Besan chila ki dahiwali sabzi ..... part of a vegetarian meal plate

I spent most part of the last week relaxing and catching up with my reading, knitting and some bingeing on some light series on Netflix. They are mostly light romances or just simple stories with a backdrop of a small town and the people there. I had loved Virgin River and am right now on Good Witch.
Somewhere in between, I binged on the K drama Heaven's Garden. And was totally smitten by it. I will start on Crash landing on you soon.

The other day I was reading an article about this current craze for kdramas / Korean tv serials .
If you ask me the reason, I will happily give mine.
For starters, they are extremely well made.
The actors are fine, the stories clean and realistic, beautiful locations and above all, you can watch them forever without having a cringe inducing scene jumping right at you or a burst of foul language that will push you to seek for the fast forward ⏩ button.

Honestly I am totally over our desi series.
They are unnecessarily gory, filled with foul language and over the top crime and extremely distasteful scenes of physical intimacy.
I actually check out the ratings first and then decide if they are 'safe' for me to watch 😄

However I am very much a desi when it comes to home cooked food .
This lunch plate has  -  

Besan cheela ki sabzi : 

Make a thin batter with besan /  gram flour, salt, cumin seeds, hing, turmeric powder, red chilli powder and water. 

Make cheela / crepes on a flat pan or tawa like so. 

Cut into thick strips. 

Beat curd with a little besan and water in a bowl. 
Add turmeric powder, salt. 
Heat a little ghee. 
Add cumin seeds and hing. 
 
Add the curd and cook on low heat till it starts to simmer. 

Let in the chila strips and cook till they soak up enough liquid. 

Serve hot. 

Kale chane ki sabzi : 

Soak and boil black chickpeas. 
Cut potatoes into cubes. 
Chop onions and green chillies. 
Heat ghee. 
Add jeera and the onion. 
Stri fry till pink and add the potatoes. 

Add turmeric powder, coriander powder and salt. 
Cover and cook till just done. 

Add the boiled chickpeas, red chilli powder and the green chillies. 

Cover and cook till everything comes together. 

Sprinkle a little garam masala powder and serve hot. 

My oil free Hing ka achar : 

Mooli ki bhuji 

Cut radish / Mooli into strips. 
Heat oil .... I use 1 tsp of ghee. 
Add jeera / cumin seeds and hing. 
Add in the radish strips and turmeric powder + salt. 

Stir and cover. Cook till done. 

Another look of the full plate. 

 You can see the post here too.  

And here too. 

Enjoy!! 

Dal Baati Churma Thali or Rajasthani Thali ...... a full meal of delectable vegetarian food

I have been getting a lot of requests to post full meal plans on the blog. 
While I do post my daily meals regularly on Instagram as well as on my FaceBook page, I have not been regular in posting here because of the lack of time. 
To post here, I will need to be armed with complete details of the food. 
How, when, why, and then the full recipe. 
Which makes it easier for me to ignore. 

But the guilt overwhelms. 

I started off with the blog first, after all. 
So no matter how difficult it might be, I will try to post my full meal plates henceforth. 

Starting off with the much loved, glamorous Dal, Baati Churma thali that I cooked for B on his birthday last month. 
I make dal baati meals regularly at home ..... it is a huge relief getting a break from rolling out and cooking rotis. 
I just make the dough and set them in the oven to cook. 
Saves loads of time. 

On my plate here is - 

Gatte ki shukhi sabzi 

Cook the Gatte by following the recipe here. 

Cut them up into medium pieces. 
Temper ghee with jeera, hing and add the gatta pieces. 
Toss with turmeric powder, red chilli powder, amchur powder and salt, till all the spices coat the gattas well and everything comes together. 

Chatpata Kaddu / Spicy Pumpkin sabzi : 

This is a family favourite.
Fresh sweet pumpkin pieces cooked with dry spices to make it spicy and tangy.
You will find the recipe here. 

Aloo bhindi ki sabzi : 

Temper oil ( I use ghee ) with jeera + hing + ajwain and add sliced potatoes. 

Stir fry on high, add turmeric powder and red chilli powder and salt. 

Add cut okra pieces and cover and  cook till everything is done. 

Add some dhania powder, mix well. 

Gulab Jamun : 

You will find the recipe here. 

Jeera Rice : 

Heat ghee in a heavy kadahi. 
Add a big dose of jeera ... more than you would add to a sabzi .... and black cardamom. 
Add sliced onions and fry them on low heat till almost brown. 
Add washed and soaked rice, salt and fry for around 5 minutes. 
Add water, cover and cook till the rice is just done. 

Churma : 

You will find the recipe here. 

Makke ka Dhokla :  

You will find the recipe here.  

Another look. 

 How to serve Dal baat : 

Pour the dal into a serving bowl. 
Break a couple of baatis on it. 
Top with a dollop of ghee. 

Enjoy!! 

 

Bara Ghugni / Vada ghugni .... Odisha's much loved street food snack

Growing up, I have never had the chance to eat this beautiful streetfood of Odisha ... the much loved combination of the  Biri bara and Ghughni.  At least not from the streets .... sold on carts with people flocking around it . Passing by, one cannot ignore that aroma of these badas sizzling in the hot oil, the steaming hot ghuguni / ghugni with its typical smell and of course the other aromas of tamarind, lemon and rock salt.

At times it would be made at home but not too often. And anyway it never smelt like the street side ones, so we wouldn't ask for it.

But I did get to taste the real thing whenever we went to my maternal dadu's place in Cuttack. With so many elder cousins , mashis, mamis etc .... every one of them all geared up to nosh through their favourite street foods, it wasn't difficult to mix into the crowd and get a bite of this and a slurp of that, once in a while. 

Now I make such things regularly .... the man has taken to Odia food  like a fish to water. Says that he married into one culture and got another as a bonus 😄

Seeing so many bora ghugni on my feed for the last few days, I decided to indulge in some. And the fact that it has started to rain since morning only made today the perfect day for enjoying this.

I tried to make it like the professionals .... with that hole in the centre ... but gave up after a while and made the plain round ones.

They may look imperfect but tasted yum 😋 

And then, like my Thamma used to say "Pete gele shob somaan " / every food is the same once it is inside the tummy 😄😄

Many started asking for the recipe and when the number of dms became a little too many to type out the whole thing, I decided to make a post here pronto. 
And direct everyone here for the details ..... since it is difficult to write the finer details due to instagram's word limits. 

For the Vadas / Baras / Medu Vadas : 

Soak Urad dal / Biri dali / Biulir dal overnight 
Grind into a paste the next day and keep aside for at least an hour. 

Add salt and beat well with your hands till light and slightly fluffy . 
Add chopped onions, ginger, coconut pieces, green chillies, cumin seeds / jeera and curry leaves to the dal paste. 

Heat enough oil in a deep pan or kadahi. 
Wet hands in a little water, scoop out small balls of the dal paste and let in carefully into the oil. 
Fry them till they are golden brown on all sides. 

Keep on a kitchen towel to drain out excess oil. 

For the Ghugni : 

Soak white matar  overnight. 
Cook it with turmeric powder and salt in a pressure cooker. 

Heat oil in a kadahi ( I use ghee as I am on an oil free diet right now ) . 
Add jeera and broken dry red chillies. 
Add chopped onions and fry a little. 
Now add ginger garlic paste, turmeric powder, red chilli powder and green chilli paste. 
Cook well till masala changes colour and leaves oil on the sides. 
Add the boiled matar and mix well. 
Add enough water and bring to a boil. 
Adjust seasonings and simmer on low heat for at least 15 to 20 minutes. 
Finally, sprinkle roasted jeera powder and remove from heat. 
Let it stand covered for some time before serving. 

You can refer to this post of mine for a simpler, no onion garlic version of the ghugni too. 

To arrange everything : 

Place the vadas on the ghugni in an open bowl. 
Sprinkle roasted jeera powder, roasted chilli powder, chaat masala powder, lemon juice, chopped onions, green chillies, coriander leaves and chopped coconut pieces on them. 

 

 The Boras / Vadas can be eaten just as they are ..... fresh out of the kadahi and crisp and hot with puffed rice or plain with a cup of spicy ginger tea. 

The ghugni too can be enjoyed by itself with Luchi, Muri / Mudhi / puffed rice. 
Or can be paired with parathas too. 

Enjoy whichever way you want to. 

Here are a few other recipes of Ghugni / Ghuguni / Ghoogni from my blog. 


Stay safe all!! 

Kala Chana / Pindi chole with Missi Roti - rustic food to welcome winter with

 

It is funny the way this meal ended up being made.
The cold, damp weather got the better of me and I spent the morning just lounging and surfing the tv.
Moving through channels on YouTube, I ended up watching way too many videos on villages and their local food.
Starting from Uttarakhand, to Rajasthan and  Punjab.... I watched people rustling up beautiful, rustic and delicious food in minutes. With whatever local things were available.

By the time it was noon, I knew I could not eat anything other than some hot, freshly made food.
So giving up my plan for using up leftovers,
I quickly kneaded makke ka atta/ corn meal with lots of garlic chives , from my little garden,
and freshly pounded ginger garlic and green chillies.

Made thick rotis and applied my fragrant, homemade ghee on them while still very hot.

.

The boiled kala chana / black chickpeas was tempered with chopped onions ,  green chillies and tomatoes.
I used half whole ones and the other half crushed.
Set it to boil and absorb the flavours while I made the rotis.
I did not add any masala other than chopped coriander leaves.
Tasted awesome.

Some sliced juicy onions and a big green chilli completed our meal. 
Impulsive cooking does give great results. 😊

This is a hurried post. 
Will try to put in some writing in the next one. 
Till then ..... 

Enjoy!!

Ps: Are you following me on Instagram? 
There are a lot of recipes and photos and news that I share almost daily there. 
S do follow to stay updated with recent happenings in my kitchen and in life. 😊

Chatpata Kala Chana / Spicy Black Chickpeas with Potatoes

"Uncle …. phatjhadi laake do na! "

We had gone to our usual place … a slum where construction workers stay with their families in makeshift homes with plastic roofs. There are about eight to ten families living there, with around twelve to fifteen children among themselves. Or maybe more. 

We often go there to distribute snacks, chocoltes, fruits, clothes or food materials.

And sometimes ice cream too.

This time we went just a day before Diwali to give out gifts and sweets. 

The children know us and know well that if they jostle or create a ruckus, they won't get anything. 

So they quickly line up or sit down on the footpath. Some rattle off their names; some chatter on. 

This time one boy of about seven or eight came up to B and asked for 'phatjhadi'. 

B looked confused and asked 'what?'. 

"Phatjhadi; phatjhadi". Said the boy , trying to be patient. 

Still drew a blank. 

Even I was confused. 

These people are from other states …. so their Hindi is not proper.

And the children are not fluent with the local language too.

After giving out the gifts, we started to return but the kid just would not give up. 

He hung on to B's kurta and kept repeating the word. 

And then suddenly he started gesturing with his hands and said "Flower pot! Flower pot ! Light! Boom! Charkhi gol gol! " …. looking up with his big eyes filled with hope.

And both B and I burst out laughing.

He wanted crackers!

After all it was Diwali! And for little children, it isn't Diwali if there are no crackers to burst. 😀

We told them to wait and set off to buy some crackers. 

We were still laughing at the new word the kid has coined …. "phat from patakha and jhadi from phooljhadi!!! " … we decoded. 😀😀

Both of us decided against any flower pot crackers as they would be too dangerous for the children.

And bought some charkhi and phooljhadi  sparklers instead.

The kids were overjoyed.

B appointed a teen, giving him the responsibility to oversee the whole thing and that the kids play safely. It made the child feel important and almost immediately, he started giving orders and organize everybody. 

I remembered an old bag amongst the things to give away that had some of my old lipsticks ,nail polishes and bangles.  Dug it out and gave it to the young girls. 

The grins on their faces and the spontaneous clapping of hands at being overjoyed with this surprise melted my heart.

And as always, we came away smiling, with a feeling of warmth, that is so rare in the fast flying days of life right now. 

And as always, we asked them what would they want to eat the next time. 

And little girl piped "Poori". 

So I decided to make the sukhi chana or this dryish dish with boiled black chickpeas to go with the pooris. 

And remembered this photo languishing in my folder. 

So decided to make them see the light of the day. 

I make this very regularly …. sometimes without onions too. 

This makes for a good snack for those in between meals hunger pangs. 

Spicy, tangy and eaten hot, this is one dish that you can enjoy on its own or with Puris, Luchis or plain Parathas. 

Need :

Kala Chana / Black chickpeas - soaked overnight and boiled with a little salt

Boiled potatoes - cut into small cubes 

Onion - chopped 

Green chillies - chopped 

Black salt - to taste 

Turmeric powder - a pinch 

Red chilli powder - to taste 

Salt - to taste 

Roasted Jeera powder - to taste 

Chaat masala - to taste (optional) 

Cooking oil 

Lemon juice 

Coriander leaves - chopped 

How to : 

Heat oil. 

Add the chopped onions and fry till translucent. 

Do not brown them. 

Then add the potatoes and the chickpeas and toss them well. 

Add the rest of the ingredients and give a good toss on high heat till everything mixes well and comes together. 

Remove from heat and serve immediately. 

Enjoy with steaming hot masala chai on the side.

You can skip the onions if you are fasting and enjoy on a vrat too.

Dahibara Aloodom - Cuttack's favourite and much loved street food

 Right now, at this moment, the state of Odisha is celebrating the monsoons with a festival that is very unique to it.
It is celebrating Raja, the festival of Mother Earth turning fertile and ready for the sowing season.
Primarily an agricultural state, Odisha has this festival celebrated with much enthusiasm at homes where every unmarried girl and married woman is celebrated during this festival.
It is believed that Mother Earth goes through the ritual of menstruation during this time and hence Raja is celebrated as a festival of fertility. There is a festive air all over and the four days of the Raja festival sees a lot of home cooked delicacies too.

The festival of Rajo ( pronounced as Rawjaw ), starts with one day before the actual festival. That day is called Sajabaja ... or decking up with new clothes, flowers, etc. or preparing for decking up by getting together new clothes and ornaments.
All agricultural work is stopped from the first day of Rajaw or Pahili rajaw till the fourth day.
Women dress up, cook, eat and share numerous delicacies like Podo pitha and other kinds of pitha, rich curries of mutton and chicken, and all kinds of sweets and payesh too.
Swings are a must ... every home and backyard will have a swing set up, either on the branch of a strong tree ... usually the mango or jamun or a neem ... and girls swing on it for fun.
This resembles the Teej festival of Rajasthan, that celebrates monsoon too.

 While my heart yearns for those beautiful days of summer vacation spent at my maternal Dadu's house in Cuttack, I set to create as many Odiya dishes as possible in my kitchen ... in celebration of those days and their memories.
Since my mother and her siblings were a big lot in number, the huge house would fall short when it came to accomodating all of them when they visited with their families.
So many would spill over to Boro Masi's place .
But would get together as soon as the day started and we kids, more than 15 in numbers, would spend the days with numerous adventures and mishaps, that would later stay on in the family as anecdotes to be recalled during get togethers.

I remember choto Mama would set up a swing for us in one of the branches of the huge ... and when I say huge it means HUGE ... Neem trees on the bank of our pond.
The pond had a cemented border and steps on four sides, complete with cement chairs for people to sit on and enjoy the cool breeze in the summer evenings when there would be no electricity power.
It was surrounded with other strong trees like the mango and the jamun too, but this particular neem stood a little behind the steps of the pond .... which gave the elders the assurance that no child will drop into the water, while swinging.

The swing itself was a broad, wooden plank with four holes drilled into it at the corners.
Thick jute ropes would then be knotted into them and tied in the most unique way ... nobody could undo them ... they were so secure.
And the swing would be set up in the highest possible, strongest branch ... which means it was a long swing. When we gained momentum and swing way high up, we would be directly above the waters of the pond. While I have never tried it, my elder cousin brothers have often jumped from that high right into the water, with a huge splash ... that would send us young ones shrieking into the water too ... but from the steps.
Dadu had made sure there was a gradual slope and the it was cemented too, from the banks, so that the littlest of grandchild could step into the waters and enjoy.

 The other beautiful memory that comes back to me from during those vacations is the gorging on street food. By the elder cousins to be precise .... we kids would merely be around but share the excitement, nonetheless.
Street food was a no no, as usual. But the older ones got to bribe the househelps to get us some anyway.
Secret messages would be passed along, avoiding the nosy elders, and we would all get together on the terrace of the third floor of the house .... where most elders avoided going due to the arduous climb ... and get one of the house helps to get us the forbidden street snacks.

One day it would be the singara + aloo chop, the Ghugni on the other. Or the much loved phuchka / gup chup ( as it called in Odiya) on other days.
But it was that one thing that everyone kept their ears perked up for .... that long tone of the man on the cycle, slowly pedaling through the quiet, lonely neighbourhoods on hot summer afternoons, two huge handis of aluminium hanging on both sides of his cycle, calling out "Alooooooo dummm dahi baraaaaa!".
And then two long rings of his cycle bell.

N didi would be up in a flash .... tip toe out of the room, and jostle and bully any one of the house helps to wake up and send the sleepy eyed fellow to buy the lip smacking Aloo dum dahi bara.
The man would make a small bowl by folding a fresh, green shaal leaf, quickly throw in some aloo dum and some break a bara / vada from the dahi vada, add some chopped onions and green chillies. a handful of spicy mixture, some more dahi and some spicy powdered masalas. A final dash of red chillies and rock salt and he hands over the leaf.
Sometimes he would add the ghugni to it too ... but not always.

By the time it would reach us, the leaf would be leaking and the precious droplets of the spicy water would be disappearing fast (which is why we sent the boy with small boxes much later ... helped by our Didima/grandmother). We would all jump in and try to get at least a couple of spoons each.
It was heaven.
And stuff that childhood memories are made of. 😃

I made a plate for myself when I had made the Aloo dom.
And sent a thought to dear N didi , who is no longer around to enjoy these sinful things that she so loved.

To make this plate of Dahi bara Aloo dom, you will have to make the Dahi bara first.
Preferably a day before.

Then you make the Aloo domm.

Then you will have to chop up some onions + green chillies + fresh coriander leaves.
Then take a plate, arrange the aloo dom and the vadas from the dahi vada.

Now add a good amount of the sour and lip smacking dahi all over it.

Then add the chopped onions + green chillies + coriander leaves.

Then add a good dose of rock salt + red chilli powder + amchur powder / lemon juice.

Now add a final spoon of the dahi and throw in some spicy mixture.

Perfect for a monsoon day or evening.
Since it is so filling, I usually have it for lunch or dinner .... especially with friends and family.
Yep ... you have to have company to enjoy this .... those close to you, those who will sniffle with you when the spice is a tad too much and those who will laugh with you thinking of long gone days.


Enjoy!!

Mangshor Ghugni

With Poila Boishakh just around the corner, I thought I will give my light, vegetarian recipes a skip and post this Mangshor Ghughni.
The photos have been in my drafts for quite some time now ... and I really have no reason why I did not post this still.
What with summer bearing down heavily on us much before the expected time, I seriously doubt any Bengali will cook up a rich, heavy feast to celebrate this first day of the Bengali new year.
But having said that, I know there will be feasts.
And then there is always Unienzyme.

I do not have any intention of eating out in this weather and have decided to stick at home and cook something light and traditional.
For old friends coming by.

This year, my menu for the Bengali New year or Poila Boishakh will be from my blog. Everything that I plan to cook is here on Kitchen-e-Kichu Khonn.

Like this Mishti Polau, this very light Narkel chicken, some bhajas or vegetable fries, a Doi Maach or a kalia with the Rui / Rohu fish, and Aamer chaatni.
For the vegetarians, I will prepare some Koraishutir kochuri ( I have already made and frozen the pur / stuffing ) and this delightful Saunf paneer.
Planning to get some mishti doi from our Bengali shop, if possible.

I am hoping this will be enough.

I had made this Mangshor ghugni sometime back when I had some guests over.
Actually, all I had to do was to put together the already prepared and frozen Chicken keema with a freshly cooked ghugni.
That's all.

I had kept some chopped onions, green chillies , saunth / tamarind chutney and some homemade Aam kasundi on the side for the vegetarians. They loved sprinkling the condiments themselves and playing with the level of spices in different helpings.

For the minced chicken :

Cook the chicken kheema this way.
For the ghugni :

Need :

Dry white peas - 1 cup, soaked over night
Jeera / Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Whole red chillies - 2, broken
Onion - 1 medium, chopped
Ginger + garlic paste - 1 tbsp, home made
Haldi / Turmeric powder - 1 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1 tbsp
Roasted jeera powder - 1 tbsp
Garam masala powder - 1 tsp
Sugar - to taste
Salt - to taste
Cooking oil - 2 tbsp ( I use mustard oil )

How to :

Boil the matar or the dry peas the way I have done for this recipe.
They should be cooked yet stay almost whole.
Not soft and mushy like I make for the simple, light Ghugni or the Ragda pattice.


In a kadahi / wok, heat mustard oil.
Add jeera + dry red chillies + chopped onions.
Fry till the onions turn reddish.

Add the ginger + garlic paste.
( Remember the chicken kheema will have ginger garlic too. So go easy on this. )
Fry well.

Add turmeric powder + red chilli powder +  sugar.
Fry well till the masala starts to dry up and the raw smell is gone.


Now add the boiled matar / white peas + water and mix well on high heat.
Adjust water + salt.

Cover and simmer for around 5 minutes on low heat.

Remove cover and add the chicken keema and mix well.
Check for salt.

Adjust water, cover and simmer for another 10 minutes till the flavours mix well.

Remove cover, sprinkle red chilli powder, roasted jeera powder + garam masala powder.
Give a mix.

Cover , raise heat, give a boil, switch off heat and let it stand covered for 5 minutes.

Serve hot.

This goes very well with paratha or luchi.

Enjoy!!

Phulkopi Aloo Matar er Ghugni or Cauliflower and Potatoes cooked with dry Peas

Hello! Hello all!!
Hope all of you are doing very well and having a beautiful winter.
I am fine and doing very well, thank you.
And the reason I am sounding so bright is the line I came across on Indiblogger this morning.
"No comments? Every blog has its day. Keep blogging."
🙂

I am also smiling because of another trip looming in the horizon. It is still in a slightly swinging phase ... swinging between now or a little later,  ... but I am looking forward to it nonetheless.
I am still very much in zombie zone after that hectic trip to the USA and would have liked to savour some more 'me time' and rest.
But the call of kachoris and jalebis with hot milk on winter mornings, gobhi ke pakode in the evenings and homemade, delicious food and the loving pampering  and a little shopping thrown in, is too tempting to resist.
So I think I am ready to travel. Again. 😋

On another note, I hope you are following me on my travel blog ... Country Roads. I have been trying my best to sit down for a few minutes everyday to rummage through the uncountable photographs to select a few proper ones and edit them so that I can make a post regularly.
Not an easy job, given the loads of pending laundry and getting the house back into shape and resetting the kitchen routine again.
Still, I managed to put up my second post on my trip to New York City in November.
Do hop over to see some wonderful colours of Fall in Central Park.


Today's recipe is one easy jugaadu or 'put together in a hurry' recipe.

I had soaked some dry, white peas to make my usual Ghugni.
I usually cook them in the pressure cooker, where they turn very soft and get that perfect just mushy texture for the Ghugni or to be used as a filling for Phuchka or the Pani Puri.

Yes, I sometimes have Phuchka for dinner.
Home made.

But this time, I had boiled them in an open pot. This way, you can keep an eye on them and can take them out when just done.
I use the just done and firm ones in a lot of vegetable curries or thin jhols.
I was in a hurry the other night as I was knitting something and did not want to stay away from the pattern for too long ... the calculations go all haywire then .
But had to get up to make dinner. And I saw this beautiful cauliflower in the fridge, along with the bowlful of peas, I knew what I was going to do.
Just throw in everything together and voila! a simple, light vegetable dish comes to form.

This dish tastes best when made with fresh cauliflowers during winter.

Need :

Dry white peas - soaked and cooked in water with turmeric and salt
Cauliflower florets - cut into medium sized pieces
Potato - 2, cut into cubes
Grated ginger - 1 tbsp
Garlic paste ( optional ) - 1 tsp
Jeera or Cumin seeds - 1 tsp
Whole dry red chillies - 2, broken
Roasted jeera/cumin powder - 1 tsp
Turmeric or Haldi powder - 1 tsp
Red chilli powder - 1 tsp
Sugar - 1 tsp
Salt - to taste
Oil - 2 tbsp ( I used mustard oil )
Water - depending on the amount of gravy you want
Fresh coriander leaves - chopped

How to :

Heat oil in a heavy kadahi / wok / pan.

Add the jeera + dry red chillies,

On low heat, add the ginger + garlic paste and fry a little.

Add the potatoes + cauliflower pieces.

Mix well and add the turmeric powder + salt.

Give another good mix, raise heat and add the water.

Cover and cook till the potatoes are half done.

Remove cover and check for water.
If needed, add a little more.

Add the boiled peas and the red chilli powder.

Cover and cook till everything is cooked well.

Remove cover and check for water ... cook till it reaches the desired consistency.

Add the jeera powder and sugar.
Cover and cook for some more time.

Remove cover and  sprinkle fresh coriander leaves.

Serve hot.

I kept it a little dryish this time as we were having it with Luchis.
If you are having it with parathas or rotis, then do keep some gravy.

This makes for a wonderful winter dinner.
Pair it with Methi parathas  and some achar for a warm, wintery, weekend tv time dinner.

Enjoy!!

Jaisalmeri Kala Chana / Black Chickpeas in Yogurt based gravy

It was in Jaisalmer that I had tasted this dish first ... served in the dinner thali at our place of stay. And loved this simple yet flavourful dish .

I always associate this dish with an awesome experience I had in Jaisalmer. When reaching our room after dinner, I noticed that it was very dark outside. Standing near the window I could however see that the terrace beneath ours was huge and positively glowing. It was a bleached & very whitish glow. I looked around and found an almost round moon ... so decided that it was the moonlight after all. But moonlight on a terrace/balcony won't make it glow. Went to sleep with a perplexed mind.
The next morning as soon as I was up I went to the window. And what do I see? There was no balcony! Even though we were on the 3rd floor. Instead ... it was the courtyard at the back of the hotel. And the ground was of golden sand. It was this sand that was glowing in the moonlight!!

It was a surreal feel ... remembering that surreal glow of the previous night! :-)

This prompted us to leave the cultural program halfway the next night ... and take a walk in the moonlit and glowing sand dunes. :-)

That walk in the silent desert dunes with the moon shining so very brightly ... and that unbelievable quiet of the desert .... was an experience by itself. :-)

Coming to the recipe .... this does not need too many ingredients .... just what I like about any dish. The only preparation needed is to soak and boil the chana before you can make this.


Need : Kala chana, soaked overnight and pressure cooked with a little salt, jeera/cumin, curd/plain yougurt, a little besan/ gram flour, red chilli powder, a pinch of hing, haldi/turmeric powder, a little cooking oil, water, salt to taste.


How to : Beat the curd, besan, red chilli powder, salt together. Add water to make it of slightly thin consistency.

Slightly mash the chana .... just to break them .... so that they can soak up the flavours.
Heat a little oil in a kadhai. Add jeera and then hing. Now add the chana and toss a little.

Now add the curd mixture and let it cook well ... to a thicker consistency.

Serve hot with rotis / parathas.

I served with parathas made from leftover dal.

Crispy Chole / Crispy Fried Chickpeas

This version of Chole is spicy and tangy... and slightly dryish too.
It is fast to make, especially if you have the Chole boiled and stored beforehand.
I used a masala tea bag while cooking the Chole .... no .. I do not use any cooking soda / baking powder while boiling them .... and miraculously that distinct smell of boiled chole disappeared.
I served it with Aloo tikkis ... which I can make real fast these days ... thanks to my aloo mix.

Need : Kabuli chana/ chickpeas ( cooked in a pressure cooker with a little salt & drained of all water ),
lots of chopped onions,
chopped ginger,
chopped garlic,
chopped green chillies,
dhania powder,
amchur powder,
red chilli powder,
chana masala powder,
a little oil,
a little rice flour powder,
salt and sugar to taste.

How to : Heat a little oil in an open heavy bottomed pan. ( Do not use a kadhai ... the chole need to dry up fast).

Add the chopped onions, garlic, ginger and green chillies. Fry well.

Add the boiled chole and stir well. Add salt and sugar.

Add all the powder masalas and keep frying till dry.

Just before removing from flame add a little rice flour .... the flame should be high ... and keep stirring.

Remove and serve hot. Do not cover or keep for a long time ... else the crispiness won't last.

Ragdaa Patties & another award

Aloo tikki with ghugni is what I call these. Hubby calls it aloo tikki chaat. In Maharashtra it is called ragdaa patties ( i have no idea what ragdaa is ... nor what is the correct spelling for this). All I know is this tastes heavenly.

I usually boil aloo/matar/chana etc in bulk and store them in the fridge. They come very handy when there are unexpected guests or anytime when you want something chatpata ... not to mention when you don't want to go through the rigmarole of making a complete lunch/dinner.

Anyway ... I had some of these boiled aloo and matar. So made this as a snack for a rainy evening. I made the ghugni spicy this time to complement the slightly bland aloo tikkis. Great combi. And follows my motto ... simple cooking. :-)

Need :
For the tikkis : Boiled potatoes, grated ginger,chopped green chillies, fresh coriander leaves, salt to taste, around 2 tbsp oil to fry the tikkis.

For the ghugni : Dry white matar (soaked and boiled), haldi powder, red chilli powder,amchur powder, a pinch of roasted jeera powder, a little water, salt to taste.

How to : Mash the potatoes with ginger, chillies, coriander leaves and salt. Shape into round sized tikkis. Heat the oil in a a tawa or a shallow pan and put in the tikkis. Fry till they turn brown on both sides.

In another kadhai or pan put in the matar with a little water ... yes ... no jeera or tempering ... so no oil .... :-) . Add the haldi powder, chilli powder, jeera powder and the amchur powder. Adjust salt and bring to a boil. Simmer for a while to adjust gravy thickness.
Pour the ghugni in a dish and arrange the tikkis on it. Sprinkle chopped onions and coriander leaves on it.
Hetal has passed on the "Yummy blog award" to my blog. Thanks Hetal.

"Yummy blog award is the award given to the blog with most yummy recipes/photos".

Unfortunately I do not like sweets at all ... in any form .... leave alone desserts. So I cannot immediately mention any such desserts that I have found 'yummy-licious'. I'll try to come up with a few very soon ... hopefully.
Am supposed to pass this on to four other bloggers whose blogs I find yummy ... will update this post as soon as I scan through and select 4 .... which is not only going to be difficult ... but also unfair.
Anyways ... till then enjoy the ragdaa patties.

Ghugni

( As I am getting a lot of visits here I am updating the post with some good snaps ).

Amongst the different kind of Ghugnis that I have ever tasted, the most memorable
ones are Shankar babu's ghugni and a cook's mangshor (mutton) ghugni.

Shankar babu had a small shop in our locality ...the last in a line where there was a kirana shop and a tailor's shop.The smells of these shops have a very dominant place in my childhood memories. Shankar babu's ghugni's smell used to waft around the whole place ... could never make out the concoction. The elders used to insist that it is the gutter nearby that is the source of that smell ... but for us youngsters, it was that heavenly ghugni ... bubbling away in large, blackish aluminium vessels.

The helping hand at Pishemoshai's (Uncle ) house ....made the most wonderful mangshor ghugni ... small pieces of mutton in matar ( white peas ) gravy ... heavenly!
Every time he made it, he made sure to bring some over for me.

Most recently had a very simple Ghugni in a small stall in front of the Konark temple in Orissa. It was late morning and we were starving for breakfast.
The simple ghugni served with hot maida luchis / puris were like manna from heaven.

Tried making that simple recipe at home ...and till date love it every time. Have said goodbye to any other masala for ghugni henceforth.



Need :
Dry White matar / peas, whole red chillies,
whole jeera / cumin , a pinch of haldi / turmeric,
a pinch of sugar, salt to taste,
grated ginger and some cooking oil ( I use Mustard oil).

How to :

Soak white matar halfway (will take around half an hour).

Heat oil in a cooker. Add whole red chillies and jeera. Do not brown the jeera.

Add matar, haldi,salt and a pinch of sugar. Fry.

Add the grated ginger and enough water and cook for 2-3 whistles.

Cool and open cooker.

If needed add a little more water and bring again to a boil.

Simmer for some time.



Goes great with Luchi / Puri / Parathas.

Enjoy !!