Toor Dal with Vegetables - Simple Sambar

Simple Sambar

Sambar is a South-Indian dish of lentils & vegetables that is usually fiery & spicy and I love it. Hubby, however, can't tolerate spicy food so when I cook this at home it is much milder with the spices toned down several notches, which is why I refer to it as Bengali or simple sambar. This dish is generally made with toor dal or yellow split pigeon peas, and any vegetables you have on hand.

Stir-Fried Okra with Onions - Bhindi Bhaja

Bhindi Bhaja

I love how easy life is in North America if you have an interest in cooking at home rather than eating out. Okra, also known as bhindi in Hindi or dharosh in Bengali, is delicious any which way it's cooked. It is, however, a pain to prep in its fresh form. It needs to be washed first, then each of them needs to be dried with a paper towel before cutting. In North America, okra can be found in the frozen foods section of most supermarkets, already cut into bite-size pieces. I take them straight from the freezer to the frying pan without thawing.

Bengali Egg Curry - Dimer Dalna

Dimer Dalna

The eggs in this Egg Curry are sometimes halved before simmering in the tomato gravy. It is, however, more conventional to leave them whole when cooking them in the Bengali way. After hard-boiling and peeling, the eggs are slit vertically five to six times around the circumference, so that the gravy penetrates through to the core.

Garlic Shrimp Puffs

Garlic Shrimp Puffs

Just Baked Garlic Shrimp Puffs

I made these for lunch today and was very pleased with the way they turned out. Using just 4 ingredients and half an hour to prepare, these puffs were perfect because I was pressed for time. It’s worth experimenting with the flavored cream cheese varieties, such as chive & onion flavor, which will allow you to omit garlic powder to make it a 3-ingredient recipe! There was no need to add salt because the cream cheese and shrimp naturally contain salt.

Very Easy Chicken Tikka Masala

Chicken Tikka Masala

The Chicken Tikka Masala I've had in Indian restaurants look wonderful but seems unattainable in one's own kitchen. The inspiration for this dish came from the Internet and it was so easy to make. The chicken can marinate in the freezer in a Ziploc bag until it's ready to be cooked. I used Campbell's tomato soup because it's well-seasoned and less tangy than pureed tomatoes and the coconut milk gave it a creaminess that was delectable!

Corn Salsa

Corn Salsa

A popular accompaniment to an Indian meal is a chopped salad of cucumbers, onions, tomatoes, green chilies and cilantro tossed with lime juice and salt. I added corn kernels and green onions to the mix and came up with this colorful salad.

Tilapia & Potatoes in Tomato Gravy - Tilapia Maacher Jhol

Tilapia Maacher Jhol

This is a popular Bengali dish and tastes good with any white fish. Tempering nigella seeds with diced green chilies or jalapeno peppers adds a unique flavor to this dish.

Lau Chingri - Bottle Gourd/Chayote Squash with Shrimp & Potatoes

Lau Chingri

This is a Bengali recipe that traditionally uses bottle gourd, which I often replace with chayote squash because it's more readily available. Zucchini also works well in this recipe.

Stir-Fried Beet Greens with Baby Beets & Potatoes

It was a pleasure to find a bundle of baby beets with the greens attached among the groceries my husband brought home the other day. The greens were very fresh, so I used all of it from the baby beets, attached stems and the greens. Knowing how the greens reduce when cooked, I added a russet potato to add bulk. This is a very simple preparation that can be used with any spinach or greens. Bengalis refer to any and all greens as shaak (spinach), including squash greens, beet greens and all other edible greens.

Carolyne's Cassava Cake

Last of the Cassava Cake

Just Baked Cassava Cake

Cassava is a starchy, tuberous root which, when dried to a pearly & powdery extract, is called tapioca. Grated cassava root is available in the frozen section of the Asian market in our neighborhood. 

Carolyne is a Burmese friend who posted this recipe on Facebook. I followed her recipe exactly, except that the cake did not brown sufficiently so I turned off the oven and left the cake in for an extra half an hour until it developed this lovely golden color. Thank you, Carolyne, for your inspiration and for adding another delectable dish to my Burmese food repertoire. While this cake was baking, our home was filled with a wonderful aroma!

Macapuno strings are usually sold in Asian supermarkets. You can also buy it from online stores like Amazon.  But if you can't find macapuno, you can substitute with 1-1/2 cups sweetened flaked coconut plus 1/2 cup water.

Apple Amish Friendship Bread

Apple Sheet Cake

It disappears quickly!

This is a great bread to make when there are lots of delicious, crisp Fuji apples and it will feed a crowd! This recipe makes 2 loaves, but I decided to make a sheet cake instead and baked it in a 9" x 13" glass pan.

Burmese Spicy Shrimp with Cilantro

A quick and easy shrimp dish that is pumped with maximum flavor. It was inspired by Ma Makhemarus' Spicy Shrimp with Burmese Basil with a few adaptations. I had to substitute oyster sauce for fish sauce, cilantro for basil and green chili sauce for green chilies. Also added tomatoes and tomato paste.

Stir-Fried Carrots & Potatoes Flavored with Dried Fenugreek

Gajar, Alu Aur Kasuri Methi Ki Sabzi

I've made this vegetable preparation before using fresh dill which tasted wonderful! The original recipe used fresh fenugreek greens which I replaced with the dried form.

Baked Cauliflorets Tossed in Sweet Chili Sauce

A quick-cooking baked cauliflower side dish that uses five ingredients and is so easy to prepare.

Masoor Dal with Onions & Tomatoes

Red Lentils with Onions & Tomatoes

A very simple lentil dish that cooks up in less than 20 minutes.

Fish with Sweet Potatoes in Red Curry Sauce

This Thai-inspired fish curry uses a red curry paste along with coconut milk for its sauce. I've used only one Tbsp. of the curry paste, but it should be used according to taste. Use more if you wish the sauce to be more spicy. Any variety of fish fillets that are in season and available could be used in this dish. 

Cheese Toast Triangles

Cheese Toast

Cut in Triangles

It was 3:00 p.m. in the afternoon and hunger pangs were gnawing and fighting for attention. I raided the fridge and came up with these quick, satisfying & delicious bites in a matter of 10 minutes! Instead of the pita pocket halves, regular bread slices would work just as well. Cut each slice of bread in half square triangles after toasting.

Burmese Baked Fish Stew

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Most of my Burmese dishes are inspired by what Mum cooked for us when we were growing up and more recently by friends on Facebook.  This dish comes together without too much fuss and is delicious due to its sour, spicy and salty overtones. When served over hot, steamed, white rice it is heart-warming and satisfying.

Burmese Sour & Spicy Shrimp & Potato Stew

Burmese Sour & Spicy Shrimp & Potato Stew

This stew is ideal for those days when there is not much time to put dinner on the table. The shrimp takes some time to peel, de-vein and stir-fry, but after that's done, it's a matter of putting all the other ingredients into a skillet at the same time and simmering until the gravy is reduced and oil resurfaces. The shrimp is added at the end and it's done! For variety, substitute shrimp with fish fillets, hard boiled eggs sliced in half or chicken thighs. Add chicken thighs along with potatoes at the start of the cooking process. Eggs and fish may be pan-fried like the shrimp and added back into the stew at the end. I've made this with baked fish, ground chicken and meatballs.

Mung Bean Lentils Tempered with Wild Celery Seeds

Ingredients:
1 cup mung dal, toasted
3 carrots, diced
½ pkg. frozen peas
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
½ tsp. radhuni (wild celery) seeds
2 tsp. ginger paste
Salt to taste
¼ tsp. sugar
1 tsp. ghee or melted butter
2–3 green chilies, left whole

Directions:
1. Wash toasted lentils until water runs clear.
2. Heat oil in a pan and add radhuni seeds
3. When seeds start to sizzle fry carrots & peas for a few minutes.
4. Add lentils and ginger paste and cook until lentils are tender.
5. Adjust salt & sugar to taste and bring back to a boil.
6. Garnish with ghee and green chilies.
7. Transfer to a serving dish and serve with steamed rice or tortillas.

Burmese Shwe Htamin - Rice Dessert Bars

Burmese Shwe Htamin

This Burmese dessert was inspired by a Facebook member, Corinne Watson, of our Burmese food group (Burmese Food Lover's Kitchen). I made several modifications to her recipe because I wanted to make coconut a more prominent ingredient and also used roasted sesame seeds as an additional garnish.

Tuna Fish Cakes

Pan-Fried Fish Cakes

Oven-Baked Fish Cakes

These fish cakes can be made from canned tuna fish or any flaked white fish, such as tilapia. They can be formed into patties and pan-fried or baked in the oven at 350°F on a greased baking sheet. In Bengali they are called Maacher Chop and served as an appetizer at the start of the meal, accompanied by tamarind chutney, tomato ketchup or a homemade tomato sauce and a simple Indian salad of chopped onions, tomatoes, green chilies, and cucumber with a lime & salt dressing.

How to Cook Perfect Basmati Rice

Basmati Rice Cooked on the Stove Top

Basmati Rice Cooked in the Microwave Oven

Thanks to my Facebook friends on Kitchen Raagas for introducing me to the perfect way to cook Basmati rice in the microwave oven. Here are the instructions for cooking the rice on a stove top and in a microwave oven. The ingredients are the same for both methods.

It takes 30 minutes (plus 10 minutes resting time) to cook rice on the stove top and 18 minutes (plus 10 minutes resting time) in the microwave oven. The advantage to microwave cooking is that there are no pots & pans to clean. I was also surprised to find out that rice takes only 18 minutes to cook in the microwave oven as opposed to 40 minutes in a rice cooker!

Red Lentils with Capsicum & Cucumbers

Masoori Dal with Cucumber & Green Peppers

This dish of lentils came about because I needed to use up half an English cucumber and half a green pepper or capsicum.  Red lentils and most other lentils taste very good with vegetable. This is a great way to boost the consumption of vegetables in our daily diets.

Basa Fillets in Yogurt Sauce

Basa Maach-er Doi Maach

Basa is also known as Mekong catfish and Swai. The latter has recently become available in mainstream grocery stores in our area. It is a white fish that has a more delicate flavor than catfish.

When I begin cooking a meal, I raid the fridge and lay out all the vegetables on the counter. Then items get paired with the three or four, sometimes five, dishes I plan to make. That's how half a red pepper or Kashmiri Mirch/Capsicum made its way into this fish dish. Half a container of plain Greek (or hung) yogurt was used in this dish and the other half in a Beet & Cucumber Raita.

In this way, every vegetable plays an important part in the meal and rarely, if ever, do I discard one because it's past its prime.

Tip:
Reduce and keep the heat on low before adding yogurt to the pan. Do not allow the yogurt sauce to boil as this may cause it to separate or curdle.