Masur Masala Bhindi - Red Lentils with Fried Okra

 

Masur Masala Bhindi

Masur dal or red lentils are the easiest lentils to make. They cook quickly and go well with any and all vegetables. Cooking the lentils with a bit of salt and turmeric separately then adding the stir-fried vegetables, gets this side dish on the table in less than half an hour.

There are a couple of ingredients in this recipe that are only available in an Indian market. Amchur is dried green mango that is ground to a fine powder. It's purpose is to reduce the mucus that is released while the okra cooks. If amchur is not available, leave it out, but make sure not to add anything to the okra until it's cooked. It will initially be slimy so fry it over medium heat and don't stir it too much. Wait until the okra browns before stirring. Add salt only when all signs of mucus disappear. Don't cover the okra while it's frying because the resulting condensation will make it more slimy. Notice that onions, tomatoes and green chilies are added after the okra cooks and all mucus disappears.

Panch phoron is the other ingredient that is available only in an Indian market. If it's not available, use whole fennel seeds and fennel seed powder which is made by dry-roasting a tablespoon of whole fennel seeds and grinding them to a fine powder.

Serve these lentils as a side dish for lunch or dinner. They go well with hot, steamed rice or any Indian bread.

Chaler Payesh - Rice Pudding

 

Chal'er Payesh

A comforting and deeply satisfying end to a meal, rice pudding is a favourite with young and old alike.

Achari Begun - Pickled Eggplant

 

Achari Begun

Here's another tasty way to prepare eggplant. The internet is a prolific source for recipes, and this was featured in a video by Banglar Rannaghor. One modification I made was to use imli chutney in place of tamarind paste. A technique that impressed me was to toss and marinate the eggplant pieces with spices and 2-3 tablespoons of water before frying. This made a big difference in the time it took for the eggplant pieces to brown without absorbing a vast quantity of oil.

I used a big globe eggplant that was cut in half and sliced. Any variety of eggplant would work for this recipe, so use whatever is at hand. Serve as a side dish, accompanied by any Indian bread or hot, steamed rice.

Bhapa Maach - Steamed Fish in Mustard Gravy

 

Bhapa Maach

Translated from Bengali to English:

Bhapa - Steamed

Maach - Fish

Most of my cooking is influenced by three sources. First of all, Mum and my siblings, the internet and cookbooks. Check the end of this blog for a link to the original source on the internet or from a cookbook. Modifications and adjustments are necessary, depending upon the quantities of ingredients available and how much spice is tolerated by those being catered to.

The inspiration video used 2 different kinds of fish and shrimp in this dish. I used 2 fillets of tilapia and steamed the fish in a rice cooker. The addition of raw mustard oil gives this fish the pungent flavour of mustard without all the hard work of soaking and blending mustard seeds.

This dish is best served with freshly steamed Basmati rice.