in America, it's not take train, bus, reach destination kind of thing. But house-owners of one he rented are friendly, he can speak to them whenever he feels heavy! I feel bad not a single day I cooked, invited them for meal, thats unlike me! Things would be different if son's father travelled with me. The girl told me, "I told partner it smells such good when Ari's mother cooks", I felt like hugging her tight, cook, serve. I wish I would get chance to meet them again, serve them. They trusted me on first day, gave me house key, offered me to walk in their backyard! This inability to walk to neighbourhood groceries in America irritates me. I hate driving, so?

Cut to Singapore! Today, I was at my doctor's chamber! Just two months back I shared how this food court was gutted down to ashes, I was too surprised to see it open today! Wealth, hardworking people made it possible. 

Whats there not to love about this island? I absolutely do not have any self-interest involved in praising. We have to leave, we didn't apply for permanent residency, son left, at this age we wouldn't be given! I don't live in practical world; post retirement keeping Cristine is tough unless son builds career here. Even in India, we pay for services; the upscaled cities there are as good as this island; our state is still cheapest. I love my place, don't wish to stay there, too unprofessional service industry, except AquaGuard! I must engage professional helpers there once back, won't allow anyone to trouble pestering for money, even after paying enough!

If my GP says my health parameters are fine, I create Kolkata like unhealthy breakfast scenario sitting in Singapore! Okay, Lo Mai Kai is a healthy bowl of non-spicy sticky rice-chicken kind of. Thats not "jilipi-cha" but "amriti-cha"! Not to have more than once a month, okay? I can & love to cook a lot, I can re-create Kolkata food scenario anywhere in first world country!

My lunch bowls are minimal, I enjoy sitting at Hokkie Pau for that. Yesterday, I loved having sugar-free grass-jelly drink, veg-steamed pau there. Miraculously my stomach was cured! Wind formation is perennial issue!

I don't know what my aging skin denotes, it feels good to be able to get rid of obese tag. In an airplane, I don't feel pressure both-ways! Feeling lighter is big leap towards healthier self. Take me as I am, else don't; my tagline!

Homemade pickles need less salt, oil; although requires considerable amount, we prefer pickle / achar of Indian subcontinent!

This is food / shopping arcade beside Potong Pasir mrt., below the Poiz condo I think! They are giving discount on second hand books I guess. You may try, dear readers!

Credit of growing fresh coriander goes to Cristine. I bought the seeds from Fairprice Extra, rushed to India.

Creating this vegan, gluten-free recipe MY HEALTHY DIP from an error is my credit entirely! I was to cook rajma / kidney beans curry with vegetables, tofu puff, serve with soy sauce rice. After long time, I attempted Rajma, I perhaps over-soaked, over-boiled it! You know, I won't share errored recipe! I turned it onto health loaded dip with tofu, white sesame seeds, herbs, raw mango, spices; clicked platter with soy sauce-peanut rice, Doritos, salad! However, I served, had extremely yum vegetarian delight for dinner with naan! I did for Cristine, her Sir, I had with paratha. I wasn't happy with naan's finish, self-raising flour isn't enough; milk, baking soda were required beside plain yogurt!

Today, I finished writing at a record breaking time; 7 pm! 

INGREDIENTS :

RAJMA / KIDNEY BEAN : 1/2 COFFEE MUG

RAW MANGO : 1

TOFU / TAW KWA : 25 GM

GARLIC CLOVE : 2-3

FRESH CORIANDER : A HANDFUL

GREEN CHILLI : 1-2

RED CHILLI POWDER : 1/2 TSP

ZAATAR : 1/4 TSP

SUMAC : 1/4 TSP

LEMON JUICE : 2 TBSP

SALT : AS REQUIRED

OLIVE OIL : 1 TBSP + MORE TO GARNISH

PROCEDURE :

Wash, soak kidney beans overnight. Wash again, take in pressure cooker with enough water, salt, little of red chilli powder. Pressure cook at minimal heat up to 2 whistles.

Reserve the leftover water, use in curries, dough!

Take boiled kidney beans in blender once cool. Peel, wash raw mango, cut small, add to blender with washed, peeled garlic, green chillies, fresh coriander. Blend to paste.

Add red chilli powder, sumac, zaatar, lemon juice, salt, tofu cut small. Blend to paste. I just loved it.

Serve, have with platter of your choice; no issues!

EASY ORANGE SPREAD

THAT CHILDHOOD LOVE CONTINUES!

Our tastebuds keep changing, my love for homemade jam, jelly, spread however continues. Eons back our mother made jam and jelly, also a bottle of Kissan's mixed fruit jam was stocked. We would spread it atop Cream Cracker, Mary Biscuits, no other biscuits were allowed. Later, Priya's butter biscuits, Good Day, Biskfarm's, Parle-G were allowed. I used to eat countless biscuits, today I don't fancy them. I want sugary toast biscuits I am not allowed to, better I quit. On this day, I prefer having organic jam I make at home, that amount of sugary stuff I allow myself once a week. I regret not making them often when the son was in school. He mostly had store bought jam, spread. I have mentioned earlier his earliest lunch box had luchi-jam roll, idli, Luchi-aloo bhaja. The man used to carry bread-butter or bread-jam in his lunch box while in school, had boiled eggs, fruits too. He doesn't want fruits, jam in the present day, love eggs. The son shifted his allegiance to cheese may be, neither my brother enjoys jam anymore. Till date I love jam, preserve, spread, jelly. I knew their difference but forgot.

BREAD-JAM-BUTTER SEEMS LIKE A DESSERT!

It seems to me a dessert ever since I was diagnosed with diabetes and desserts got restricted in my life. At home I stock jam and butter, I wish I could add whipping cream too. I do not keep fearing a spike in the blood sugar level. Cream Cakes I avoid having regular, similar to it is bread with butter and jam, I allow myself though not regular. I wish I could have "Bun Maska & Chai" every day. I can't digest milk tea but like. I mentioned earlier it is in 1997 December at Toshali Sands, Puri the man asked me to have the bread toast together with butter and jam, till date I enjoy it. He told he had seen American's eat like this, I see it is similar to Parsi "Bun Maska".

WHAT IS EASY ORANGE SPREAD?

I did not follow rules and regulations of making a spread or jam while doing a vegan, gluten-free condiment EASY ORANGE SPREAD. But it is organic made with fresh juicy oranges; Mandarin or Clementine I could not distinguish. They turned out to be sour. I was surprised, they are sweet in general. I cannot have sour fruits, made the easiest spread  using them. They were seedless, I did not even take out the skin. Some variety of citrus fruits' skins do not taste bitter. I tasted the skin, felt little of bitter tone would balance the sweetness of the spread.

I fear to add generous amount of butter, jam on toasts, I am a diabetic. Your kids would love generous servings. The stepwise pictures below would encourage you to make a fresh orange spread in less time. I was at the Far East Plaza today and enjoyed a Korean meal.

INGREDIENTS :

ANY ORANGE VARIETY : 5-6 [PREFERABLY SEEDLESS]

SUGAR : 6-7 TBSP

LEMON JUICE : 3-4 TBSP

ORANGE ESSENCE : 2-3 DROPS [I DID NOT USE, DO NOT LIKE ARTIFICIAL FLAVOURS]

PROCEDURE :

I cut the small sized oranges each into four pieces. I did not discard the skin. Only kept aside a little bit to add later.

I blended the cut oranges with skin into a paste. They were seedless.

I strained the fresh orange pulp, I was left with a bowl of fresh  juice.

I transferred it to a vessel with the sugar, put for boil on the gas oven.

It got simmered at minimal heat for 10-12 minutes. 

I added the lemon juice and the washed orange skin cut into strips.

It got simmered until thick and sticky.

Once cool, it is to be transferred to a sterilised jar. I always refrigerate.

EASY-MADE STRAWBERRY JAM

                   

ONE WHO LOVES TO EAT CANNOT REAP THE FRUITS OF  INTERMITTENT FASTING?

A frustrated soul's realisation is that. I am doing it for over four years now. I remember I started with a 14 hours of intermittent fasting a few days before the son left home for his higher studies. I have seen others doing it too. When I compare the results, I see I did get some benefits but I continue to remain an overweight. I blame myself. Even after an eighteen hours of intermittent fasting, I should not eat more than just enough. I fail to draw the line most of the days. I end up having three chapatis instead of two, while the weight watchers would eat one. I have to pay the price. Last night, I tried roomali roti following chef Sanjot Kheer's video recipe, there had one extra dough ball. I thought let me have one extra chapati, I did and this morning my weight jumped to an excess of one kilogram. When I eat, I remain happy, I get upset once I stand on the weight machine the next day. The thing is how much I try a roomali roti, it does not get as thin as this variety of bread should be. I got nearer to it whilst making it for the man. While doing mine, I ended up cooking three normal chapatis because I am impatient, making a roomali roti requires a good amount of patience.

A roomali roti also requires practice. I did not follow the chef's instruction, I did not use milk for preparing the dough. The more I was stretching the sides of the roti, it was going back to the square. To roll a bread as thin as a paper / handkerchief is not just anyone's job. Our lunch yesterday was fish and rice.

THOUGH DISAPPOINTED ABOUT AN WEIGHT INCREASE, THERE WAS SOMETHING GOOD ABOUT THIS MORNING!

Our tiny plant rack arrived from the Shein Official. The only problem about online buy is that I lack the idea about the size, measurements though clearly mentioned. I do not wish to buy high end stuffs, will order more of them.

These small buys make me happy, let us see if it can take the weight or not.  My resolution of cutting the amount of food intake for the next few days was forgotten by the afternoon, look at my first meal.

What is the point doing an intermittent fasting if I eat all of that at one meal that we are supposed to have at three meals? But I cannot stop following this, it has controlled my blood sugar level, I am just unable to control my food cravings. I have nothing else to do except for cooking, eating and talking about my food-ventures! The weekend's excess food intakes are causing weight gain and the food stocked at home, else I came back  from the USA with a reduced weight even after eating out once a day and cooking well there. Here, you get food every hundred metres and there is no-one to monitor me.

WHAT IS THIS EASY-MADE STRAWBERRY JAM?

I had the best strawberry jam in a hotel in Shimla back in 2008. The boutique hotel was made of solid wood in the backdrop of a forest, they told the jam is made of the local produce and is organic. We grew up having homemade jam, jelly, pickle though a bottle of Kissan Mixed Fruit Jam was always there at home. We did not have much of bread, both of us siblings ate jams on the biscuits; tons of them we had but only Britannia Marie and Cream Cracker. The parents did not allow any other variety, they compensated with the abundance of Amul Butter, Kissan Mixed Fruit Jam and one day the mother herself started making Jam & Jelly. She would use guava, pineapple, mango. Did we know about strawberry then? I cannot even remember if our textbooks had pictures of strawberry in them or not. Once we re-located to Barrackpore, I saw strawberry at my university's friend Juthika's home. She had immense love for the terrace gardening, their terrace had the rarest of the flowering and fruiting plants she used to get from the Horticulture. Sharing a common interest, Juthika and our mother got closer, she used to visit our home even after my marriage. She had a late marriage and went to stay in the city of my birth. Her husband is a doctor there who my maternal uncles knew as they were wholesale medicine dealers, then I forgot his name, eventually lost all contacts with the quiet girl, she was supposed to meet our youngest maternal aunt, it did not happen I think. I would love to reconnect, our mother too forgot the bylane to Juthika's home, she was the younger of the two sisters. I remember her mother who was too quiet, their well designed big home, her father dying suddenly of diabetes and some of the secrets she shared with me. Now that my brother has renovated the home, I feel like going and staying for 2-3 days. The son too needs to go and stay, the man who also loved to go and stay in Barrackpore for few days doesn't even visit them, good old days. The mother stopped making jam & jelly once in Barrackpore. I keep making them for myself, one of my favourite food is having a toast with a layer of butter and then a layer of jam on it. I have forgotten the thin line of difference a spread, jam and preserve have; let me call this organic, vegan, gluten-free condiment an EASY-MADE STRAWBERRY JAM. One of my blogpost has that difference mentioned in details, I did read about it somewhere. 

Few other similar recipes in the Blog are APPLE GRAPE JAM, PEPPERY MANGO JAM, PEYARAR JELLY

                  

INGREDIENTS : 

FRESH STRAWBERRY : 250-300 GM 

SUGAR : 5-6 TBSP

LEMON JUICE : 3-4 TBSP

PROCEDURE :

Trust me, the recipe is as easy & simple as you see, that too using three ingredients.

Discard the green leafy section attached to the fruit, wash well rubbing the body of the fruits.

Chop each of the fruits and wash just once or you may not. I took them in a blender and blended coarsely wanting a jam like texture. If you want a preserve, do not blend the fruits.

I took the blended fruit and the sugar in a bowl and placed on the stove top. 

There is nothing much to do in this recipe but we cannot move from the kitchen, we are to constantly stir the mixture else it would burn from the bottom.

We have to discard the foam formed on the top, Once the mixture starts to turn darker, we would add the lemon juice. This would not let the mixture harden when cold.

We would keep stirring until the watery texture goes away. Any liquid residue may spoil the jam sooner.

I am loving it on my toasts, you would too.

BENGALI SOUR JUJUBE SWEET SPICY PICKLE

FINALLY, TODAY I HAVE DECIDED TO GET THIS FAMILY PICKLE RECIPE TO THE BLOG!

Actually, the Sour Jujube / Ber / Tok Kul season is going off for a year. If I do not get it to the blog now, I have to wait for another year. I am finding it difficult to keep track of the clicked pictures, I am a forgetful self. Since my childhood, I had seen the mother to prepare jam, jelly, achar / pickle at home. And those pickles were sweet with a hint of sour. Jaggery was the sweetening agent, which means they were Bengali style pickle. Way later in life, may be sometime in 2007, I learnt about the Aam Chunda pickle which is not a Bengali Recipe but is sweet. My new neighbouring aunty then, who lived in Mumbai for 42 years before retiring in Kolkata, told me. Until then, I did not know much about the food of the other Indian states except for idli, dosa, naan, tandoori roti, butter chicken, mutton rogan josh, kulcha. The aunty, Kakima travelled many places with her man, Kaku. I have learnt about many things from her. She has three daughters all of whom stay in the United States. Not for a single day she or Kaku have complained about her daughters not staying with or near them, she does not even after her husband's demise. At some point, the kids would empty the nest, we would feel lonely, it's obvious. We need not complain unless we are severely neglected, that they do not call us or visit us at intervals. I believe firmly our weird boy would call us regular after he settles down with a job. You cannot blame him, the man puts his phone to the silence mode, does not pick up when his parents call. No, I am not saying this happily, he is a dutiful son to an extent only few other sons & daughters can match but he wouldn't talk. This I consider "ek litre dudh e ektu khani chona". I plead why being such dutiful he has to behave like this, he would keep seeping Whisky, Beer with his eyes fixed on the television screen. But he gets upset when his son does not take the call.

HELLO, I MADE A LOVELY CHICKEN SOUP LAST NIGHT!

Yesterday night, I cooked a light chicken soup, had it with toasted bread & cheese. I dislike cheese slices but this Amul's cheese slices do I find tasty, cannot have regular. We definitely do love clear chicken soups, the man and his mother & sister; also our mother & Bidisha. Our son definitely did enjoy Oriental soups outside of home when he stayed with us. I wish he has it often now. My brother hates perhaps, the father & the father-in-law too may be. The mother says Bidisha makes good soups, though not regular. But we cannot have clear vegetable soups, in that case, I have to make it spicy & thick. 

I am against buying readymade soup packets, the parents anyway were against much of outside food. I ask the mother to have soups & chapati at night. For dinner, she cannot have non-vegetarian food, neither one or two vegetarian side dishes, fries she would not eat much. I or the brother or Bidisha dislike it that she would have only dal-rice-salad for dinner and a little of rice with milk. The maternal grandmother had rice with milk to end her lunches and out mother eats it regular too. She cooks this and that vegetables & a non-vegetarian curry; 3-4-5 dishes each day, cannot eat at night. I do not believe only dal protein helps. I prefer having a meal with at least three items. We are paratha lovers in the entire family. My father & brother are not fond of roti, their choice of breads had been luchi & porota everyday. Us in this family, the son, man, I and Cristine love roti too! The entire pandemic period we had mostly roti. Today is a paratha day and the son is not around. 

I got to be a good paratha maker, today it was a purely wholewheat made. These days, instead of a spoon, I use a brush, that way you consume lesser amount of oil. My first meals are pretty big. I do not even try to eat less.

WHAT IS A BENGALI SOUR JUJUBE SWEET SPICY PICKLE?

Before I share this family condiment recipe with Ber / Tok Kul / Boroi, let me tell you this morning I made a fresh batch of Dates-Tamarind Chutney after few years. Like the last time, I followed Tarla Dalal's recipe of it ditto, only added one thing more, that is Dry Mango Powder. Although, we are more of Sanjeev Kapoor fans, when it comes to the Dates-Tamarind Chutney, I prefer Tarla Dalal's recipe. I do not do it regular as it requires a lot of jaggery. Then, some days I wish to make Bhelpuri or Chaats at home, in that case, this chutney is a must. 

When it comes to this vegan, gluten-free pickle, a condiment with the Indian Sub-Continent's sour variety of Jujube, BENGALI SOUR JUJUBE SWEET SPICY PICKLE; I blindly follow the mother's recipe. The father required a little of spicy sweet pickle / jhal mishti achar with his rice meals. The few varieties the mother prepared were the sweet & spicy pickles with mango, elephant apple, sour jujube and two partly sour varieties with sugar, salt, raw mango in one case & with sugar, salt, sour jujube. She would prepare in large quantities to be used throughout the year. I never had a sour tooth, neither a sweet tooth. Bengali girls grew up in those days loving raw fruits with salt & red chilli mix, spicy sour pickle. I had no fascination for these, the only sour thing I loved was the sour fish curry. I developed fondness for chaats, spicy & sour pickles when I was carrying our monkey, started loving sweets after being diagnosed with diabetes. I remember the pickle vendors standing in front of the Kolkata schools & colleges, our parents never did let us eat from there. Whilst in college, I did not even wish to buy a pickle from a vendor, I was conditioned not to. But I tasted from the friends who used to buy in one or two occasions. What makes Bengali Pickles distinct in taste & flavour are the ground mixed spice varieties.

Few other condiment recipes to try from my blog are these; PINEAPPLE JAM WITH CHILLI FLAKES, PEPPERY MANGO JAM, AAM SHORSHE KANCHALANKAR CHUTNEY, CHALTAR ACHAR.

INGREDIENTS :

TOK KUL / SOUR JUJUBE / BER / BOROI : 250-300 GM

JAGGERY : 100GM

SUGAR : 2-3 TBSP

SALT : 1/2 TSP

BENGALI PANCHPHORON / FIVE SPICES : 2 TBSP [an equal amount of fenugreek, fennel, cumin, ajmod / radhuni, nigella seeds mixed together]

DRY RED CHILLI : 5-6

WATER : AS REQUIRED

PROCEDURE :

My family prepares sour jujube sweet & spicy pickle with the ripened, brown fruits. I bought those green coloured as available, washed, kept on a tray open under the sun & the fan. In few days, they turned brown.

Once ready, I smashed them a bit and marinated with salt for about 10-12 minutes.

I took the jaggery and 1 medium tea cup of water in a wok and put it for boil. As it came to a boil, I simmered it for 5-6 minutes, stirring continuously.

Thereafter, I added the smashed & salt marinated ripened sour jujubes & the sugar. I gave a stir, reduced the heat to the minimal and let it simmer.

After some 7-8 minutes of simmering, I continuously kept stirring until sticky and semi-dry.

I transferred it to a bowl, let it cool. I kept it under the Sun in the day time & under the fan at the night time for the next one week.

Thereafter, I dry roasted all the spices and ground to a coarse powder. I added it to the pickle and folded in well.

We will give the pickle sun bath for another couple of days, then transfer to a sterilised bottle. Bengali Homes do not refrigerate their pickles, I do. 

CHILLI AVOCADO BHARTA

I MUST SAY OUR TASTEBUDS KEEP CHANGING! 

I did not even imagine few years back that I would ever enjoy having an avocado. I remember how I made fun about it on my social media posts. Guava still remains my preference over an Avocado. But I must admit I do enjoy an avocado these days, I even thought of throwing a seed in one of my tubs. Some day, I may prepare kebabs out of it. With two ovens in hand, I enjoy grilling and baking! The thing is the chefs and the Muslim world may not approve of my kebabs. My point of a debate and argument with them can be this that in the process, I use way less amount of oil! That is important, consuming less of oil. However, I dislike arguments, any noise in fact. I cannot cook oil-free stuffs, food without the right taste is not for me! I am trying to use less of oil & sugar in my cooking. I may not go sugar-free but after I am done with the blog updates, sweets would be done at low frequency at this home. I must do them during the date palm jaggery season, "pithe-puli" making season, on the occasion of the special prayer meets at home. I mean, once or twice a month, desserts & sweets I have to make. I cannot stop taking pride in my cooking abilities & interest altogether and start cooking minimal, be on the phone, chat unlimited, sleep or watch television all day! I do not even work, at least I should adapt to some healthy habits. I have started going for walks early morning, all the local school students reach the school before the sunrise, their school starts at 7 am. 

I think I am in that stage in life where we get caught up in the memory and nostalgia every now and then. Aging makes you miss the young you, accepting the greying procedure is not easy. Amidst this, the son's academic moves, some good watches on the OTT Platforms surely get us pleasure.

YESTERDAY WAS A SUNDAY I DID NOT COOK ANYTHING!

Not only we were watching an interesting thriller, a prequel; I also wished to have and serve the man the dried fish & eggplant bharta. Okay, I did grill the two giant chicken leg pieces for our lunch yesterday, the marination was the simplest; mixed Italian herbs, a seasoning mix, crushed black pepper, salt, oil.

The thing is all of the dried fish lovers would agree with me when there is a dried fish item on the plate, we do not want anything else, not even mutton, Hilsa. Dried Fish has an unique taste, it has an overpowering effect on the tongue that makes everything else on the plate seem bland. Instead of the meaty chicken leg, a light chicken curry on bone or some pakoras with the dal would have suited me. If there is no choice of fish available to me, I would prefer boneless chicken pakora, kebab, breaded fish fries, egg "paturi" or "chop" on our plates! Anyway, I would prefer a veg pakora over an egg pakora. Cooking a choice of vegetable bowl is not an issue, we get here all of the vegetables cooked in Bengali Homes. Last night, we had butter toasts with the lobia-minced chicken curry.

On a Saturday and Sunday, I keep eating snacks in between the meals. The stubborn fat layers in my body are not at fault. The amount of hard work and dieting a body requires to get fit and fab, I cannot ever do. I get tired after a 6 km walk, mindful eating is not my thing. I only can follow certain healthy rules, like cooking idli and dosa with an oats, urad dal, beaten rice batter.

Then that cream cheese filled toast I got from the local bakery cannot be low caloric, yum but!

WHAT IS THIS CHILLI AVOCADO BHARTA?

Avocado is something I am interested about these days. Although, it cannot take a place in my favourite fruit recipes. Neither I can eat it as a dessert in milk as they eat it in Philippines, as Cristine says. Yet, I have to admit I do not find it lame anymore. Though tasteless, I have seen I enjoy few dishes with it, like preparing a no-cook dip or chutney in addition to fresh chopped coriander or it's paste, green chilli, onion & few other spices. I do not know why I chose this recipe with Avocado to be in the blog, may be I wanted this Bengali style bharta with Avocado fruit to stay documented and spread among people like wild fire. Leave it, the simple reason is I loved having this vegan, gluten-free, vegetarian Bengali mash, chutney, condiment, side dish; CHILLI AVOCADO BHARTA, hence documented it. It is a healthy dish if you can excuse the amount of oil drizzled on the top. No exaggeration, I enjoyed a vegetarian meal with it in the forefront on that day.

I cooked the platter on the 18th of December, 2023. I would want to convey a message to our son and his likes that this spiced up avocado mash takes way less time to prepare than a cheese filled sandwich. Skip the mustard oil and use it on a toast instead of cheese daily or have it with rice like us, boil aloo & lentils, egg.

Some usual mash recipes from a Bengali Kitchen you may want to try can be these; LOTEY SHUTKIR BHARTA, GATHI KOCHU CHINGRIR BHARTA, BENGALI ROASTED EGGPLANT MASH & PEANUT MINT CHUTNEY

INGREDIENTS :

AVOCADO : 2-3 [60-70% RIPE]

SLICED ONION : 2 TBSP

CHOPPED ONION : 1 TSP

CHOPPED GREEN CHILLI : 1 TSP

DRY RED CHILLI : 2-3

NIGELLA SEED / KALONJI / KALOJEERE : 1/4 TSP

BAYLEAF : 1 SMALL SIZED

SALT : AS REQUIRED

TURMERIC POWDER : 1/4 TSP [OPTIONAL]

LEMON JUICE : 2 TSP

OIL : 1 TBSP + 1 TBSP [I USED MUSTARD OIL]

PROCEDURE :

Wash the avocado fruits well, discard the seeds and skins. Mash with a fork taking in a bowl. Earlier, I did the mistake of using a blender. Cristine taught me a lot about an avocado.

Thereafter, Cristine peeled, washed & sliced the onions, chopped and washed the green chillies and a onion too.

Then, I heated 1 tbsp oil in a small sized pan, tempered it with a bayleaf, nigella seeds & the red chillies. I gave a stir and added the sliced onions to it.

I got fried the onions until light brown, added the turmeric and salt, gave a stir.

I poured them in a bowl along with the tempered oil. I had mashed the fried red chillies and onions a bit, added to the mashed avocado and folded in well.

In the next round, I added the chopped onion and chillies, lemon juice; folded in well. 

Then I drizzled some raw mustard oil on the top and we enjoyed it fresh with steamed rice, it can be had with roti I believe. 

If we refrigerate it, the colour darkens. I think we need not worry, the inside remains the same green. Students of Botany, Chemistry may know the reason.