Climbing Perch (Koi Maach) in Fennel Seed Sauce

Mouri Bata Diye Koi Maacher Jhol

This dish was inspired by Ishani Ghosh Majumdar's recipe posted on Kitchen Raagas group in Facebook.

Tilapia Fillets in Fennel Seed Sauce

I have also made this same recipe using tilapia fillets.

Catfish Steaks in Fennel Seed Sauce uses the very same ingredients with just a few differences.  The gravy is much thicker in this dish and I've used climbing perch here instead of catfish.

This fish, also known as Koi Maach in Bengali, is purchased live in India and is well-known for its recuperative qualities. In the U.S. and in Michigan in particular, we have no option but to buy frozen climbing perch which is sometimes available in some Oriental and Indian grocery stores. Although the flavour of the live fish is far superior to the frozen variety, it is still a good alternative to using other species of fish, such as catfish or tilapia.

Fennel seed powder is made by toasting fennel seeds in a dry skillet until their aroma is released, taking care not to brown them. Once cooled, the fennel seeds are ground to a fine powder in a coffee grinder that has been reserved specifically for grinding spices.  

After each use, the spice grinder is whirred with baking powder to clean it and remove all aromas.

Ingredients:
1 lb. climbing perch, cleaned and gutted
4 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 tsp. fennel seeds
2 Roma tomatoes, chopped
1 Tbsp. ginger paste
½ tsp. turmeric
1 Tbsp. Kashmiri mirch or chili powder
2 + 1 Tbsp. fennel seeds, roasted and ground to a fine powder
½ tsp. sugar
salt to taste
4 green chilies, slit
chopped cilantro

Directions:
1.  Wash fish well and make two slanted slits on each side of each fish between the head and tail. This allows the sauce to penetrate to the center.

2.  Apply salt & turmeric to fish and marinate for half an hour.

3.  Make a paste with 1 tsp. oil, ginger paste, salt, Kashmiri mirch & 2 Tbsp. fennel powder.
4.  Stir remaining 1 Tbsp. fennel powder and sugar with 2 Tbsp. water and set aside.
5.  In a skillet over medium-high heat, fry fish in oil on both sides and set aside.
6.  In the same oil, fry fennel seeds until they sputter, then add the tomatoes.
7.  Cook tomatoes with 1st batch of fennel seed paste until tomatoes break down.
8.  Add a cup of boiling water in 4 batches, stirring well after each addition.

9.  Adjust salt to taste, add fried fish, cover and cook for 5 minutes. 

10. Turn fish over and cook for another 5 minutes.

11. Add 2nd batch of fennel seed paste and stir gravy gently without disturbing the fish.

12. Garnish with cilantro & green chilies and serve with steamed Basmati rice.

Tilapia Fillets in Coleman's Mustard Sauce

Tilapia Maacher Jhal

Fish in mustard sauce is a very popular Bengali dish which is usually made with a paste of black mustard seeds that have to be soaked in water and salt overnight to remove their bitterness. Here is a very quick, easy and delicious alternative using Coleman's Mustard powder.  

This recipe was given to me by my niece, Dipanwita Banerjee, who is an excellent cook!

Ingredients: 
1 lb. Tilapia fillets, cut in pieces
½ tsp. turmeric
Salt

Gravy:
4 Tbsp. vegetable oil
½ tsp. nigella seeds (kalo jeera/kalonji)
1 jalapeno pepper, sliced in four
2 medium onions, sliced
1 Tbsp. tomato paste
1 tsp. Kashmiri mirch or chili powder
2½ heaped tsp. Coleman’s Mustard powder
Salt to taste

Garnishes:
4 green chilies, slit
1 Tbsp. chopped cilantro

Directions:
1. Marinate fish pieces in salt and turmeric for half an hour.
2. Heat oil in a pan, sizzle nigella seeds and fry jalapeno pepper & onions for a minute.
3. Stir in tomato paste & chili powder and cook until oil resurfaces.
4. Place fish pieces over onions, cook one side, turn fish pieces over and cook other side.
5. Give mustard & water a good stir and pour over fish.
6. When gravy comes to a boil, garnish with green chilies and cilantro.
7. Serve on a bed of hot Basmati rice.

Lentils with Sweet Potatoes & Toasted Coconut

Mum used to make this at home when company was expected. It was part of a feast (nimonthonno ranna in Bengali). Fresh coconuts are readily available in India and Mum would break the coconut shell, slice the meat into strips and slice it into flat disks that would be fried in oil to a nutty brown.  They would then be cooked along with the lentils.

Since fresh coconuts are not as easily available in Michigan, a staple in my refrigerator is unsweetened, grated coconut. I use a dry skillet to toast a quarter cup of grated coconut to a golden brown colour with the help of 1/2 a teaspoon of sugar. The toasted coconut is used as a garnish and stirred into the lentils just prior to serving.

Ingredients:

1 cup channa dal (any lentils will do)
1 medium sweet potato or 1/4 pumpkin, peeled and cut in bite-size pieces
¼ cup grated unsweetened coconut, toasted to a golden brown
1 Tbsp. tomato paste
4 Tbsp. vegetable oil
½ tsp. shah jeera or cumin seeds
1 tsp. garam masala powder
2 tsp. ginger paste
Salt to taste
1 tsp. ghee or melted butter
2–3 green chilies, left whole

Directions:

1. Wash and soak sweet potatoes in water to prevent discolouring.
2. Wash lentils until water runs clear and soak in hot water for half an hour.
3. Heat oil in a pan and add cumin seeds & garam masala.
4. When cumin seeds start to sizzle, add tomato and ginger pastes along with sweet potatoes and cook for a few minutes.
5. Add lentils, cover and simmer for about half an hour until lentils are tender.
6. Adjust salt to taste, garnish with ghee, toasted coconut and whole green chilies.

7. Transfer to a serving dish and serve with steamed rice or tortillas.

I shared this recipe on 

Green Beans in White Poppy Seed Sauce

Green Beans & Shrimp Posto

Green beans, peas & shrimp cooked in a white poppy seed sauce

Serves: 6
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cooking Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:
4 Tbsp. white Poppy seeds (Posto)
1 cup Water

3 Tbsp. extra light Olive Oil
½ tsp. Nigella seeds (Kalo Jeera/Kalonji)

1 lb. green Beans, sliced width-wise into small circles 
2 tsp. Ginger paste
Salt to taste
1 cup frozen Peas, thawed
10 – 15 medium shrimp, shelled and deveined

1 tsp. Ghee or melted Butter
2 – 3 Thai red chillies, left whole

Directions:
1. Boil a cup of water in microwave, pour over poppy seeds in a bowl. Set aside to cool and soften.
2. Puree the poppy seeds and water in a blender until it reaches the consistency of a thick sauce. 
3. Heat oil in a pan over medium-high heat and add nigella seeds.
4. When the seeds begin to sputter and sizzle, add vegetables, ginger paste and salt.
5. Lower heat to medium-low and cook for 10 minutes until vegetables are tender.
6. Add peas & shrimp, adjust salt to taste and cook for 5 minutes.
7. Add pureed poppy seeds and stir until well combined.
8. Cook for 5 minutes until the sauce reduces and just coats the beans.
9. Garnish with ghee & whole chillies and transfer to a serving dish.

Notes:
The green beans and peas can be replaced with several other vegetables, such as eggplant, cauliflower, potatoes, zucchini, ridge gourd (jhinge), sweet potatoes, pumpkin, etc.

Egg Curry

Deem-er Dalna

Ingredients

6 eggs, boiled peeled & cut in half

1 large Russet potato, cut in bite-size pieces

2 cups chicken broth

2 onions, quartered

4 pods garlic

1 tsp. tomato paste (I use Hunt’s)

2 tomatoes, cubed

1 Tbsp. ginger paste

1 tsp. garam masala

4 Tbsp. vegetable oil

1 tsp. cumin seeds

1 bay leaf

1 cinnamon stick

1 star anise

1 tsp. ghee

½ tsp. sugar

1-2 green/red fresh chilies, slit

Chopped cilantro

Salt to taste

Method

1.  Boil eggs for 5 minutes, set aside for 20 minutes, peel and cut in half.

2.  Fry eggs in 1 Tbsp. oil, cut side down, until golden brown and set aside.

3.  Blanch onions & garlic in a cup of boiling water and drain.

4.  Purée blanched items, tomatoes, tomato & ginger pastes & garam masala.

5.  Heat remaining 3 Tbsp. oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.

6.  Sputter cumin seeds, bay leaf, cinnamon stick, and star anise.

7.  Add puréed mixture & salt, cover & simmer on low heat until oil resurfaces.

8.  Heat chicken broth in microwave and pour into skillet.

9.  Add potatoes & eggs, cover and cook until gravy is reduced by half. 

10. Adjust salt & garnish with sugar, ghee, fresh chilies & cilantro.

11. Serve over hot steamed rice or with chapatis.

Microwaved Mango Kalakand

Mango & Ricotta Dessert

Serving Suggestions

Cook Time: 16 minutes
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cooling Time: 1 hour
Makes: 25 pieces

Ingredients:
1 tub (15 oz.) Sargento Ricotta Cheese or grated Paneer
1 can (14 oz.) Carnation condensed milk
1 pkg. (3.2 oz.) Carnation milk powder
1 cup mango pulp
1 tsp. cardamom powder
½ tsp. saffron
¼ cup chopped cashews

Directions:

1. In a microwave-safe dish, mix first four ingredients until all lumps are smoothed out.
2. Microwave 5 minutes uncovered, take out and mix well, loosening the edges.
3. Microwave 5 minutes uncovered, take out and mix well, loosening the edges.
4. Microwave 2 minutes uncovered, take out, add cardamom & mix well, loosening the edges.
5. Microwave 2 minutes uncovered, take out, add saffron and mix well, loosening the edges.
6. Microwave 2 minutes uncovered, take out and mix well, loosening the edges.
7. Press down and flatten the mixture, sprinkle cashews on top and press down firmly.
8. Cover and refrigerate for an hour before cutting into 25 pieces. 
9. Serve chilled.
    

Burmese Stir-Fried Chayote Squash

Chayote squash is also known as choko or Darjeeling squash and may be replaced with zucchini or bottle gourd. Select light green chayote squash which indicate they're still young and sweet. 

Spinach, Sweet Potatoes & Peas with Coconut

Palang Shaag, Misti Alu, Karaishuti Ar Narkol 

Ingredients : 

2 lbs. frozen chopped spinach

1 sweet potato or 1/4 pumpkin, peeled & cubed
½ lb. frozen peas
1 large onion, sliced finely

1 jalapeno pepper, halved lengthwise & sliced widthwise

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

1 tsp. Shah jeera or cumin seeds

¼ cup grated unsweetened coconut
1 tsp. roasted cumin powder
salt to taste

1 jalapeno pepper, deseeded & sliced

1 tsp. ghee

Directions:

1. Heat a skillet on medium-high heat, toast grated coconut, remove and reserve for later use.
2. Heat oil in same skillet and sputter jeera.
3. Add and stir-fry sliced jalapenos, onions & cumin powder until onions turn opaque.
4. Stir in sweet potatoes & salt to taste, cover and simmer until sweet potatoes are half done.
5. Add frozen spinach & peas, add more salt, cover and steam until spinach & peas thaw.
6. Stir well and cook over medium heat until spinach is cooked and liquid evaporates.
7. Adjust salt, sprinkle with toasted coconut & garnish with sliced peppers and ghee.

Serve with rice or chapatis.

I shared this recipe on

Burmese Chicken Curry - Chet Tha Sipyan

Curry in Burmese is called ‘Sipyan’ which literally means ‘oil returns’, a sign that the gravy is ready. Although it’s called a curry, very few spices are used.  The color is achieved with the help of tomato paste and the flavor is created by simmering the pureed onion, garlic, red chilli and tomato paste long and slow. Sipyan tastes great cooked with chicken, duck, pork, beef or plain vegetables, served over a bed of Ohn Htamin or Burmese coconut rice.

Burmese Coconut Rice - Ohn Htamin

Rice is an essential part of any Asian or Indian meal. In my home, we're particular about what kind of rice we eat. Basmati rice is our favourite, but if that isn't available, jasmine rice comes in at a close second. Packaged instant rice tastes horrible when one is used to either basmati or jasmine long-grain rice. Some people prefer short-grain sticky rice which I have yet to experiment with, and try to avoid because of its high starch content. So the discussion here focuses on long-grain rice.

The easiest way to prepare long-grain rice is to wash it, let it soak for 10-15 minutes and cook it with double the quantity of water in the rice cooker. No need to worry about it catching and burning at the bottom because most rice cookers turn off automatically when the water is absorbed completely. 

Cooking rice on the stove top is really easy to do, but I would suggest setting a timer as a reminder to turn off the stove so the rice doesn't burn. I've blogged about making perfect basmati rice on the stove top and in the microwave oven and my methods have been successful every time.

Now, to get back to this delicious recipe for Ohn Htamin, it forms the base for a festive Burmese meal because it goes so well with any sipyan or Burmese curry. The memories of our childhood in Burma come rushing back at the thought of this meal! The perfect condiment for Ohn Htamin is dry balachaung, also an essential part of the Burmese table. 

Mango & Saffron Srikhand

Yogurt Mousse with Mango & Saffron

Mango pulp and Greek yogurt are staples in my pantry. When guests arrive for dinner on short notice, this dessert is very easy to whip up and is always a hit! Rose syrup and mango pulp are available in Indian grocery stores, as are saffron & cardamom powder.

Prep Time: 5 min

Chill Time: 1 hour or overnight
Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

½ cup mango pulp

1 (7 oz.) tub Greek yogurt

¼ tsp. cardamom powder

1 tsp. rose water

sugar to taste
½ tsp. saffron (kesar), crushed
1 Tbsp. milk

Method:

1. Stir half the crushed saffron into milk, microwave for 10 seconds and set aside.
2. Beat mango pulp with yogurt, rose water, cardamom powder and soaked saffron.
3. Adjust sugar according to taste.
4. Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with remaining crushed saffron.
5. Chill in the refrigerator overnight or for at least an hour.
6. Serve chilled.

Note: If Greek yogurt is not available, use plain yogurt that has been drained of all moisture.

Mango Lassi

Mango & Yogurt Smoothie

Mango lassi is a mango and yogurt smoothie that is generally served at Indian restaurants in India and abroad. It is amazingly refreshing in the hot summer months. The addition of ginger powder gives the smoothie a special flavor and aids in the digestion of the mango. This beverage is delicious!

Makes 2 servings

Ingredients:
1 cup mango pulp (see Other Options below)
1 tub (4 oz.) Dannon Lite & Fit (45 calories) vanilla yogurt
   or 1 cup plain yogurt + 3 tsp. sugar, or to taste
1/2 cup milk or Land O Lakes fat-free half-and-half
1/8 tsp. ginger powder
1/8 tsp. cardamom powder

Directions:
Whip all ingredients together with an egg beater.
Sprinkle with cardamom powder.
Chill and serve within 24 hours.

Other Options:
Mango pulp is available in 30 oz. cans in Indian grocery stores. If it is not available where you live, it can be replaced with a ripe mango, peeled, deseeded, chopped & pureed. Extra sugar, may be required, according to taste.

Mango can be replaced with canned peaches or sweetened frozen strawberries.
It would be fun to experiment with other fruits.

The vanilla or plain yogurt can be replaced with vanilla ice cream.

This recipe was shared on:

Red Lentils with Mango and Eggplant

Ingredients:

1-½ cups red lentils (masoor dal)

3 cups water

2 Oriental eggplants, cut in bite-size pieces and tossed with salt

2 Tbsp. vegetable oil

½ tsp. black mustard seeds

2 dried red chilies

2 tsp. ginger paste

1 (3 oz.) pkg. dried unsweetened mango slices

or 1 green mango, peeled, deseeded and chopped

Salt to taste

1 tsp. ghee or melted butter

cilantro, chopped

2–3 whole green chilies

Directions:

1.    Wash lentils until water runs clear.

2.    Heat oil in a pan over medium-high heat & add mustard & dried chilies.

3.    When mustard seeds start to sizzle, add lentils, salt, mango and water.

4.    Cover and cook on medium heat until lentils are tender.

5.    Adjust salt to taste, add eggplant and ginger paste.

6.    Cover and cook until eggplant pieces are cooked.

7.    Garnish with ghee, cilantro and whole green chilies.

8.    Transfer to a serving dish and serve with steamed rice or naan.

Kashmiri Rogan Josh

This dish was inspired by a couple of recipes posted on Facebook, but I modified it to suit my family's taste. I reduced the amount of Kashmiri mirch and added 2 Roma tomatoes instead and also added potatoes because of our love of meat and potatoes :) 

I was tempted to cook this in the pressure cooker, but decided to take the traditional route and cook it long and slow on top of the stove.  It took a total of 1-1/2 hours to cook.

Ingredients:

2 lbs. baby lamb leg, cut in stew pieces

1 Russet potato, cubed (optional)

4 Tbsp. vegetable oil

2 cinnamon sticks

4 black cardamoms

2 star anise

2 medium (Roma) tomatoes, chopped

½ tsp. hing (asafoetida)

1 level tsp. dried ginger powder

1 heaped tsp. Kashmiri mirch

½ tsp. black pepper powder

½ tsp. cardamom powder

1 cup boiling chicken broth

1 level tsp. roasted fennel seed powder

1 tsp. garam masala

salt to taste

Directions:

1. Wash lamb pieces and rub well with salt.
2. Heat oil over medium-high heat and temper with hing, cinnamon sticks,    black cardamom and star anise.
3. Add lamb pieces, fry until oil resurfaces, add tomatoes and again cook until oil resurfaces. This step should take about half an hour.
4. Reduce heat to medium, stir in ginger, black pepper, Kashmiri mirch and cardamom powder.
5. Stir well and add chicken broth and potatoes.
6. Cover and cook until potatoes are tender for about an hour.
7. Add fennel seed powder and garam masala, adjust salt and remove from heat.
8. Serve with rice or naan. 

Cauliflower, Potatoes & Shrimp in White Poppy Seed Sauce

Phool Kopi Alu Chingri Posto

White poppy seed sauce (known in Bengali as 'posto') is very versatile and can be used to dress practically any vegetable. The addition of black mustard seed paste and grated coconut gives it an added dimension of flavour.  And shrimp will, of course, take it up the ultimate notch! 

Ingredients

1 lb. shrimp, shelled & deveined
Paste of
   1 tsp. black mustard seeds

   2 tsp. white poppy seeds

   2 tsp. freshly grated unsweetened coconut

   2 green chillies

   Salt to taste

juice of 1 lime

2 + 4 Tbsp. vegetable oil

1 tsp. nigella seeds (a.k.a. kalo jeera/kalonji)

1 cauliflower, cut into florets

1 russet potato, cut in long wedges

1 Tbsp. ginger paste

1 tsp. ghee

½ tsp. sugar

1 tsp. chopped cilantro

4 green chillies, slit

Directions

Soak black mustard seeds with salt for ½ an hour and drain.

Soak white poppy seeds in boiling water for ½ an hour. Do not drain.

Purée the paste ingredients listed above along with water poppy seeds were soaked in.

Add lime juice to the paste, stir well and set aside.

In a skillet, heat 4 Tbsp. oil & sputter nigella seeds.

Add and cook cauliflower, potatoes with ginger paste & salt until cooked.

Add shrimp and pour poppy seed paste over vegetables in skillet, cover and cook for 5 minutes.

Add sugar, adjust salt and garnish with ghee, cilantro & green chillies.

Serve with steamed Basmati rice.

Catfish Steaks in Fennel Seed Sauce

Mouri Bata Diye Magur Maacher Jhol

This dish was inspired by Ishani Ghosh Majumdar's recipe posted on Kitchen Raagas group in Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=4360786297996&set=oa.358676787548427&type=1&theater

Ishani made this dish with climbing perch (koi maach) which is not readily available in this area. Both climbing perch and catfish are bought live from the markets in Bengal, India, and dressed by the fishmonger only after they are sold. As an alternative, I've used live catfish from the oriental store and requested the fishmonger to cut it into steaks. 

The fennel paste is made by roasting fennel seeds in a dry skillet until their aroma is released, taking care not to brown them. Once cooled, the fennel seeds are ground to a fine powder in a coffee grinder that has been reserved specifically for grinding spices.  

After each use, the spice grinder is whirred with baking powder to clean it and remove all aromas.


Ingredients:
6 catfish steaks
4 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 tsp. fennel seeds
2 Roma tomatoes, chopped
1 Tbsp. ginger paste
½ tsp. turmeric
1 Tbsp. Kashmiri mirch or chili powder
2 + 1 Tbsp. fennel seeds, roasted and ground to a fine powder
½ tsp. sugar
salt to taste
4 green chilies, slit
chopped cilantro

Directions:
1. Apply salt & turmeric to catfish and set aside to marinate for ½ an hour.
2. Make a paste with 1 tsp. oil, ginger paste, salt, Kashmiri mirch & 2 Tbsp. fennel powder.
3. Stir remaining 1 Tbsp. fennel powder and sugar with water and set aside.
4. In a skillet over medium-high heat, fry catfish steaks in oil and set aside.
5. In the same oil, fry fennel seeds until they sputter, then add the tomatoes.
6. Cook tomatoes with 1st batch of fennel paste until tomatoes break down.
7. Add a cup of boiling water, stir the gravy and adjust salt to taste.
8. Add fried catfish, bring gravy to a boil and add 2nd batch of fennel paste.

9. Garnish with cilantro & green chilies and serve with steamed Basmati rice.

Mung Dal with Sweet Potatoes & Carrots

Kacha Mooger Dal Shobji Diye

Every now and then, I like to have mung dal in its unroasted form. It's called 'kacha mooger dal' in Bengali  which translates to 'raw mung lentils'.  I like to add vegetables (shobji) to lentils to get more vegetables into our daily diet.

Ingredients:

1 cup mung dal, washed and soaked in water for 1/2 hour

1 sweet potato, cubed

1 cup baby carrots, halved

2 Tbsp. extra light olive oil

1 Tbsp. ginger paste

½ tsp. shah jeera or jeera/cumin seeds

1 cinnamon stick

2-3 star anise

½ tsp. turmeric powder

salt to taste

½ tsp. sugar

1 tsp. ghee (clarified butter)

2-4 green chillies, slit in half

chopped cilantro

Directions:

1. Bring lentils, along with water it was soaked in, to a boil and simmer until tender.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a skillet and fry cinnamon stick, star anise and shah jeera until seeds sputter.
3. Add sweet potatoes, carrots, ginger paste and turmeric.
4. Stir everything and simmer on medium heat until vegetables are cooked.
5. Pour cooked lentils over vegetables, add sugar, salt and 1 cup hot water and bring to a boil.
6. Simmer for 10-15 minutes and adjust salt to taste.
7. Garnish with ghee, green chillies and cilantro and serve with hot cooked basmati rice, naan or tortilla.

Burmese Green Beans

I've given Mum's recipe a slight Burmese twist with the addition of dried shrimp powder, soya sauce, fish sauce and toasted sesame oil.

Burmese Dessert - Sanwin Makin

Cream of Wheat Cake Made With  Coconut Milk

I adapted this recipe submitted by Saw Saw Win on the Burmese Food Lovers' Kitchen group in Facebook. The amount of brown sugar has been reduced from 3-1/2 cups to 2 cups for those of us who have to watch our sugar levels, and the oven temperature increased to 375°F from 350°F.

There was a snow storm last night (about 5" or so) and when I looked out of the living room window this morning, I found that the young man who lives across the street from us was hard at work, removing the snow from our driveway with his snow-blower.  To thank him for his kindness, a few squares of this dessert and some oranges were hand-delivered to him by my husband.

DH was not able to describe the dessert to him except to say that the white things on top were white poppy seeds, so I called him on the telephone and gave him a list of the other ingredients just so he would know what he was eating. The young man is a chef and much appreciated the details!