Methi daane ki sabzi

Last Sunday we were at Dorabjee's, Camp, Pune, for our usual monthly supplies.
I have been coming to this place ever since I came to Pune. In those days, it was a store on the ground floor of a small mall at the time. Slowly it grew and took up the space where Westside was, on the left, and Planet M upstairs. Now the whole building is Dorabjee's ... along with a food court on the third floor.

The staff has always been polite and helpful. And we have almost always got whatever we looked for in this one store ... saving us the time that otherwise would have been wasted in searching for different things at different places.

But of late, things are changing.
There has been a drastic change in the behaviour of the staff.
Bordering on rudeness, they are a far cry from the warm people we are used to and associate with the name Dorabjee's. And not only have I felt this in their store in Camp, but also in the newly opened Dorabjee's Mall off NIBM road.

Other than that, the one other thing that I found sad was the way the people at the parking behave.
This Sunday was the third time in a row which prompted me to write about it.

Given that Dorabjee's is now huge place , I love going through the floors and everything they have on display. Selecting household things can take time ... unless Dorabjee's want people to just have a glance and leave.
And by the time I finish shopping, it is a good one hour.
Then comes the long wait at the billing counter .... which can be as much as ten to fifteen minutes on any weekend.

And when we finally come to get the car out, the person starts behaving as if we have made a crime spending so much time inside. The parking people are supposed to return the parking deposit if you have shopped at Dorabjee's. It has been a long time practice.
But of late, the attendants stop your car and ask for the bill. And then start grumbling that we were inside for so long, were we sitting at the food court.
One even went to the extent of asking if we had been to the mall on the other side of the road after parking our car.

This insinuation makes me livid.

I wish Dorabjee's had a fixed parking amount. Park, shop, pay and leave .... just as we would at any other shopping place.

 I also wish Dorabjee's looked into their staff training a little better. 

As for now, I will not go to shop at Dorabjee's any more.
Sad.
Especially because I love shopping in this place.
But not at the cost of unnecessary unpleasantness.
And humiliation.

That off my chest, I will move on to today's recipe.

It is again a simple, healthy dish that is made at my in laws' place.
Mummy makes this with raw mangoes as well as dried mango powder or amchur ... when raw mangoes are not in season.

Need :

Methi or Fenugreek seeds - 1 cup
Coriander or dhaniya powder - 5 tbsp
Turmeric or haldi powder - 1 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
Asafoetida or hing - a pinch 
Grated raw mango - around 3 tbsp or Amchur powder - 1 tbsp
Salt -to taste
Oil - 1 tbsp
( Mummy uses ghee; I use a mix of a little oil and and a little ghee )

How to :

Soak the methi seeds overnight in enough water.

The next day, strain it and boil in a pan with enough water + salt.
Mummy pressure cooks it but I find the methi turns too slimy that way.

When done, strain.
Mix it with the coriander  powder + turmeric powder and the red chilli powder. 

If using amchur powder, mix that too.

Heat oil. 
Add jeera and hing and the grated mango.

Add a  little salt.
Cook till the mango is mushy.

Add the methi seeds.

Give a good mix and fry for 5 minutes.

Adjust salt.
Cover for sometime.

Give a final stir and remove from heat.

Serve hot with rotis and dal.

Enjoy!!

Bhaja Khichuri / Dala Khechedi

 

There is something about the rains that can turn anyone into a hopeless romantic.
One look outside the window, with some time at hand, and you are sure to write verses.
Dreamy, cloudy skies. The persistent screen of rain. The breeze ... somewhere balmy; somewhere cold.
A fluttering curtain. A twirl of smoke above a cup.
Fresh green everywhere.

And ....
The smell of ghee, roasted dal and jeera wafting from the kitchen.
Khichuri!
That aroma itself can turn a Bengali into a poet.

There is something that binds the khichuri and the rains and a Bengali together.
If it is raining, it has to be khichuri on the day's menu. There may or may not be a maach bhaja on the side; even better if it is an Ilish maach bhaja.
But other wise, khichuri has a lot of other accompaniments go with it. Most of them will be deep fried bhajas or boras.
Then there will be the labra or a mix vegetable on the side.
Followed by the tomato chaatni and Papor(papad) bhaja.

I had made this khichuri a few days back when an old friend, D, had dropped in to watch the Ratha yatra on the telly with me. She does have a telly at home, but wanted to be with me this year when I will be watching the rath without getting Bapi's call in the morning ... "Tv ta chaala .... roth shuru hoye jabe je!!"

There was no fish at home. And somehow this niramish khichuri seemed apt on this auspicious day when Lord Jagannath sets off for a vacation to his aunt's place.
D watched with amusement as I quickly lay the table and arranged this cluster to click a few snaps.
I was in such a hurry that none of the photos came out well .... the sun played spoilsport too and it was very cloudy.
But that will make no difference to the taste or the flavour of this beautiful khichuri.

This is also called the Dala khechedi in Oriya.
Very different from the Bengali dhala ( of pouring consistency) khichuri, this khichuri is very dry and the grains of the rice and the dal are not cooked into much. Rather, they will stay whole and just done.

I love coconut .... so added it.
You may skip it in this khichuri.

Here is a closer look at the texture.

Need :

Yellow moong dal - 1 cup
( The traditional Oriya Dala khechedi has moong dal with the skin on )
Rice - ½ cup
Jeera - 1 tsp
Tej pata - 1
Whole red chillies - 2, broken
Black cardamom - 1, broken
Cinnamon - 1 small piece
Grated or chopped ginger - 1 tbsp
Haldi powder - 1 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
Roasted jeera powder - 1 tsp
Grated coconut ( optional ) - 5 tbsp
Ghee - 1 tbsp + 1 tsp
Oil - 1 tbsp
Sugar - to taste
Salt - to taste
Hot water - around 4 cups

How to :

Dry roast the dal in a thick bottomed, heavy kadahi, on low heat.
Stir constantly. Do not brown.
Roast only till you get the nutty aroma of roasted dal.

If you have a kitchen exhaust, I suggest you keep it switched off now ... you may not get the aroma; a major part.

Wash the rice and the dal and keep aside.

Heat oil +  ghee in the same heavy kadahi.
Add jeera +  tej patta + whole red chillies + black cardamom + cinnamon.

Add the chopped ginger.
Fry well.

Add the haldi powder + red chilli powder + the rice and dal.

Mix around well and keep stirring on low heat till everything is dryish.
This will take around 5 to 7 minutes.

Raise heat and add the hot water + salt + sugar + roasted jeera powder + 1 tsp ghee.

Cover and cook till rice is just done.
Do check for water in between ... but do not add too much.

When the rice is not too soft but done, switch off heat and let it stand covered for 5 more minutes.

After 5 minutes, remove cover and fluff it lightly with a spoon or fork.

Serve hot.

I had made the Ramrochak tarkari instead of the labra .... to give a feel of Odiya food.
And the Tomato chaatni with khejur / dates .... the quintessential Bengali as well as Odiya favourite to go with the khichuri.
And of course papor bhaja.

You can pair it with fried vegetables like the brinjal, pumpkin or the parwal too.
My home made Aamer achar came to join the band too.

All in all .... had a good time with good friend, good food and reliving memories.
No complaints there ... not even to Jagannath too.

Enjoy!!

Chilke ke pakode / Fritters made from vegetable peels

 "Munh ki baat sune har koi, dil ke dard ko jaane kaun,
Awaazon ke bazaaron mein, khamoshi pehchane kaun .... "

My favourite ghazal singer mourns soulfully as I sit at the window, watching the light rain outside.
The room fills with his deep, heavy voice and spreads a blanket of sighs all over.
The grey from outside seeps in through the large glass windows; doing little to add any brightness.
I wish I had changed the dark, heavy curtains of summer earlier ... I think.
Now I do not feel like. So they too do their bit to add to the sense of grey.

I sit there, snuggled into a warm comforter, a picture of laziness personified, and watch the rain dance on the branches and the leaves of trees.
And the birds too.
Soaked to their skin, a crow and two koyels sit in different branches of the coconut tree, fluffing up and shaking vigorously in an futile attempt to dry themselves.
A bulbul sits atop a heavy branch, right at the top. But not for long.
The rain is too heavy for it to bear.

I sit and soak in the quiet all around.
Of late, I do not feel like talking or writing much. Too much of noise all around.
Too many people talking; too many opinions.
Too much aggression and force to put points forth.
Too loud thoughts. Too few listeners.
Everybody talking at once.
Too tiring; too overbearing.
Too overwhelming.

So I go through the days saying nothing. Or hearing nothing.
I like this quiet in me and am going to savour it for as long as I like it.

I like the dark, rainy days.
There is a sense of soothing severity in them.
They push us to quieten down. And take in the beautiful transition that goes on in nature.
While the soul soothing and all nourishing rain dances outside, the mind is pushed into sitting back and rest.

"Kiran kiran alsaata sooraj, palak palak khulti needein,
Dheeme dheeme bikhar raha hai, zarra zarra jaane kaun ... "

Unnh huh.
No bikharna.
I am trying to get a grip on myself.
Pick up my cup of tea that is fast getting cold and take a sip.
And turn to my blog.

I often make these pakodas, especially when I am making the Chorchori or any other mixed vegetable curry. Using different kinds of vegetables allows me to have all kinds of peels and this is a good way to use them.
Just make sure the vegetables are fresh.

Need :

 Vegetable peels -
I used potato, ridge gourd (turai), pumpkin and pointed gourd (parwal / potol ), around 1 cup
Onion - 1 medium
Green chillies - 2 or more
Besan - 4 tbsp
Rice flour - 1 tbsp
Haldi powder - 1 pinch
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
Baking soda - a little pinch
Fresh coriander leaves - chopped
A little water
Salt - to taste
Oil for deep frying

How to :

Wash the vegetables well.
Peel them with a knife ... keeping the skin slightly thicker than usual.
Soak them in salt water for a while.

Slice them into thin, long pieces.

Slice the onions.

Mix everything, except the oil, together with a little water to make a thick paste.

Heat enough oil in a deep, heavy kadahi.

Scoop out small balls and let into the oil carefully.

Fry on low heat till golden brown.

Drain and remove. Keep on paper napkins to drain extra oil.

 Serve hot with ketchup, any chutney or kasundi.
And of course, a cup of very hot drink.

Perfect for these rainy days when the heart longs for something hot, spicy and deep fried goodies.

"Aankhon se aansooon ka marasim purane hai,
Mehmaan yeh ghar mein aaye toh chubhta nahi dhuaan .... " Yes.
Tears will be treated as guests in our lives.
Will be welcomed with warm hearts.


Stay well friends.