Prawn masala is known as sungtache tonak in konkani and chingri malai curry in bengali.Sungta/chingri stands for prawns in konkani/bengali respectively.This is one recipe which is common to both konkani and bengali cuisine :-)
Method - Wash the prawns well and marinate it with salt,haldi and chilly powder for atleast 2 hours. Take 1 onion and cut it lengthwise(vertical).Chop the garlic cloves. Put a tspn of oil in a non-stick pan. Put in the onion,garlic and freshly grated coconut.Stir it on a low flame till a nice aroma comes.Keep it aside once done. Now dry roast the spices - coriander,pepper,cinnamon,cloves,cardamom(optional),red chillies. Grind the spices with the onion-garlic-coconut mix to a fine paste. Heat some oil in a non-stick pan. Chop 1 onion finely and add to the pan.Let it saute. Make a paste of ginger-garlic (or can use the ready-made one) and add to the onions. Once the raw smell of ginger-garlic goes add the finely chopped tomato. Add salt and let it cook. After about 2 min, add the chopped potatoes and prawns let it cook. Add the ground coconut-spice mix to the prawns. Cover and cook for about 7-8 min. Add water if the potatoes are not boiled. Once potatoes are done, prawn masala is ready to serve either with roti/pav or steamed rice :-)
Radish is one of the very healthy green leafy vegetables.Here is a recipe which is very tasty and easy to prepare.
Ingredients - mooli saag(1 bunch) garlic (3-4 cloves) dry red chillies (2) gram flour (besan) oil tomato (1 small) water
Method - Wash the mooli saag well and boil it with water. Once boiled drain out the water. Put oil in a kadhai. Once the oil is heated add the broken red chillies. Add the mashed garlic cloves and then add the boiled saag,chopped tomato and salt. Cover the lid and let it cook for a while. Take 1 tspn of besan and mix it with 1 tspn of water. Add this mixture to the saag and let it cook for about 2 min. mooli saag is ready to serve with phulkas or steamed rice :-)
Goan Chicken Xacuti is one of the most famous goan chicken dishes..It is cooked in coconut gravy with a mixture of roasted aromatic spices.It is one of our favourite chicken dishes and if you have not tasted xacuti yet, it is high time you give this a try ! :-)
Ingredients - Chicken marinade - 500gm chicken green chillies (5-6) ginger (1 big piece) garlic (8-10 cloves) fresh coriander leaves(2 tbspn) salt turmeric (haldi)powder curd/lemon/vinegar tomato (1 medium)
Method - Wash the chicken well.Apply salt and turmeric powder to it. Make a fine paste of green chillies,ginger,garlic,coriander leaves. Apply this paste to the chicken.Add either curd or vinegar or lemon juice to this marinated chicken and mix well.Let this marinate for atleast 2 hours. To make the masala - dry roast - coriander,pepper,cinnamon,cloves.red chillies,cumin,fennel seeds and poppy seeds in a non-stick pan(without oil). Grind all this to a fine paste. Chop an onion lengthwise,and garlic cloves. Put 1 tspn oil in a pan and add the onions,garlic and freshly grated coconut.Mix this on a low flame till a nice aroma comes. Grind the coconut-onion-garlic to a fine paste. Take 2 tspn oil in a non-stick pan.Add an onion finely chopped.After the onion sautes, add finely chopped tomato and salt.Add the marinated chicken to this and close the lid and let it cook.Do not add any water.After about 10-15 min, add the spice mix(masala) to the chicken and let it cook. After some time add the coconut gravy to this and let it cook. Finally garnish the chicken xacuti with fresh coriander leaves. Serve it with onions and lemon wedges.It goes well with slice bread or goan pav :-)
This is a very simple cake recipe.This is best for beginners in baking just as I started :-) I have mentioned 2 ways of baking here.One is in microwave and one is using a cake pan. So go ahead and bake your first cake if you have not baked till now :-)
Method - Beat the eggs together.Add sugar to the eggs and mix well.Powdered sugar is preferrable since it will take less time.Or else you can blend the egg-sugar mixture. Mix the flour and baking powder. Start adding oil little by little and knead the dough simultaneously. Now add this dough to the egg-sugar mix. Mix it well so that the batter is consistent and smooth.
For baking - I have baked in a cake pan and in microwave. Cake pan baking procedure - See the pic of the cake pan.Grease the cake pan with oil. Put the cake batter in the pan and close its lid. Since I did not have an oven,I used this simple way of baking. Put some sand in the plate which you see at the bottom. Place this plate on the burner.Now keep the cake pan over this plate.Keep it on very low flame. Thats it..that is all you have to do and your cake will be ready in 25-30 min :-)
Microwave oven procedure - I made cup cakes in microwave. Grease the cups with oil.Put the cake batter in them. Preheat the oven. Place the cups in convection option in microwave for about 25-30 min. Fluffy cup cakes are ready :-)
Upma or uppit as it is called by various names is a very popular south Indian breakfast.It is very easy to make it provided the sooji and water proportion is correct.If that goes wrong then the upma may turn out as hard as cement.. :-) So the proportion is for 1 cup of sooji take 2 cups of water. ie- double the water for the quantity of sooji.When you take the correct measurements you can enjoy this delicious soft upma.
Ingredients - 1 cup rava/sooji onion (1 medium) green chillies (5-6) mustard seeds (1 tpsn) hing (asafoetida) curry leaves (kadipatta) turmeric powder chana dal (1 tpsn) washed urad dal (1 tpsn) water (2 cups) oil (2 tbspn) ghee(1 tbspn) salt sugar(a pinch)
Method - Heat a tbspn of ghee and roast the sooji in a non-stick pan by stirring it continuously. Once a nice aroma fills your kitchen switch off the flame. Take oil in a non-stick pan. Add hing,curry leaves,mustard seeds. Once the mustard seeds splutter add the chana dal and urad dal. Add a pinch of turmeric. Add the chopped onions, green chillies,sugar and salt to taste. Saute the onions for a while and add 2 cups of water and let it boil. Once the water is boiled, add the sooji little by little by continuously stirring it. Do not allow lumps to be formed. Close the lid for a min and then switch off the flame. Keep the upma covered for about 3-4 min. Upma/uppit is ready to serve :-)
Pudding is a very easy and healthy dessert recipe.It has got nutritional value because of the eggs and milk and also due to microwave cooking.It can also be prepared on steam in a pressure cooker(as described below).This is an excellent dessert for kids as well as adults :-)This is our favourite dessert recipe and we dont mind having this even when there are a lot many other desserts present :-)
Method - Heat the milk and let it cool. Whisk(beat) 4 eggs in a bowl well. Mix the eggs and milk well and add vanilla essence. Add sugar(11 tbspn) to the milk-egg mix.Sweetness can be varied as per your choice.
Put the the egg-milk mix in the microwave safe container. Microwave this for 10-12 min. Check by inserting a knife into the pudding, if it comes out clean, the pudding is done. Let it cool and then refrigerate it. Do not try to remove the pudding when hot.Let it set. After about 1-2 hours of refrigeration slowly loosen the edges of the pudding with the help of a knife. Once it is loose, keep a plate on top of the container and turn it upside down. The mouth-watering pudding is ready in your plate :-)
Note - If you are not using a microwave the following are the changes in the procedure : Take a pressure cooker, add some water to it. Place a stand in the cooker and place the pudding container over this stand. Close the pudding container. Now pressure cook this for about 20-25 min without the weight(whistle). Check and see if pudding is done with the help of a knife and then let it cool and refrigerate.
I have tried making pudding in both these ways..it tastes equally yummy :-)
Matar paneer is green peas cooked with cottage cheese.Paneer is Indian cheese and this is a very popular main course dish in north India.It is also very healthy specially when paneer is made at home.Paneer is a rich source of calcium which helps in building strong teeth and bones.Specially very important for women as it prevents osteoporosis in old age.
Ingredients - For paneer preparation - milk-500ml(1 packet) lemon(1) water
Matar(green peas) onion(1 big) green chillies (4-5) tomato (1 big) ginger-garlic paste coriander(dhania)powder cumin(jeera)powder turmeric(haldi)powder salt oil
Method - To make home-made paneer - Heat 500 ml of milk. Sqeeze 1 lemon with 2(tbspn) water. As the milk comes to a boil, add the lemon-water to it slowly. The whey(water that separates out) will separate out from the paneer. Drain the whey out and collect the paneer in a thin cloth/cheese cloth in a colander(utensil with small holes). Hold the colander under cold water and wash the paneer. Hang this cloth till all the water drains off or best is if you can place some heavy weight over it for about 1-2 hrs. Knead the paneer well and form square shaped pieces (see pic)
Soak the green peas(matar) overnite or atleast for 5-6 hours. Drain the water and wash the matar well. Cook the matar(with a pinch of salt) in a pressure cooker till soft.(depends..5-6 whistles)
Add oil in a kadhai.Fry the paneer pieces in it lightly.This is required when you use home-made paneer because it is soft.If you are using ready-made paneer, then there is no need to fry the paneer pieces. Keep the paneer aside. Add oil in a kadhai. Add the chopped onion and green chillies(slit). Add salt and let the onions saute. Add ginger-garlic paste and let it cook. Once the raw smell of ginger-garlic goes, add the tomato finely chopped. Add salt,haldi,dhaniya and jeera powder and close the lid. Let it cook for about 10 min. Now add the matar and close and cook again for about 10 min. Add the paneer pieces and water till the desired consistent gravy is reached. Serve hot matar paneer with phulkas :-)
Dim stands for egg in bengali.Jhol stands for curry(thin) which is usually had with rice. This is a favourite dish in every bengali home. Any day if you are running out of veggies in your pantry, you can always rely on this egg curry.The below recipe contains veggies, as it is had with steamed rice and the addition of veg adds both nutrition and taste to the egg curry :-)It tastes good without the veg too.
Ingredients - eggs(4) onion(1 large) green chillies (3-4) ginger-garlic paste tomato(1 large) salt turmeric(haldi)powder red chilly powder coriander (dhaniya)powder cumin (jeera)powder cauliflower(7-8florets) potato(1 small) oil coriander leaves(1 tpsn)
Method - Boil the eggs and carefully slit them without breaking. Heat oil in a kadhai and fry the eggs and keep aside. Chop the onion and tomto finely. You can make a paste of ginger-garlic(if you have time) or just use the readymade paste. Cut medium sized cauliflower florets. Chop the potato in medium sized pieces. Heat oil in a kadhai. Add the green chillies(slit) and onion. Add ginger-garlic paste and salt to cook. After the raw smell of ginger-garlic goes, add the tomatoes and let it cook. After 5min add salt,red chilly powder,haldi,coriander and cumin powder. Add the florets and potato pieces and close the lid. Let the veggies cook in the steam. After about 10-15 min add the slit boiled eggs to this. Add water and let it boil till the potato is cooked well.(cauliflower gets cooked easily so make medium sized pieces and not small..) Garnish with fresh coriander leaves. Egg curry is ready to serve with phulkas/roti or steamed rice :-)
Note - egg curry can also be made without the veggies.
Ivy gourd or gherkins is the english name.It is known as Tendli/Tindora/Kundri in konkani/hindi/bengali respectively.There can be a different prepartion of ivy gourd without onions and garlic, but I prefer this recipe as I like it this way.
Ingredients - Ivy gourd - 250gm onion (1 big) garlic (7-8 cloves) green chillies (2-3) tomato (1 medium) salt red chilly powder turmeric (haldi) powder sugar water oil
Method - Wash the ivy gourd well and cut it into vertical pieces(thin). Chop the onion,garlic and tomato finely. Cut the green chillies slit. Add oil in a kadhai. Add the chopped onion and garlic to it. Add green chillies. Add salt to taste and let it cook. After the onions saute, add the chopped tomato. Add the cut ivy gourd and close the lid and let it cook. After 5 min add salt,red chilly and haldi powder to it.Also add a pinch of sugar. Again close the lid and let it cook in the steam. After the vegetable is partially cooked in steam(it takes some time for ivy gourd to cook in steam)add water to it and let it boil. Check if the veg is properly boiled, if not add little water again till it cooks. Serve hot with phulkas/chapatti or as a side dish with steamed rice :-)
Note - Potatoes can also be added in this recipe if you wish .
Bread upma or pavacho sheero - as it is called in konkani is yet another simple and easy snack which can be prepared in literally 5 min :-)This is generally made from the leftover(previous day) bread you have got in your pantry.So if you are bored of eating bread sandwich, you can give this variation a try and I am sure you will enjoy it.
Method - Make small pieces of the bread slices with your hand. Chop the onion and green chillies(slit)finely. Take oil in a kadhai. Once the oil is hot add mustard seeds and let them splutter. Then add the cumin seeds. Add the green chillies and haldi powder(fodni - as called in konkani) Add the bread pieces,salt and a pinch of sugar. Add 1 tpsn of ghee. Cover it and let it cook for about 2 min. Bread upma/sheera is ready to serve :-)
Thalipeeth is a pancake made of rice flour/other flour.It is called as kandyachi bhakri in konkani.A very quick item which is not time consuming and also keeps your stomach full.
Ingredients - rice flour (1/2 cup) ragi flour (1/2 cup) green chillies(3-4) onion(1 medium) fresh coriander leaves(1 tbsn) salt turmeric (haldi)powder water oil
Method - Mix rice flour and ragi flour in a mixing bowl.I have used ragi flour here, but thalipeet can be made only with rice flour too. Add salt, haldi powder , green chillies (slit) to the flour. Chop the onion and coriander finely and add to the above mix. Now add water little by little and mix well.It should not become too watery,because in that case you will not be able to spread it with your hand on the pan. Take a non-stick pan/tava and spread some oil on it with your hands. Take the above mix and put the entire lump on the pan(center). Apply some water to your hand and spread it as thin as possible. Make small holes in the thalipeeth (see pic)and add oil/ghee in these holes and put it on the flame. Cover the pan and let it cook. After about 5-6 min, turn the thalipeeth and let it cook on the other side. Serve the thalipeeth hot with aloo sabji or any other sabji you like or it just goes well with a cup of hot tea :-)
Fodi stands for vegetable fritters(shallow fried veggies) in konkani.This is a very common side dish in a konkani meal-there has to be some kind of fried item.You give any veggies to a goan and they will be make these (shallow fried)fritters or fodi out of them :-) So this is a very simple dish which can be served as a starter too along with ketchup or chutney.
Ingredients - any of the veggies - potato,eggplant(brinjal),ladyfinger(okra/bhendi),bitter gourd(karela),plantain(raw banana) salt red chilly powder turmeric(haldi) powder rice flour/sooji(rava) oil
Method - Wash and cut the veggies into small pieces.I have used bitter gourd(kaarate in konkani).Check the pic. Apply salt and let it stand for atleast 10 min. Then drain out the water and apply chilly and haldi powder. Roll the veggies in rice flour(aalen in konkani) or rava(sooji) and shallow fry them on a low flame on a non-stick tava. Serve these as a starter or just a side dish with rice.
doodhi/kumro stands for pumpkin in Konkani/Bengali respectively. This is one of the very healthy vegetables and many people are unaware about its benefits.It is very low in calories and contains no cholesterol or saturated fats,instead its a rich source of fiber,minerals and vitamins. This veggie can be used to make different savory and sweet dishes.So here is a simple pumpkin recipe.
Ingredients - Pumpkin piece(medium size) onion (1 medium) green chillies (5) tomato(medium) beans(optional) potato(1 small) turmeric powder salt sugar oil cumin(jeera) water
Method - Peel and chop the pumpkin and potatoes into small pieces(not very small). Chop the onions,beans and green chillies(slit). Take oil in a kadhai.Add the cumin seeds or pachforan(as said in bengali)Pachforan as the name suggests is a combination of 5 spices-cumin,black cumin(kalonji),fenugreek(methi),radhuni(similar to mustard),fennel(saunf). Add the green chillies,onions and saute. Add salt to cook faster. Add the chopped tomatoes and let it cook. After 2-3 min add the pumpkin,beans and potatoes,add salt,haldi and a pinch of sugar and cover the lid and cook for 10 min. Once the veggies are partially cooked in steam, add water so that all the veggies are boiled. Let it cook till all the water is consumed.
Variation - After the pumpkin is half cooked,you can add small prawns to it.And then it gets even more tastier :-)
Note - beans are optional,you can also use capsicum in place of beans in case you have some.
Lashnichi kadi as it is called in konkani.Lasun stands for garlic in konkani - hence the name.Goans will have half of the rice with dal or fish curry, and the remaining rice is kept to have with sol kadi.This is a compulsory item in every konkani home without which the lunch/dinner is incomplete :-)This also serves a healthy purpose as it is very good for digestion.
Ingredients - 1 cup fresh coconut(grated) garlic (4 cloves) red chillies(5-6) salt kokum(sola) water fresh coriander leaves
Method - Heat water(not very hot) in a bowl and add kokum or sola (as it is called in konkani) to it.Add a pinch of salt to this. In a mixer grind the coconut,garlic and red chillies adding lukewarm water(not too much) Now strain this into the bowl of kokum-salt mix through a strainer(galni in konkani) to get thick coconut milk(milk strained the very 1st time). Add some water to the coconut mix and again drain to get the thinner coconut milk(milk strained after adding water the second time). Thats it ! kokum sol kadi is ready :-) Garnish it with a few coriander leaves(optional)
Variation - sol kadi can also be prepared by grinding coconut and green chillies in the mixer.In that case garlic is not used.Remaining procedure is same.
Pomfret is a sea fish.This is a famous bengali recipe made out of this sea fish.Mach stands for fish in bengali and jhal stands for spicy/hot(though this dish is not that spicy).This is a very simple fish recipe which does not need much ingredients or time :-)You can make jhal with any other fresh water fish too,the procedure remains the same(only replace pomfret with the other fish)So if you need to make a number of dishes in a short time,you can rely on this one.It is a very common and favourite recipe in every bengali home :-)
Ingredients - 2 medium sized pomfrets mustard(shorshe) powder 1 medium sized onion 4-5 green chillies 1 small tomato water turmeric(haldi) powder salt oil
Method - Wash the fish well and marinate it with salt and haldi powder for atleast 2 hours.(This fish I bought was already cut and cleaned). Soak about 3 tbspn of mustard powder in water(water should be enough to soak the powder).Add a pinch of salt to it and let it remain soaked for atleast 15min. Heat some oil in a kadhai. Fry the fish pieces lightly in oil for about 1-2 min and take them on a paper towel to soak the excess oil. Now add the onions, green chillies(split) and salt. Add the tomato finely chopped and let it cook. Now add the mustard powder-water mix to the kadhai and let it cook for about 5 min. Add the fish pieces and water(water just above the fish) and let it cook for 8-10 min as pomfret fish does not take much time to get cooked. Serve this as a side dish with steamed rice.
Rasgulla or Roshgulla - as it is called in Bengali is a very famous Bengal sweet all over the country.It is also known as King of All Sweets :-) But let me tell you that it is a very easy sweet to be made at home.Just give it a try once and you will realize how simple it is.So the next time you have guests coming at your place you can surprise them with these lovely home-made rasgullas.
Method - Heat the milk till it boils. Mix 2 tbspn of lemon with 1 tbspn of water. Add this to the milk. Then drain the whey(water that separates out) in a muslin/cheese cloth so that cottage cheese(chhena) is formed. Squeaze the water out as much as possible - you can hang the muslin/cheese cloth which contains the cottage cheese or else best is if some kind of heavy weight can be put on the cloth. Knead the cottage cheese very well so that no lumps remain. Make smooth circular balls out of this. For the sugar syrup - mix 1.5 cups of sugar with 3 cups of water. Heat the sugar-water mix, till it boils.(keep on high flame) Now put the flame on medium and add the chhena balls into the sugar syrup. Keep the syrup half closed with the lid. Check after 15 min. The rasgullas would have become bigger in size(they would swell up). Turn them carefully on the other side. Keep it for another 15-20 min, in the same way(lid half closed) After some time,check again to see fully swollen rasgullas :) This proportion makes 7-8 medium sized rasgullas.
Chicken biryani - The name biryani is derived from the Persian word 'berya' which means fried or roasted.The name 'dum' has come from the word 'cooking in steam'-that is how the name Hyderabadi Dum Biryani. The hyderabadi style differs from the Lucknowi style mainly in the way it is cooked.Here the rice and the chicken is cooked simultaneously and fried onions are added.Whereas in lucknowi style the rice is cooked separately from the chicken.They are then brought together and layered, resulting in a dish of the contrasting flavors of flavored rice (which is cooked separately with spices) and chicken.So go ahead and have this delicious Chicken Dum Biryani with Raita(optional) for your sunday lunch :-)
Ingredients - For chicken - 500 gm chicken salt turmeric(haldi powder) green chillies slit ginger garlic paste curd ghee onions(1 big and 1 medium sized) tomato(1 big) coriander(dhania) powder cumin (jeera) powder biryani masala - cinnamon,cardamom, pepper corn,cloves 1/2 cup cilantro(fresh coriander leaves)
For rice - 1.5 cup basmati rice 3-4 green cardamoms(elaichi) cinnamon(dalchini)-2 small sticks 1 bay leaf (tej patta) 4-5 pepper corns (kali mirch) 3 cloves salt oil saffron(kesar)-6 strands milk(1/2 cup)
Method - Marinate the chicken for atleast 1.5 hours with the following- salt,green chillies slit (3-4),haldi powder,curd,ginger garlic paste.
In a kadhai add 1 tpsn oil and 1 tbspn ghee. Cut the medium sized onion lengthwise(vertical). Fry it in the oil till it turns brown. Keep it aside once done. Now add 2 tbspn oil to the pan. Add the big onion finely chopped to this.Then add ginger garlic paste and salt. Now add the tomato finely chopped and then coriander powder(1 tpsn) and cumin powder (1 tpsn).Close the lid and let this cook. Open the lid of the pan and see that the mixture is well cooked.Now add the marinated chicken to this and close it again for around 10 min. To make the biryani masala - make a fine powder of 4 cardamoms,3 cloves,4-5 pepper corns,2 sticks cinnamon. Add the biryani masala to the chicken and again close and cook for another 10 min.
For the rice preparation - Mix 1.5 cups of basmati rice and water.To this add whole cardomoms,cinnamon,pepper corns,bay leaf,cloves.Also add salt to taste and oil(1 tspn).Now boil this rice till it is half done-(take 1 rice grain and touch, it should be soft) Drain the water and keep the rice aside. Dip the saffron strands in luke warm milk. Now add the rice to the above chicken layer. Add ghee,few fried onions and some saffron(soaked in milk). Again add the remaining rice layer and ghee,fried onions and saffron(soaked). Garnish with fresh coriander leaves.
