E-Paper
Durga Puja 2018: A melange of 10 new and traditional Bengali recipes
Every Durga Puja, Bengalis go all out to celebrate the festival. Check out some recipes full of the flavours of Bengal, perfect for the festive season.
Durga Puja is when Bengalis enjoy a heady mixture of friends, family and some of the tastiest food on the planet. The Bengali cuisine teems with an abundance so varied it is bewildering to the uninitiated. The vast labyrinth of rivers and wetlands scattered across the state provide Bengalis with their greatest love: Fish.
There is also something else Bengalis are famous for, and that is their love of sweets, locally famous as mishti. Some of Bengal’s most famous sweet shops have become legendary institutions, closely guarding their secrets. During the Durga Puja festival, the shops are crammed with jostling customers. Some sweets are prepared as offerings to deities (prashad) to be consumed with reverence after receiving divine blessing. Others are given as gifts, wolfed down eagerly by young and old alike. Many of them are eye-wateringly sweet, as they are usually created from milk and massive amounts of sugar.
As Bengalis’ love of robust seafood dishes and eye-wateringly sweet treats comes to life during Durga Puja, here are some recipes you can try this festive season.
Aloo bhaja
Ingredients
Potato (aloo), peeled (5 to 6)
Yellow mustard oil (sarson ka tel) (6 tbsp)
Cumin seeds (jeera) (¼ tsp)
Salt (to taste)
Haldi (½ tsp)
Method
* Peel and cut the potatoes into thin strips and keep them soaked in water for about an hour.
* Remove the potato strips from the water and lightly squeeze out any extra water. Put them in another bowl.
* Now, add in salt and haldi and mix well.
* Keep aside for 5 minutes.
* Heat oil in a non-stick pan. Toss in the jeera and then add the potato strips.
* Keep shallow-frying till they are evenly cooked, crisp and light brown in colour.
* Drain and place on absorbent paper and serve hot with chappatis.
Phulkopir dalna
Ingredients
Cauliflower (phool gobhi), cut into florets (2 cups)
Potato (aloo) (1 cup)
Tomato (1/2 cup)
Ginger (adrak), grated (1 tbsp)
Haldi ( 1/2 tsp)
Dhaniya/Coriander powder ( 1 tsp)
Red chilli powder (1 tsp)
Cumin seeds (jeera) (1/2 tsp)
Sugar (1 tsp)
Cinnamon (dalchini) (1” piece)
Cardamom (elaichi) (2–3 pods)
Bay leaf (tej patta) ( 2)
Mustard oil (sarson ka tel) (2 tbsp)
Salt ( to taste)
For Garnish
Coriander leaves (hara dhaniya) (2 tbsp)
Green chillies (hari mirch), slit in the centre(1)
Method
* Heat oil in a kadhai, add cumin seeds, cinnamon, cardamom and bay leaf. Sauté for a minute.
* Next, add in potatoes and cook for 4–5 minutes and then add cauliflower and fry further for 4–5 minutes.
* Now add in handi, red chilli powder, coriander powder, mix and let this cook for a minute, then add the tomatoes, ginger, salt and sugar. Cover and cook on a low flame for 2–3 minutes.
* Garnish with coriander leaves and green chillies and serve it hot with side dish of your choice.
Kosha mangsho
Ingredients
150 gm Mutton
100 gm Onion
10 gm Garlic
80 gm Yoghurt
5 gm Turmeric Powder
3 gm Garam masala powder
20 gm Mustard oil
2 gm Cinnamon
5 pieces Green cardamom
1 piece Black Cardamom
6 pieces Cloves
3 pieces Dried red chillies
3 pieces Green Chillies
3 pieces Bay leaves
3gm Coriander powder
20gm Ginger paste
3gm Cumin powder
3gm Kashmiri red chilli powder
10gm Sugar
5gm Ghee
Salt to taste
Method
* Marinade by making a paste of garlic, onion, turmeric, curd and garam masala.
* Mix the mutton pieces into the marinade and keep it for approximately 4-5 hours.
* Heat the mustard oil in a Kadhai, add whole spices, let it crackle and add sliced onion and saute nicely.
* Once the onion gets brown in colour and the spices start releasing their oil, add the marinated mutton, and cook it slowly. Keep adding mutton stock so that it doesn’t get dry and cook till the mutton gets tender.
* Finish it with ghee and serve hot with paratha or pulao.
-- Recipe by Executive Sous Chef Lokesh Jarodia from Novotel Imagica Khopoli, Mumbai
Ghugni (yellow peas curry)
Ingredients
Dried yellow peas, soaked overnight (2 cup)
Salt (1/2 tsp)
Vegetable oil (4 tbsp)
Potato, medium, cubed (1)
Bay leaf (tejpatta) (1)
Cumin seed (jeera) (1/2 tsp)
Onion, chopped (1/2 cup) (1 tsp)
Ginger-garlic paste (1 tsp)
Haldi (1/2 tsp)
Red chilli powder (1/2 tsp)
Cumin powder (jeera) (1/2 tsp)
Tomato, chopped (1)
Salt and Sugar (to taste)
Garam masala (1/2 tsp)
Method
* Wash and soak peas overnight.
* Add salt and pressure cook on medium heat for 2 whistles.
* Turn off the flame and place the cooker under running water. Open the lid and keep aside.
* Heat oil in a kadhai and add tejpatta and jeera to it. Fry for 30 seconds.
* Now add in onion and some salt. Fry till the onion becomes soft and light brown.
* Make a paste of haldi, jeera powder, red chilli powder using 2 tbsp water. Add ginger/garlic paste, sprinkle some water and sauté for a few seconds.
* Add the onion to this mix and sauté till oil starts to separate.
* Add chopped tomatoes, sprinkle some water and cover the pan with a lid.
* Lower the heat and cook till tomatoes are not raw anymore.
* After 2 minutes, open the lid and stir fry the masala for 1 min. Add the fried potatoes and boiled dried peas and toss with the masala mixture.
* Add 1/2 cup of warm water to the pan and let the curry boil for 5 minutes, covered on low heat.
* After 5 minutes, sprinkle garam masala and stir.
* Turn off the heat and let the curry stand for 10 minutes.
* Ghugni is ready to be served.
Mustard fish and mango curry recipe
Ingredients
4 fish steaks (eg sea bass, sea bream, carp or red snapper)
¾ teaspoon ground turmeric
1½ teaspoons chilli powder
salt, to taste
oil, for frying
50g / 1¾ oz yellow mustard seeds
4 green chillies, slit lengthways
6 tablespoons mustard oil
2 tomatoes, roughly chopped
1 teaspoon onion seeds
½ green mango, sliced
½ teaspoon ground cumin
few sprigs fresh coriander, chopped
Method
* Wash the fish. Drain and pat dry. Rub ¼ teaspoon ground turmeric, ½ teaspoon chilli powder and a pinch of salt into the fish.
* Heat the oil in a wok and add the fish steaks one at a time and fry over a medium heat until crisp and golden brown. Drain on kitchen paper and set aside.
* Soak the mustard seeds in ¼ cup of water for 30 minutes. Place 2 green chillies, 3 tablespoons of mustard oil and the soaked mustard seeds in a spice mill or small blender. Grind or blend until you have a smooth paste. Set aside.
* Put the tomatoes in a food processor or blender and process briefly. Set aside.
* Heat the remaining mustard oil in a pan, add onion seeds and allow them to crackle. Once they crackle, add the remaining green chillies and mustard paste. Cook for 5–6 minutes over a low heat until the oil separates.
* Add the tomatoes, the remaining turmeric and chilli powder and season to taste. Cook for 3–4 minutes.
* Add the sliced mango and cook for a minute or until soft. Add enough water to cover and allow it to simmer for 5–6 minutes. Add the fried fish and cook for 5–6 minutes.
* Turn off the heat and add ground cumin and chopped fresh coriander.
Chingri malai curry
Ingredients
160gm Prawns
2gm Onion Seeds (Kalonji)
10gm Mustard oil
2gm Green chillies
2gm Whole cumin
10gm Onion paste
5gm Ginger Paste
3gm Garlic paste
2gm Cumin powder
2gm Coriander powder
2gm Red chilli Powder
2gm Sugar
2gm Garam masala powder
Salt to taste
120gm Coconut milk
3gm Ghee
Method
* Blanch the prawns in turmeric water and keep aside.
* Heat mustard oil in a pan and add whole cumin, onion seeds, onion paste, and ginger garlic paste. Saute nicely, Add all the powder masalas.
* Add prawn and saute with masala. Now, add coconut milk and cook it.
* Serve hot with rice or paratha.
-- Recipe by Executive Sous Chef Lokesh Jarodia from Novotel Imagica Khopoli, Mumbai
Radha ballavi
Ingredients
For Poori (For 6 Poories)
Refined wheat flour (maida) ( 1 cup)
Oil (1 tbsp)
Salt ( to taste)
For The Filling
Split Bengal gram (chana dal), soaked for five hours (1/2 cup)
Cinnamon (dalchini) (1/2 inch stick)
Green cardamom (elaichi) (2)
Cumin seed (jeera) (1/2 tsp)
Fennel seeds (saunf) (1/2 tsp)
Haldi (A pinch)
Salt and sugar (to taste)
Oil (for deep-frying)
Method
* Mix maida in 1tbsp of oil and knead well with water into a hard dough. Leave aside for 30 minutes.
* Grind the soaked chana dal to a coarse paste with minimum addition of water.
* Lightly roast dalchini, elaichi and jeera and grind them to powder.
* Heat 1 tsp oil in a kadhai. Add saunf and dal paste to it.
* Next, add in the ground spices, haldi, salt and sugar and fry well to get rid of the raw smell.
* Let the mixture cool.
* Stuff small portions of dough with the filling, and roll into poories.
* Deep fry the poories till light golden brown; serve immediately with potato curry.
Baingan bhaja
Ingredients
Brinjal (baingan) (1, large, cut into thin, round slices)
Red Chilli powder (1 tsp)
Turmeric powder (½ tsp)
Garam masala (1 tsp)
Dry mango powder (amchur) (1 tsp)
Rice flour (½ tsp)
Salt (as required)
Yellow mustard oil (sarson ka tel) (for frying)
Method
* Wash the baigan in water and dry it with a kitchen towel.
* Cut the baigan into thin disks. Soak these disks in salted water for about 10 minutes. Remove and pat-dry all the slices.
* In a paraat (big, flat plate with shallow edges), add all the spices and salt and marinate the slices in this mix for 5 to 7 minutes.
* In a pan, heat oil. Put the rice flour onto a plate and coat each slice with it.
* Pan-fry the coated baigan slices till they have turned crisp and golden brown on both sides.
* Serve Baigan Bhaja hot with dahi or as a side-dish.
Aloo posto
Ingredients
120 gm potatoes (medium size)
50 gm Poppy seeds
20ml Mustard Oil
5gm Green chillies
3gm Onion seeds (Kalonji)
3gm Sugar
Salt to taste
2gm Ghee
Method
Cut the potatoes into small cubes and soak the poppy seeds for 30 minutes. Make a fine paste.
* Now, heat the mustard oil in a pan and add onion seeds, green chillies and potatoes. Add salt and turmeric and mix it well.
* Add stock and cook the potatoes. Once the potatoes are half-done, add poppy seeds paste and cook it further in slow heat. Add ghee.
* Serve hot with steam rice.
-- Recipe by Executive Sous Chef Lokesh Jarodia from Novotel Imagica Khopoli, Mumbai
Nolen gur sandesh
Ingredients
Cottage cheese of full fat milk (chhena)(250 gm)
Lemon juice (1 tsp)
Powdered sugar (2 tbsp)
Date jaggery (nolen gur) (4 tbsp)
Desi ghee (for greasing the mould)
Method
* In a paraat, knead chenna till it is smooth.
* Add sugar and knead further till the sugar melts in.
* Finally, add in jaggery before kneading the dough for another couple of minutes.
* Cook the dough on low heat for 3–4 minutes. The dough will harden as it cools.
* To shape the sandesh, use a stone or terracotta mould. Brush the insides of the mould with a little ghee and then flatten a piece of the dough to transfer the design.
* You can serve warm, cold or at room temperature.
