Aloo Posto (Potatoes cooked in rich poppy seed paste)

Poppy seeds or khaskhas, most popularly known as POSTO in Bengal is one of the favourite ingredients in many Bengali dishes. You would rarely find a Bengali who is unaware of this ingredient and most importantly there may be no such Bong who doesn't like Aloo Posto.

Aloo (Potato) + Posto (Poppy seed paste) = Soul food of every bong on this earth

So how do we achieve the equation above? Please find the steps below.

Ingredients

2 – 3 medium sized potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes

6 heaped tbsp of Poppy Seed (Posto/Khaskhas) paste

Slit Green chillies

Salt to taste

Sugar (optional)

Mustard Oil

Method

• In order to make a paste, you can first grind it to a powder. Then add some water and grind again. You can also add few green/red chillies while grinding as per your spice quotient. Remember that it should be a thick paste and not watery.
• Heat mustard oil in a wok. Add the chopped Potatoes. Stir well on high flame.
• Now add salt and a pinch of sugar. Stir well on high flame for 2 minutes. Remember that the potatoes need to be mixed with oil properly without getting a brownish tinch.
• Now add water and slit green chillies and cover cook till the potatoes are cooked. The water should be just enough to boil the potatoes and should not be added in excess.
• Once the potatoes are cooked, add the Poppy seed paste and stir well.
• Increase the flame and keep stirring till the water gets dried up. Keep in mind that the potatoes should not get mashed up in the process.
• Add 1 tbsp of Mustard oil just before removing from flame and stir a little.
• Serve your Aloo Posto garnished with slit green chillies.

Enjoy your meal with a simple Masoor Dal and Steamed Rice.

Paneer Tikka (Grilled Cottage Cheese)

It has been raining a lot in Kolkata since 2 days. Monsoons have arrived officially and so has the time for yummy snacks. I have been craving for some lip-smacking starters for quite a few days and as outside-food is strictly NO for me as of now, I decided to whip up something quickly at home in order to satisfy myself. So, without wasting any more time, I ordered for paneer from the local shop and made Paneer Tikka at home. Though I missed my husband while gorging on the juicy tikkas, my dad enjoyed to the fullest.

Not keeping the joy to myself, here I am sharing the recipe with you so that you can enjoy the rains too. Happy Cooking and Happy Monsoons…

Ingredients

For the Tikkas:

Paneer 300 gms

1 Large Green pepper

1 large onion

1 large Tomato

For the Marinade:

200 gms hung curd

1 tbsp ginger garlic paste

1 ½ tsp Kashmiri chili powder

1 tsp Cumin powder and coriander powder each

½ tsp shahi garam masala powder

1 tsp dry mango powder

Oil for brushing

Common salt or rock salt as required

Method

• Chop the veggies and Paneer in medium sized cubes (symmetrical) and keep aside.
• Now it is time for preparing the marinade. In a large mixing bowl, take the hung curd and whisk till smooth.
• Add all the spices listed above for marination including salt.
• Add all the veggies and Paneer pieces to the marinade and mix well. Refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours.
• Now it is time for making the Tikkas. Skewer the paneer and veggies alternatively in wooden skewers. I have used toothpicks for making the tikkas at home. Brush some butter or oil on the tikkas.

• Pre-heat the oven to 180 degrees for 3 minutes. Now, place the tikkas on a rack and then bake for 10 minutes at 180 degrees. Remove the rack, turn the tikkas, brush some more oil/butter if required and then bake for 10 to 15 minutes more.
• If your microwave has in-built setting for Tikkas, you can also use that.
• Once done, place the tikkas on a plate, sprinkle some chat masala over it.
• The tikkas are ready to be serves with Green chutney and onion rings.

Do let me know how it was...

Echorer Dalna or The Green Jackfruit Curry

Echore, otherwise known as the green jackfruit is widely used in Bengali recipes. This humble fruit is native to South and South East Asia and is known to have originated in coastal Karnataka and Maharashtra. Though jackfruit is extensively used in Indian, Bangladeshi, Sri Lankan, Thai and other Asian cuisines, it is extremely popular in Bengali dishes. Green jackfruit or the unripe fruit is called Echore in Bangla (Aechor) and is sometimes termed as “Gaach Pantha” (Vegetarian version of red meat). While Echore (Green Jackfruit) can be used to make curries, koftas, cutlets and a lot more, the ripened fruit popularly known as Kathal is equally tasty and is eaten as a fruit during summers.

Cooking Echore is not a rocket science however; one has to be skilled in order to cut the vegetable. Peeling the jackfruit is the most tedious task of all as the skin is not only hard but releases a resin like juice once cut. Hence, one should remember the following points before cutting the vegetable:

1. Rub cooking oil generously on your hands.
2. Peel the vegetable so as to remove the skin completely.
3. Slit the vegetable horizontally and remove the middle portion properly.
4. Once the vegetable has been cut, soak it in turmeric water for 15 to 20 minutes so that the resin can be washed off properly.
5. You can also half boil it in a pressure cooker before you start cooking.

Echorer Dalna is one of the most common curries which is cooked in almost every Bengali household. I spotted a shopkeeper with a bunch of jackfruits in Mumbai and decided to buy one for myself. My husband was ecstatic after tasting this very traditional Bengali dish in the hustle-bustle of Mumbai. So here I would like to share the recipe with you and hope you would like it too…

Ingredients

Echore (Green jackfruit) 500 gms

1 large onion (Paste)

1 medium tomato (Make a puree out of it)

Ginger-garlic paste

2 green chillies

1 or 2 Bay leaves

Turmeric powder 1 ½ tsp

Cumin Powder 1 ½ tsp

Coriander Powder 1 ½ tsp

Red Chilli Powder 1 ½ tsp

Mustard Oil

Salt and sugar to taste

Garam Masala Powder and Ghee (Optional)

Method

• Once the jackfruit is chopped into square shaped pieces, wash it well in turmeric water.
• Pour some oil in a heavy bottom pan or a Kadhai and heat it well. Now add the washed jackfruit pieces and fry it till most of the pieces turn light brown in colour. If you do not want to fry your jackfruit, you can half boil it in a pressure cooker before adding it to the masala.

 

• Remove the jackfruit pieces from the flame and add some more mustard oil to it. Add bay leaves and a little sugar to the hot oil.
• Now add onion, tomato and ginger garlic paste to the hot oil and stir well. Keep cooking it till the water evaporates.
• Add Salt, Turmeric powder, Cumin Powder, Coriander powder and red chili powder one by one in the Kadhai and stir the whole masala well.

 

• Keep cooking it till oil starts separating. At this point, add the fried/boiled jackfruit pieces and mix it well with the masala on high flame for 2 minutes.
• Pour water as required for the gravy and cover cook until the jackfruit is tender.
• Once done, sprinkle a little Garam masala powder and a spoon of ghee before removing from flame. 

• Serve hot with rice or chapattis.