Potol ar Pakoda Torkari / Pointed Gourd and Fried Lentil Dumplings Curry

There were some long forgotten Potol / Parwal / Pointed gourd lying in the refrigerator ( see the crinkly edges ... that long forgotten .... ).

Set about to make the usual Alu Potol curry .... familiar to any Bengali. Saw some soaked black chana in the fridge. And some left over Besan batter from some pakoras made a couple of days back.

Made some more small sized pakoras ... threw in everything together .... and as usual, without too much masalas this turned out to be a very good dish.

I had clicked the snaps as soon as I made it ... so you can see the thin jhol / gravy. Don't worry ... it gets soaked up by the pakodas.
And I like that slightly mushy dryish torkari even better.

And yes, when I let it sit ..... the parwal got rid of the crinkles too and got all plumped up. :-)



Need : Potol / Parwal .... skin scraped lightly, ends cut off and each cut into two widthwise, potatoes [optional] cut into the same size as the parwal,

soaked kala chana / black chick peas [ optional] , sliced onion,
chopped tomatoes ( I did not have any ... so did not use ) ,

haldi / turmeric powder, Paanch Phoron, dry red chillies, cooking oil,
water, salt and sugar to taste.

The Besan batter had red chilli powder, ajwain, salt and water.

How to : Heat enough oil and fry small sized pakoras / dumplings from the besan paste. Keep aside.

Heat a little oil in a different kadhai / wok. Add the paanch phoron and the whole chilles.
When they start to splutter, add the sliced onion and fry well.

Add the potatoes and parwal and stir for some time on high heat. Add the kala chana.
Then add haldi powder, salt, sugar and water. Cover and cook till the vegetables are done.

Remove cover and add the fried pakoras and the tomatoes. Cover and simmer for some more time.
If you want to, you can add a pinch of garam masala and a spoonful of ghee just before serving. Goes great with hot rotis / parathas.

And don't judge me by the shape of those pakoras ... I am yet to master the art of dropping a perfectly round blob of any paste or batter. :-)

Tried and loved No Knead Bread

Here I am ... trying my hand at baking ... again. This time it is bread. When I saw Soma's No Knead Bread, I was tempted to try it.

It was actually her little daughter who had made it. Knowing I will not have the time in the immediate future for such a beautiful project, I did not dilly dally and set about making it the very next day.

And as anybody, whose baking recipe I choose to try, knows ... I was a real pain in the neck with lots of questions. Hats off to Soma for explaining with patience. :-)
Thank you Soma! :-)


I followed her recipe ... made no changes at all.
And what a bread it turned out to be ... perfect! Had a crusty top ... and a tough bottom ... and slightly chewy texture. I think it would be perfect to soak up gravy with.
We loved it! The plate looked like this after I brought out the first one .... hold your breath .... in 5 mins. :-)

I made two small balls from the dough .... the first one is the first snap. And the second one is below ... which turned out even better .... I guess because the oven was already so properly hot.
And yes, I made it in a small sized heavy iron kadhai / wok ..... as I did not have any ovenproof pot. It worked very well .... as you can see.
And yes, follow her instructions ... when she says it has to be covered ... it has to be covered.
Here's the second one ... which I decided we will have in a more civilised way.

Civilised? Ruthless, barbaric ... was the way we both fell on it. I was weilding the camera too ... so got a far lesser share.

I had tried out Soma's Roasted Garlic too. Had some cloves left .... so grated them into the butter. Tasted awesome!

Thanks again Soma ... for such wonderful recipes ... and this wonderful breakfast. :-)

( See the garlic in the butter? )

Enjoy all !! :-)

Rui Macher Jhol / Rohu Fish in Plain Gravy

( Vegetarians can leave out the fish and go on with the rest of the recipe ... and can add other vegetables like green peas, radish, etc. ..... and enjoy this simple but authentic Bengali jhol. )

( Check out my other Rui macher spicy jhol ... almost like the Kalia. )
Has been quite a while since I posted a recipe last. Even though I have been almost perpetually living in the kitchen, I hardly had any time to click the dishes .... leave alone sit down and go through the rigmarole of posting one. Catering to guests and relatives can indeed be exhausting at times.

Anyway ... I was missing my blog. Of course I did visit, see new comments and felt happy .... but it is not the same as posting something new and getting feedback. :-)
Much as I'd have loved to post a new recipe, I can't right now. So picked this up from my draft. I know I won't get too many comments on this ... but then I had just this recipe's snaps left. :-)

Once upon a time I hated any dish that had vegetables. And I hated any dish that tasted Bengali ... having the usual flavour of jeera, ginger and Paanch Phoron. When this jhol used to be made at home, I would just pick up the fish and leave the rest untouched.

Today I have learnt to love traditional Bengali everyday dishes. Simple yet flavourful, this jhol ( curry gravy ) has the authentic flavours of a simple Maacher Jhol ( fish curry ).

It can be made with fishes like Bhetki or Katla or Pabda too. And is usually done without the vegetables except the potatoes.

Need :

(I'll give the measurements for around 4 pieces of the fish ).

4 Medium sized pieces of Rui / Rohu fish ( marinated with salt and turmeric powder )
mustard oil,
1 sliced onion,
1 medium eggplant / brinjals & cut into biggish cubes
around 5 to 6 florets of cauliflower &
1 medium sized potato cut into medium sized cubes,
1 or 2 whole dry red chillies ,
Paanch phoron ( some prefer whole jeera or cumin seeds ... you can use them too instead )
1/2 tsp Haldi / Turmeric powder,
1 tsp Jeera / Cumin powder,
1 tbsp ginger paste,
1 tomato, chopped ( optional),
1 tbsp Mustard oil,
Salt to taste,
Water for gravy

How to :

Updated : To fry the fish :

Heat a cast iron kadahi / wok well. Now add enough mustard oil and heat till the oil is smoking hot.

Add the fish pieces one by one on high heat very carefully ... it splutters a lot ... so holding a cover as a shield will help.

Cover, lower heat and cook till one side is done and browned. One way of knowing is the piece will easily turn over when done.

Turn the pieces over and brown the other side too.

Remove and keep aside.


To make the gravy / jhol :


Heat mustard oil in a kadhai / wok.

Add the paanch phoron ... wait for it to turn a little brown.

Then add the chillies ( break them into 2 ... otherwise they tend to burst ) and the sliced onions.
Fry for a while.

Add the ginger paste and the jeera powder ( add around a quarter cup of water now ... this way it will not burn).

Fry for a while and then add the vegetables , tomatoes and the turmeric powder.
Stir well for a while and then add water. Add salt.

Cover and cook till the veggies are done.

Remove cover and add the fish pieces.

Cover again and simmer for some more time.

If you like, add some chopped fresh coriander leaves just before serving.

This jhol goes great with plain steamed rice. Serve hot.

Updated : Many of you have suggested this with a sprinkle of fresh green lime juice. I completely agree ... and I personally love some green chilli with it too. :-)

Check out my other Rui macher spicy jhol ... almost like the Kalia.