Nanda Sahadeo's

Saime and Allu

2023-04-19T13:16:00.001-07:00

Saime is one the many vegetables that our Indian Ancestors brought when they came to these Shore.There are many varities of Saime.

I saw all of these varieties in the local groceries in my neighbourhood in Queens, New York City. You will find these at most Indian groceries as Saime is a popular vegetable in North Indian cuisine. In our community though, just 2 or 3 varities are common and I was not even aware of the other ones until I saw them here in the U.S. Saime is also grown in the U.S., during the Summer months. The seedlings are now available in the Groceries that have plants selling during Spring so there is now no need to set your own seeds. I am constantly amazed at the way our Ancestors took seeds and plants from India to South America and the Caribbean. And now, the descendants of these pioneers, have brought the

same flora and fauna to enrich the landscape of North America.

Ingredients: (to feed 2 ppl)

1. 2 lbs Saime, cleaned and broken in half sized

2. 2 lbs potatoes, peeled and cubed.

3. 1 medium sized onions, chopped finely

4. 3-4 pegs of garlic, minced.

5. 2-3 TT oil

6. 1 1/2 TT turmeric/haldi powder

7. 4 TT garam masala

8. 1 TT ground jeera powder

9. 3 cups of cocnut milk

10. 2 TT tomato paste or 1 tomato cubed

Salt to taste. Pepper as per your choice.

Method:

1. Heat the oil in a karahi or a deep heavy bottom pan on medium flame.

2. Add onions and saute until translucent (2 mins) then add garlic and saute another minute.

3. Add potatoes and stir to completely incorporate.

4. Add Salt to taste. And fry for about 2 mins.

5. Add the Saime.

6. Allow it to stay on top of the potatoes for a minute and just let it steam.

7. Add chopped tomatoes if using and chopped pepper and stir thoroughly to completely incorporate.

8. At this stage, start adding the masalas. Add the haldi first and stir for a minute. Then add the garam masala and stir to completely coat the vegetables. Allow to fry for a minute.

9. Add coconut milk if using or hot water if not. If using tomato paste, add it here too.If you want gravy in your curry, add 1 more cup liquid.

10. Allow to cook until potato is cooked through.

11. Your Saime and Allu is now ready to eat with either rice or rotis. If cooked dried, one can also eat with dal as we often do in our home.

Enjoy.

2022-04-22T18:52:00.000-07:00

Namaskaar.

My page was stolen by several people and they have my stolen my recipes. I could not even access my own blog and when I clicked on my name on Google, I went to these peoples' pages. My intention is to document and preserve recipes that belong to my Ancestors and to share it with future generations. It is wrong that others are using my work to make money for themselves.

The recipes are still in my possessions. I would like to share them again once these pirates close down their sites. You can email me if you need help though.....@ sahadeonanda@gmail.com

Take care and hope to see you soon again.

2021-10-14T12:48:00.011-07:00

Lapsi Recipe.

This recipe is Copyrighted and owned by Nanda Sahadeo. Anyone reposting it on their site without permission from Nanda Sahadeo is an infringement.

Lapsi in our Hindu community in Guyana, is an offering that is made to The Devi, The Divine Mother. Lapsi is another traditional dish that came with our Ancestors from India. It is made for Nav Ratri which is the period of 9 Nights worship of the Divine as Female Energy. Laspi is also made when there is any Devi Puja.

It is made for the Mudan ceremony and any Worship of Ganga Ma ( Ganges). Mudan is when the baby's hair is shaved and then buried in the Ocean's mud/sand or any body of water. Ladies who are childless often go to the Sea and worship it as Ganga Ma. Many get their wishes and after the baby is born, the Mother and other ladies in the family then would go to the same Seaside and give thanks to Ganga Ma.The Baby's head is shaved. The hair is placed in a Loi. This is a ball made of flour dough which is flattened then the hair is placed inside, the ball is rolled up with the hair hidden inside. This Loi is then buried in the floor of the Sea or Ocean. The Mother and Baby take a bath in the waters and then do puja to Ganga Ma. Lapsi and Puri are the Parsad(offering) that is given to the Devi for the Mundan (Mooran) Ceremony.

Lapsi is white in colour and there is another form of Halva that is dark. Lapsi is "white" Halva.The dark Halva is made and offered on the 9th day ( 9 day ceremony) after the birth of a Hindu baby. This will be posted as another recipe . It us a little more complicated than the White Lapsi.

Lapsi means Porridge. It certainly has the consistency of Porridge. In its orginal form and even today, it is made from Dalia or broken wheat in India. As with all of the dishes made from wheat, our ancestors had to adjust when they came to the West. They had to substitute all of their dishes that used "whole wheat flour/atta" to using maida or all purpose white flour as only the latter was available in the "New World."

"lapsi is cooked with the flour of any grain boiled in milk and eaten with sugar..When it is made with salt instead of sugar, it is called ghattha."
Traditional food of Bihar - Bihargatha (google.com)

This lapsi recipe will yeild about 2 teacups of Lapsi. It can be used for about 25 small puris. Please make it before you make it as prasad just to get a good average. It can be made, eaten and served any other time too and not only for Nav Ratri or Devi puja.

Ingredients:

3 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/2 cups brown sugar ( any sugar can work)

4 cups millk ( I used Half and Half. Evaporated(Carnation) milk can be used)

4 tablespoons ghee

Method:

1. Mix flour, sugar together in a deep bowl or basin.

2. Add milk and stir thouroghly to incoperate using a whisk. It should be runny but not watery.

3. Strain this into another bowl. This is to ensure that there are no lumps and thus you will get a smooth lapsi.

4. Heat the ghee in a karahi or deep and heavy bottom pot.

5. When the ghee is almost hot, turn down the flame to low.

6. Now pour the liquid into the heated ghee, stirring vigourously but carefully so as not to spill. Using a whisk works better at prevent lumps from forming,The liquid can stick to the bottom and burn quite fast.

6. Keep on stirring and making sure that you scrape the bottom and side of the karahi.

7. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes on low heat as you need to cook the flour or else it will literally have the raw flour taste in the lapsi.

8. It will become jelly like and now be harder to stir,

9. Remove from the flame at this time. If you just turn off the stove and leave the karahi on the burner,it will still continue to cook and become lumpy.

10. Keep on stirring to make the lapsi smooth and creamy.

11. Pour the lapsi into a bowl and cover with a towel . Please do not cover it tightly if using any other covering as it will sweat and the water can run down onto the lapsi and spoil it.

It is always better to make the Puris first then make the Laspi. The Puris can sit and wait while Lapsi can get lumpy or loose it's nice creamy texture.

Your Lapsi is ready.

Enjoy.

Karaila

2020-05-31T19:12:00.005-07:00

Karaila is called Karaili in Trinidad. It is also known in the West as Bitter Melon.
Karaila came from India with our ancestors and there are two kinds in Guyana. One is light coloured and the other dark. There is also a smaller varity called Ban Karaila. These are very tiny versions of Karaila.

In New York City, two different varieties are available. The Indian one which is bumpy on the outside and another which is smooth. The latter is not as bitter as the Indian ones.
Many plant the seeds of the Indian Karaila and it grows and bears very well in the Summer months.
The following photos are taken in a backyard garden in Queens, New York City.

Karaila is a vegetable that we grew up with and so the bitter taste is one that we are accustomed to. I say this because several of our Western friends could not handle the bitterness. When we were children, most f us hated the bitter taste too and I can remember many Mothers used to add salt to the karaila after chopping them and let it sit for a while. The salt brings out the natural water in the vegetable and so they would squeeze out this water. This they say will make it less bitter. These days, no one does this anymore. Karaila is used to help people with diabetes. So no one wants to throw away the bitternes any more.

Karaila is cooked traditionally in two ways....Kalonji, which is stuffed Karaila and curried with mango and coconut milk/ And fried Karaila, which is basically stir fried Karaila. This is eaten with rotis alone or with dal too. When eaten with rice, it is served mostly with dal. Those who eat non-veg, would add dried fish or shrimp when they make their Karaila. The art in making fried Karaila is to make it as crispy as possible without burning the vegetable. To achieve this, some would spread the chopped vegetable out in hot Sun and this dries it out. This is also done with Ochroes.

This is recipe is for one person. It is such a simple dish that is easy to adjust for more quantity. One point to note, if you desire crispy Karaila, you need to be generous with the oil. If the Karaila sticks to the bottom of your Karahi/pot, then add some more oil. Some would drain out the oil after cooking the Karaila. The oil is usually very delicious to eat with rotis, though.

Ingredients:

1. 6 medium Karaila

2. 1 small onion, choppped.

3. 1 peg of garlic, chopped

4. 1 small pepper ( to your taste)

5. 4 tablespoons oil( more if the vegetable sticks to the pot bottom)

Salt to taste.

Method:

!. Wash and dry the Karaila.

2. Cut off and discard the stems and bottom.

3. Slit open and extract the seeds.

4. Chop the vegetable.

5.Add the oil to a hot karahi or non stick heavy bottom pot/pan. Add the chopped onions, garlic and pepper.

5. Stir fry the onions. garlic and pepper for a minute.

6. Add the Karaila. Stir to incorporate thoroughly.

7.Cook on medium to low flame so that it will cook and not burn,

8. You do not need to stir constantly, just keep and eye and stir when you see it starting to brown on one side. The stirring allows all the vegetables to brown evenly. If the vegetables are sticking to the bottom, make a hole in the middle and pour a little more oil in the center. You can do this again if it sticks again.

9. Add salt to your taste, when it starts to get brown.

10. I took it off the flames at this point. To get crispier Karaila, continue cooking but keep an eye on it and keep stirring as it can burn very easily at this point.

Enjoy your fried Karaila....

2018-09-05T13:25:00.002-07:00

Namaste, Pranaam, Greetings all.

I have been away from my Blog for quite some time now. It's not that I have stop cooking, making our traditional foods or anything like that; it was more of a personal situation.

My intention is to continue my compilation of recipes and also to revise the ones that I have already. When I started posting the recipes, I forgot to put how much each recipe yielded. I plan to remake all of these recipes and I hope that you will bear with me. There are so many recipes that still needs to be documented and kept for future generations.

One of the things that I have noticed, is that some people are stuck in their thinking and cannot see when or how something can be incorrect. The one important fact, that all of us needs to remember, is that our ancestors were not wealthy and that there was a great lack of ingredients, that were not available when they came to Guyana. Even up to the 1980's, there was the banning of many food items necessary to the Indian/Hindu kitchen. People during that time had to substitute so many of the ingredients needed and many are still stuck in that mindset.

Prasad/Parsad/Mohan bhog is a great case in point...... people used to make it with sugar water (some call it paag). That was because people could not afford to make it with milk alone. The situation is that some people now argue that Prasad has to be made with sugar water and they do not seem to comprehend that this was just a situational adaption.

Even to making curries....many people feel that the way to cook curry is to make a paste and then cook this in oil (chunke this curry paste first). Curry powder was not really used in the early days and also garam masala powder. Almost all the ladies would make their own masala fresh, using a sil and lorha/masala brick. A piece of dried haldi/turmeric, some cloves, a piece of dalchini/stick spice, coriander/dania seeds, methi seeds, sarson/til; were all pounded tougther with a little bit of water and made into a smooth paste. This was then fried in hot oil/chunke, before the other main ingredients were added. The reason why this is done is simply because the frying in the hot oil brings out and awaken all the natural oils in all the spices. The yellow in the curry is as a result of the whole dried pieces of haldi/turmeric.

Curry powder as it is today; has really ground rice as the bulk and turmeric and other masalas are added as flavoring. I suggest you read the ingredients on the package if you do not believe. Some people do not use ground masala in their curries too and use only curry powder. The other point is that the masalas are roasted already before they are grounded by the manufacturers so there is no need for further extra frying in hot oil. What you will get when you do this is a bitter flavor in your curries.

So people cooking now, have to clear their minds and remember the circumstances of our ancestors and appreciate how adaptable they were. I learnt to cook Guyanese food from my Father and Maheshwar/Junior, our youngest brother. They taught me to think and study our foods and the way we prepare them. Both have perfected the traditional dishes and while retaining their purity, have expanded on of the method of executing the recipes.

Anyway, this is just some thoughts that I wanted to share. And I hope that when someone says that dal is not spelt as DHAL as its not written like the latter in the Devanagari script...that you will not say that well...that is how I heard it all my life. Or that Gurmba is gurma; etc etc. No one knows everything and all of us will continue to learn until we breathe our last breath.

2016-07-30T18:35:00.003-07:00

Gulgula Recipe.

(This recipe is Copyrighted and owned by Nanda Sahadeo. Anyone reposting it on their site without permission from Nanda Sahadeo is committing an infringement.)

Gulgula is another sweet that came across the Kala Pani (Black water/Ocean), with our ancestors.

I was researching its origins and found that while it is popular throughout India, it is traditionally from Orrisa, U.P and Goa.

This is my Mom's recipe. As a child, she remembers her Mother, my Nani making large batches of this for Holi/Phagwah to serve when Nana and his brothers and other relatives sang Chowtaal. Chowtaal is a group singing done only for Holi. There are two groups that sing. They sit opposite each other and its a friendly kind of competition. One side leads in the first set of singing then they switch. The singers also "clap" jhanj/jaal/brass cymbals as they sing. The dholak player is most important as this sets the tempo for the singing. It starts slow and then the speed is doubled then doubled again. The beat played is 12 beats,hence the name Chautaal which literally means 12 beats. It is quite vigourous singing and by the time they are done, the singers are quite hungry.

Mom also makes this sweet for Sri Ram Navmi, the appearance day of Sri Ram.

Mom makes hers without bananas. I grew up eating only hers and they are quite delicious. She makes them really soft on the insides, crunchy on the outsides, yet they are spongy at the same time. Many calls Gulgula, the Indian donut and this is an almost true description. It can also be served the same way as donuts, sprinkled with powdered sugar or dipped in chocolate or icing sugar frosting.

Many people add bananas to their batter and have seen some in India using even pumpkin. Mom's recipe has yeast while many from Guyana and Trinidad do not add this. Yeast gives it the spongy texture and a little bit of sourness. The Indian recipes have dahi/yoghurt instead.

Adding bananas, apparently, was done to "stretch" the batter. In the time of our Ancestors, things were hard to come by and they had to make the most of whatever they had. I never made it with bananas and never even had them. Today , I added 1/2 of a banana to 1/4 of my batter. The only difference I found was in the texture of the gulgulas. The bananas made them more dense and less spongy inside. My choice is the one without bananas but its up to ones taste.

Instead of using just all purpose white flour, you can mix it with one cup whole wheat and one cup all purpose flour. It will be less fluffy but not too much of a difference in taste. The amount of sugar can be adjusted to lesser or more depending on your taste too. I use Demerara brown sugar but you can use granulated/white sugar. The sweetness depends totally on your choice. I do not like mine overtly sweet hence the amount used below.

Ingredients:

Step One....

1 teaspoon active dry yeast

1 tablespoon sugar for yeast

1/4 cup water that is just slightly warm.

Step Two:

2 cups all purpose flour

1/8 teaspoons nutmeg

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup warm milk

1/4 cup warm water

1/4 cup dried fruits

Oil for deep frying.

Method:

1. Add the yeast and 1 tablespoon sugar in a cup and stir to incorporate.

2. Add 1/4 cup warm water to the yeast mixture and stir until fully incorporated.

3. Set aside in a warm place to rise.

4. Place the flour, baking powder, nutmeg, and sugar in a deep bowl.

5.Add dried fruits then stir with a fork or mix with fingers to full incorporate.

6. Add the yeast mixture and mix again.

7. Add first the milk and mix.

8. The add the water.

The batter must be like a thick pancake batter and not runny. It must plop down from the spoon. If it is too runny, it won't hold its round shape when you fry it.

9. Stir/beat the batter for 2 mins, Mom says this makes it fluffy. Then cover the bowl with cling wrap and set it aside in a warm place to rise for 1 hour.

10. Heat cooking oil in a deep frying pan or a kahari. ( I used a karahi made in Guyana). The oil must be hot but not smoking, drop a little bit of the batter into the oil and if it sinks then floats right back up, the oil is ready.

( Just in case you are wondering....Mom made ghee in the karahi today and I took the same karahi and fried my Gulgula today. The brown spots on the karahi is the sediments that got stuck there. And the colour of the ghee changed and got brown when I added the cooking oil. It did not alter the taste of my Gulgulas at all.)

11 Turn down the flame to medium as you need for the gulgula to cook through..Stir/beat the batter for a minute and then drop by teaspoonful into the hot oil.

It will look elongated but eventually it comes out round shaped.

12. If you can drop the batter by hand ( like when making pholouri), scoop a handful of the batter in your hands and then drop a little bit at a time into the hot oil.

13. As soon as they float up, keep turning them. This is to make sure that they brown evenly. One of the most annoying thing when deep frying is that many times they only brown on one side.

14. When the balls are a nice light brown, drain and remove from oil.

For the Banana Gulgula....I used 1/2 of a ripe banana to quarter of the batterI used above.

Smash it into the batter and mix/beat well.

Follow from Step 10 above.....

They come out just the same except the texture inside is a bit different.....

The banana gulgula is in the foreground and the plain ones in the back. You can see the difference in the texture....

Best served hot. Enjoy your Gulgula.

Allu balls.

2016-06-30T16:35:00.001-07:00

Allu is the Hindi word for potato. It's a version of Allu bonda. Like many of the Indian dishes in Guyana, this too was adjusted or made with what was available to our ancestors.. The batter for example is made with ground split pea powder and not chick pea flour as the latter was not available. If you use chick pea flower, there is not difference in taste or texture.

Potato balls are less spicy too as we do not really add any Indian spices in the filling except maybe jeera in some cases. Spices are in the batter however but its not to really overpower the potato filling.

This is an extremely easy snack/appetizer, very inexpensive too. It is one of the foods that we serve when they have religious functions/weddings.

To make 20 golf ball sized potato balls..

4 medium sized Irish potatoes(about 2 lbs), peeled, cubed and boiled in salted water.

Do not over boil to mush...stick a knife through the potato and once it goes through,remove from heat, drain and smash.

Add 2 tablespoons grated onions,1 teaspoon grated garlic,1 tablespoon finely chopped hot pepper( or to suit your taste). 1 table spoon lemon juice. Salt to taste. Combine completed and make into small golf sized balls.

Do not squash the balls as you make them. Gently smooth them into shape between the palms of your hands.

Batter:

If you have left over batter, it stays good in the fridge for up to a week when kept in a ziplock bag. This is the exact batter that is used to make baigani/eggplant fritters and with some adjustments, it also can make pholouri/pakoras. I will be putting up the other recipes shortly.

3 cups all purpose flour
1 cup ground dal/chick pea flour or besan
1/2 teaspoons ground turmeric
1 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon yeast
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt( to taste)
2 1/2 cups room temperature water.

Place all the dry ingredients into a deep bowl. Mix to incorporate.

Mix together all ingredients with enough water to make a thick batter( it should not be runny or else it will not stay on the potato balls).

It must have some sort of elasticity or sling as it is called locally.

Heat oil in deep frying pan....there should be enough oil to always cover the balls.
Then place a few of the potato balls into the batter and cover them completely.
You must never over crowd the bowl as these balls will easily disintegrate.

Then one by one take them out of the batter and put carefully into the hot oil.

Just put enough into the pan that will allow you space to turn them over. Do not overcrowd the pan.

Deep fry.

Fry first on one side then flip onto the other side. Allow to get to a light brown colour then remove at once and drain on paper towels.

Your potato/all balls are ready.
Best served hot with pickle/achhar of your choice...Enjoy!

Baigani and mango sour recipe to follow soon.....

Dal

2015-08-25T21:39:00.001-07:00

DAL RECIPE

(This recipe is Copyrighted and owned by Nanda Sahadeo. Anyone reposting it on their site without permission from Nanda Sahadeo is committing an infringement.)

This is another dish that came along with our ancestors from India. Dal as we know it in Guyana is yellow split peas soup but the word Dal is basically the lentil/ pulse. There are many varieties in India. However, when the Indians went to Guyana, only yellow split peas were available so today only this variety of peas are still used to make dal in our community.
It is very easy to prepare and is hearty and extremely tasty....

Ingredients:

2 cups yellow split peas
8 cups water
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 cup onions chopped
1 small fresh pepper( to suit your taste)
1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
salt to taste

Method:
1. Put 6 cups water to heat in deep pot.
2. Wash split peas and add to pot. Stir.

3. When it begins to boil, add turmeric, onions and pepper. ( you can also add chopped spinach, chopped scallions, whole ochroes and saijan)
4. Allow to boil on medium flame until it starts to get soft. Add 1 cup hot water.

5. Using a dal ghutni,,shown in photo or immersion blender, pulverise the dal until it is a thick smooth soup.

(My brother Mindra is ghotaying dal while we were cooking at the temple in Soho.)

6. Add ground cumin.
7. In a separate small pan, heat 2 teaspoons of oil.

Add 2 flakes of chopped garlic and the whole cumin seeds. When golden brown, pour into dal

8. Add salt to suit your taste...I put 3 teaspoons in mine. If it is too thick to suit your taste..add another cup of hot water and allow to boil 5 more minutes.

Your dal is ready...serve hot.

Guyanese Kitchri

2012-10-31T17:46:00.001-07:00

Kitchri/Kitchree Recipe

(This recipe is Copyrighted and owned by Nanda Sahadeo. Anyone reposting it on their site without permission from Nanda Sahadeo is committing an infringement.)

Kitchri comes from the Sanskrit work khiccaa--a dish made of lentils and rice. There are variations to its pronunciation too: Kitchdi/kitchari. It is one of the most ancient dishes of India. Our Ancestors was fond of cooking this as it was easy to prepare, hearty and inexpensive too.It is a still a very popular dish in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar...the places where most of our Ancestors are from.

At Hindu weddings in Guyana, the groom is given Kitchri when he sits down to eat after the ceremony is over.

In India, different dal/pulse/lentils are used. In Guyana, as only yellow split peas were available to the Indian Immigrants, this was adopted.Today only this dal is used in the preparation of Kitchri for Guyanese.

You can try out the different dals if you are adventurous. However, if it is one of those dals that cook quickly, add the dal afterwards and not before the rice. Have used parboiled long grain rice in this recipe.

You can use any rice of your choice, just be careful with the cooking time. If it is one of those fast cooking rice like Basmati and you are using yellow split peas, you will need to wait until the dal is almost cooked as in this recipe. If you are using Indian dals like mung or masoor dal, you can add both dal and rice at the same time.

Ghee/clarified butter is an absolute necessity in this dish. Phal ka ghee that is available in Guyanese and Trinidadian groceries...is not Ghee...it is vegetable shortening. Ghee is that which is made from Cow's milk/butter. Phal literally mean fruit and ghee cannot be made from fruits so please be aware of this.

In Ayurveda, eating Kirchri is one way of giving our body a rest and allowing it to self cleanse. For this purpose, one can omit the onions and garlic. If you are just making Kitchri to eat regularly, you can add fresh whole pepper when you add the haldi at the beginning.

This is an ideal dish to make when you are bush-cooking, cooking outdoors/picnicking. It goes well with a side of pakoras/pholourie/baigani. Fresh mango chatney also goes very nicely with this. And of course with a fresh garden salad.

Ingredients:

2 cups long grain parboiled rice
3/4 cup split peas/dal
1 cup grated coconut
1 cup onions chopped coarsely
1 teaspoon ground jeera/cumin
1 teaspoon ground haldi/tumeric
5 flakes garlic...2 chopped coarsely, 3 sliced
1 tablespoon ghee
1 tablespoon whole jeera/cumin
5-6 cups water

Method:

1. Add the grated coconut to the water, stir it around with your hands, then squeeze the coconut out.
2. Strain this coconut milk into a deep saucepot and put it to boil on a high flame.

3. Wash the dal and drain the water off.
4. Add the dal to the coconut milk when it starts to boil then turn down the heat to a low flame.
5. Stir completely to prevent the dal from sticking to the bottom of the pot...it can clump up and burn quickly.
6. Add the ground haldi, cover and allow to boil.

7. When the dal is half cooked....

8.Add the rice, stir to incorporate completely.
8. Add salt to taste.
9.Add the coarsely chopped onions and garlic, cover and allow to cook again.

10. When both rice and dal are almost cooked, add the ground jeera.

11. Heat the ghee in a shallow pan and when it is hot, add the whole jeera.

12. When it starts to crackle, add the sliced garlic.
13. Allow to fry until golden brown.
14. Now add this ghee/garlic/jeera mixture to the pot of rice and dal.

15. Your Kitchri is ready to eat. Enjoy...

Soft Mithai/Kurma

2012-10-29T17:14:00.007-07:00

Laktho is a traditional sweet/mithai from Bihar that came with our Ancestors.
I mentioned before with my Mithai/Lakthoe recipe that Mithai literally means Sweet. All Indian sweetmeats are called Mithai. The recipe here is for the soft version of Mithai/Lakhto. Long ago, Muslims generally used to make this and they added eggs to their recipe. These days, Hindus too make these for their Maticore minus the eggs. It is very easy and faster to prepare which may be another reason why Hindus make them now when they have to make large quantities as is done for the Maticore ceremony.

For those using eggs, you can use it instead of whole milk but I have no idea how it will come out--just experiment and see what happens.

Ingredients:

4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 oz butter, softened/room temperature
1 cup grated coconut
3 Tablespoons condensed milk
1/2 cup whole milk (approximately)
10 elachis/cardamon ground
Oil for frying

For Syrup:
2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup water

Method:

1.Mix flour and baking powder together.
2. Add the softened butter and incorporate with your fingertips until the mixture looks like coarse meal.
3.Add the coconut and elachi and incorporate completely.
4. Add the condensed milk and mix thoroughly.
5. Now add the milk a little at a time until it becomes a soft but firm dough.

3.Cover with a damp kitchen towel and allow to rest for 15 minutes.

4. Cut dough into two balls.

5. Roll out one of the balls on a lightly floured board/counter to about 1/3 inch thickness.

6. Cut into 1 inch strips with a sharp knife.

7. Now cut each strip into diamond shaped pieces

8.Heat oil in a pan. When oil is hot but not smoking, add the pieces one at a time. Be very careful as these are very easy to fall apart.
9.Deep fry on medium flame until golden brown on one side then gently turn each piece over and allow to fry again until golden brown.

9. Remove and drain on paper towels.
10.Do the same with the rest of the dough until all is fried.

Now make the syrup:

11. Put the water and sugar into a saucepan and put to boil on a high flame.
12.Stir often as it boils, with a wooden spoon.
13.As it starts to thicken--like honey, dip a spoonful and watch how it flows off of it. Drop some into a glass of water and if it retains it soft ball shape--it is ready.
14. Remove from the heat. You need to be quick now.
15. Now add the syrup a little at a time to the mithai pieces and stir carefully to coat each piece.
16. It will look sticky and you need to turn it over and over for it to dry...just be very gentle and these are very delicate pieces of mithai.

17. When it is dried, the pieces will no longer clump together.
18. Your Mithai is ready to serve/eat. Enjoy.

Gopie's Eddoes and Baigan Curry...

2012-09-26T21:04:00.002-07:00

Eddoes and Baigan Curry

(This recipe is Copyrighted and owned by Nanda Sahadeo. Anyone reposting it on their site without permission from Nanda Sahadeo is committing an infringement.)

Eddoe is Taro Root. It is versatile and once upon a time when Irish Potatoes were banned from Guyana, it was used to substitute the latter in many of our dishes. Unlike Potatoes, Eddoes have a distinct flavor and are heavier in texture when boiled. Eddoes can sometimes be problematic as some does not boil/cook properly no matter how long you cook/boil them. At home in Guyana,when we get "boiling" eddoes from a particular seller, you will go back and buy from that person always. "Boiling" eddoes mean that they will cook through and not remain raw. Eddoes also can scratch your hands when you peel it. In Guyana, we get one variety of Eddoes, however, I have noticed several varieties in New York City.

I first saw this style of cooking Eddoes and Baigan curry, while we were helping to cook for The Mahadeo's 25th Wedding Anniversary in Barbados, 2005. Then later again at the puja of Amrita Singh from our Mandir in Triumph Village, on the East Coast of Demerara in Guyana. Her husband, Gopie Singh, made it and we loved it.The gravy is nice and thick--it goes really well with hot Sada or Paratha rotis.

Eddoes and Baigan curry is often cooked when Hindus have religious ceremonies and weddings--it is one of the 7 kinds of dishes that we serve.

Ingredients:

2 lbs eggplant/baigan chopped into cubes
2 lbs eddoes cubed
2 cups chopped onions
5 flakes garlic minced
4 tablespoons curry powder
2 teaspoons garam masala
2 teaspoons ground jeera/cumin
6 cups hot water
4 teaspoons oil
Salt to taste
Minced hot pepper to taste or it can be omitted and eaten with pepper sauce.

Method:

1.Heat the oil in a heavy bottom, deep pot or a karahi on medium hot flame.

2.Add chopped onions and saute until transparent.

3. Add garlic and saute for a minute.

4. Add chopped baigan and stirred until properly coated.

5. Add 2 teaspoons salt. Stir to ensure it is properly incorporated.

6.Add the curry powder, stir until it coats the vegetable and allow to fry for 2 minutes.

7. Add the garam masala, stir until it all of the vegetables are coated.

8.Add the chopped tomatoes, stir completely then cover the pot.

9. When the masala starts to stick to the bottom, add 4 cups of hot water.

10. Allow to cook until the vegetables are soft and mushy.

11. We need the baigan to be as mushy as possible. So using whatever is available-- a dal ghotni,

Dal Ghotni

immersion blender or potato masher, mash/blend until the gravy is extremely thick.

12. Now add the chopped eddoes to the pot and stir until completely incorporated.

13. Add the remaining 2 cups of boiling water. If using fresh hot peppers, add them at this stage.

14.As soon as the gravy starts to bubble, lower the heat to a low flame and cover the pot again.
15. Allow to cook until the eddoes are completely boiled through. Test by cutting one of the pieces with your spoon--if it runs through smoothly--it is cooked.

16. If it is not completely cooked through, add about 1/2 cup of boiling water and allow to cook again.
17. Keep testing every 10 minutes and as soon as the eddoes are cooked through, add the ground jeera.
18. Taste and add salt to suit your taste then allow to simmer for 2 minutes more.

19.Remove from heat.

Eddoe and baigan curry is especially delicious when eaten hot with rotis.

Laktho or Crunchy Mithai Recipe.

2012-09-04T22:09:00.034-07:00

Laktho/ Mithai Recipe

(This recipe is Copyrighted and owned by Nanda Sahadeo. Anyone reposting it on their site without permission from Nanda Sahadeo is committing an infringement.)

Lakhto is a traditional Sweet or Mithai from Bihar that came with our Ancestors. It is called Kurma in Trinidad. This sweet is made when we have Maticore/Dye night ceremonies before Hindu weddings. This recipe is for the crunchy Laktho. There is another kind of Laktho --a softer kind that used to be made for Muslim weddings. Today, Hindus also make the softer variety.

This is the crunchy Mithai's recipe. It is requires just a few ingredients which makes it ideal for weddings where you have to prepare everything in huge quantities. At most Hindu weddings, it a free for all and anyone can attend. Food is prepared in abundance. The Mithai that is made for the Maticore ceremony, is offered as Prasad to Mother Earth/Dharti Ma--when the Mothers of the Bride and Groom perform Puja to Her. Mithai is also made and sent to the Groom's home from the Bride's home and the Groom also brings some from his home to the Bride's. My Mom says that when she was a child in Essequibo, the ladies would take the Mithai dough and make some in the shape of humans and then send them to the other side(bride or groom).

Making Lakhto for the Maticore is the starting of the Wedding food preparation and it is such great fun for the kids especially. Can remember when our elder cousins got married and the ladies were making the Mithai. They had to constantly shoo us away as we could not eat the Mithai before it was offered as Prasad much later in the evening. The delicious smell of all the different preparations assaulting our delicate nostrils was such a test to our restraints.

Have not used any flavourings at all in this recipe but you are free to add any of your choice. Ground Cinamon, or Elaichi/Cardamon and Nutmeg can be added to the dry ingredients or to the syrup. In Trinidad, grated ginger is added to the syrup.

Latho is one of those things that once you start eating, it is contagious--you simply cannot stop.....

Ingredients:

For Dough:
3 cups all purpose flour
1 level teaspoon baking powder
1 cup water
Oil for deep-frying.

For Syrup:
2 cups brown sugar
1/2 teacup water

Method:

1. Add all the dry ingredients into a deep bowl. Mix well to fully incorporate all the ingredients.

2. Add the water a little at a time. We want a soft but firm dough---not sticky at all.

3. Knead with about 50 strokes then place in a bowl and cover with a tea towel.

4. Allow sit for 15 minutes.

5. Turn out onto a floured board and cut into 5 pieces.

6. Taking one of the dough balls, roll it out to about 1/8'' thickness---like when making paratha rotis.

7. Using a sharp knife, score lines through the dough horizontally.

8. You need a cutting board or chouki for the next step:

9. Thoroughly flour the board or else the dough pieces will get stuck on it.

10. Taking up one of the dough strips, place it on the cutting board and start cutting off into thin strips.

11. Make sure that all the pieces stay onto the board--this makes it easier to move them to the frying pan.

12. Heat oil in a deep-frying pan on medium heat.

13. As soon as the oil is hot, take the cutting board with the laktho strips and using your knife, push them off the board and into the oil. Be very careful so as not to burn yourself.

14. Using the same knife, poke it into the frying pan and shift the dough around to loosen the pieces. Using a knife is most effective as the dough pieces do not stick to it.

15. Stir as it cooks to ensure that its evenly cooked. Allow to fry until golden brown.

16. Remove the fried pieces and drain on paper towel.

17.Do the same process from No.6 until all the dough has been cut, fried and drained.

18. To make the Syrup: Place the sugar and water in a deep saucepan and put to boil on high flame.

19. Stir the liquid often as it boils with a wooden spoon.

20. As it starts to thicken, dip a spoonful up and watch how it flows off the side of the spoon--it must be like thick honey consistency--soft ball stage. Drop some into a glass of water and it should retain its soft ball shape. Turn off the heat and remove from the stove.

21. You need to work fast now. Pour all the fried Mithai pieces into the pan with the syrup. Start stirring immediately. As you tumble up the pieces, the syrup will start to dry out and coat each laktho.

22. Continue tumbling the pieces until the sugar has crystalised and stuck onto the mithai.

23. Your crunchy Lakhto is ready to eat... Enjoy.

This is what it looks like when White Sugar is used instead of Brown Sugar in the syrup. My Brother says that the Brown Sugar Lakhto tastes much better than the White Sugar Lakhto!

Sada Roti

2012-08-28T16:01:00.011-07:00

Sada Roti Recipe

(This recipe is Copyrighted and owned by Nanda Sahadeo. Anyone reposting it on their site without permission from Nanda Sahadeo is committing an infringement.)

Sada Roti is another very traditional staple brought from U.P/ Bihar. It can also be called Tandoori Roti. As Tandoor ovens were not available, the Immigrants made their own Chula/Firesides from mud and goobar/cow dung and cooked on these.My Nana had a 3--" burner" Chula at his kitchen in Essequibo, that was even fitted with a chimney that took the smoke outdoors. Later, people started making their chulas with concrete blocks but still covered/daubed the outer part with the mud/cow dung mixture used in the Villages. This makes it look brand new again--this process is called Potna.

When cooking Sada rotis, some people, after rolling out the loi/dough ball, stick the uncooked roti onto the wall of the chula. The flour dough adhears to the smooth mud surface very fast and as soon as it is cooked, it loosens and falls down. It is then further cooked by bracing it on the sides of the chula. Most people cook their Sada roti on a hot tawa first. Then Sake/toast on an open flame. This makes the Roti "swell up." It also gives it a slightly charred outer layer.

Sada roti can be made even more healthy by using whole wheat and other whole grain flours. You need to experiment with whatever flour/s you are using, to get the perfect texture and taste. Sada roti is favoured by most who are watching their fat intake as it does not need any oil/ghee whatsoever, even though its texture is very soft and fluffy inside.

Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 Tablespoons baking powder
1 Teaspoon dry yeast
1 cup warm water.

Method:

1. Place the flour into a deep bowl.
2. Add the baking flour and incorporate throughly.
3. Add the yeast and again incorperate throughly.
4. Add water, a little at a time while mixing--you need not use the entire amount of liquid. The dough must be firm but not tough.
5.Cover with a damp tea-towel and allow to rest for at least 1/2 an hour or until it has doubled in size.

6. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and knead for about 2 minutes.

7. Roll out into an elongated shape...

7. Then cut off into balls the size of a tennis ball.

8. Holding a ball of dough ( loi) between both hands, roll and tuck in underneath to make it smooth and round.

9. Roll out the roti to your desired shape.

10. Heat tawa on medium flame. Place roti on the hot tawa. Mum likes to use the heavy iron grill that came with the stove. You can cook more than one rotis at a time.

11. Flip over to the other side as soon as it starts to get small bubbles/looks kind of dried out....

12. Allow to cook on each side on medium flame until it starts to puff up/swell.

13. With thongs/ chimta----remove from tawa and place on open flame.

14. You have to be fast here or else the roti will burn. Just allow to roast on each side until it is as brown/blackened to your taste. This method is called--Sake !!

!5. Remove from heat and serve at once. If keeping to serve later, wrap in a tea towel and keep in oven/warm place.

Sada is good with anything but is especially eaten with Chokas--Baigan, Tomatoes; or with fried baigan and potatoes....Enjoy!!

Baigan/Egg-plant Chokha

2012-07-10T19:52:00.002-07:00

Baigan Chokha Recipe

(This recipe is Copyrighted and owned by Nanda Sahadeo. Anyone reposting it on their site without permission from Nanda Sahadeo is committing an infringement.)

Egg plant is called Balanje or Baigan in Guyana. I so not know how we end up with the word balanje, however baigan is Hindi. Trinidadians calls it Melonge.

Chokha is another traditional style of cooking brought by our Ancestors from the Uttar Pradesh/Bihar area. Chokhas are basically roasted vegetables that are mashed then seasoned. It is a very easy and healthy way of serving vegetables. Extra virgin olive oil can be used but it can over power the taste of the vegetable. I prefer to use Coconut oil but any cooking oil can be used.

The vegetables can be roasted on an out door grill or just your indoor stove. The best way is using the traditional Chula (wood fireside).The taste is so delicious when cooked this way. Roasting the vegetables on your stove can be very messy so wrapping the vegetable in good/strong aluminum foil will save you a lot of cleaning up afterwards.

Ingredients:

2 large baigans
4 pegs garlic
1 small onion, chopped finely
2 Tablespoons shallot/scallions/chive
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh pepper
2 Tablespoons cooking oil
Salt to taste.

Method:

1. Wash and dry the baigan.
2. With a sharp knife, make some deep slits on the sides.

3. Stuff the garlic into the slits.

4. If you are covering the baigan, wrap them in foil then place on the open flame.

5. If not wrapping, place the baigan on open flame.

6. Using tongs/chimta, keep turning the vegetable to ensure that it is cooked all over.
7. Roast until cooked thoroughly. You will know when it is cooked when roasting it unwrapped as the skin collapses. If it is wrapped, poke it and if it feels soft, it is done. If it is still firm, let the baigan continue to cook.
8. When cooked, remove from flame and place on your cutting board. Be very careful as the steam trapped inside the vegetable can burn you.

8. Take a sharp knife and slit the skin open. Carefully scrape off the skin and discard it.

9. Using a spoon, carefully scoop out the pulp and place it into a bowl.
10. Repeat the same process with both baigan.
11. Now, add all the other ingredients.

12. Mix thoroughly.

13. Serve at once as it tastes better hot.

Berbican Bara

2012-05-10T18:05:00.001-07:00

Berbican Bara Recipe

(This recipe is Copyrighted and owned by Nanda Sahadeo. Anyone reposting it on their site without permission from Nanda Sahadeo is committing an infringement.)

Bara is basically a fritter/pakora made from ground dal/split peas and flour. Guyanese use mostly split peas to make all of their pakoras. A pakora is a deep fried fritter made from besan/gram flour or in the case of Guyanese/Trinidadian cooking--ground split peas. Some say that a pakora is a pholourie. However pholourie is the split peas batter alone while a pakora also include various vegetables. In these parts, we also add bhaji/spinach to the batter which then makes it a form of pakora but pholourie is made minus vegetables. There is eggplant/baigan/balanje that is dipped in the pholourie batter and then fried but then it is called baigani.

This style of Bara was made mostly by Berbicians.* These day, almost everyone makes them as they are very easy. This style is very popular at Maticore/dye nights and other ceremonies where large quantities of food/snacks are needed. The other styles of Bara recipes will be posted later.

Aunty Baba is an Ace Bara maker and taught me how to make this style of Bara recently in New York City--yes, I learnt to make Berbican Bara in New York!! Aunty Baba is from Tain, Berbice and moved to New York City decades ago. She is showing my Mom how to make the Baras in a photograph below. Thank you so much Aunty Baba.

Ingredients:

3 cups all purpose flour

1 cup fresh ground dal

2 teaspoon baking powder

2 teaspoon yeast

2 teaspoon salt/or to taste

1 teaspoon ground jeera/cumin

1/2 teaspoon haldi/dye powder

2 cloves minced garlic

1/4 cup minced onions

pepper to taste

2 teacups water

Oil for frying.

Method:1. Mix all the ingredients together in a deep bowl. The mixture must be sticky but not runny.

2. Cover with cling wrap or a damp towel and allow to rest for 1 hour. Check the batter after and 1 hour, it must be stretchy when pulled.

3. Heat oil.

4. Keep a small bowl with water nearby as you will need to constantly dampen your hands in order to stretch the batter before frying.

5. Wet hands then pull off a small piece of the batter. Pull it with your hands to stretch it into a flatish shape.

6. Carefully drop it into the oil. Continue doing this until there is enough in the pan.

7. Allow to fry on one side until it is golden brown the flip and allow to cook on the other side.

Do not over cook as it will become saturated with oil.

8. Remove the cooked bara from the pan when both sides are golden light brown and drain on paper towels.

Serve hot with any chutney of your choice.

*Berbice is the eastern most Region/State of Guyana that borders Suriname.

Metemjee--hearty Guyanese soup.....

2011-09-06T17:25:00.000-07:00

Metemjee/Metem is a traditional Guyanese dish. However,everyone has adjusted it to suit their palate and taste. It is basically a thick soup with ground provisions in a coconut milk broth.

Originally, it has meat and as Vegetarians, naturally we made it to suit our taste. My Dad loved to cook Metem and it was always in demand especially when we went picnicking either at Hope Beach, our farm at Ruby or on one of our boat trips. It is a one pot dish and once everything is prepared, it can be placed into the pot and taken along when you are going on a picnic. Mom and Dad made all the preparations at home and all that had to be done was to get a fire going if it was on land or put it on the stove when it was on the boat.

We use only freshly grated coconut milk always as it is readily available in these parts, however, one can use the shredded coconut that you can find in the frozen section of any supermarket especially the Indian, West Indian and Spanish ones.

The ingredients are basically what we call ground provisions--root vegetables---cassava/yucca, eddoes/taro and green plantains. Dasheen which is also from the Taro family is sometimes used as also Potatoes, not sweet potatoes though as this can make the soup taste sweet. Vegetables like ochros, any kind of spinach,carrots and celery. Thyme, shallot and any other seasoning can also used--you can try anything that you like and see how it works.

Dumplings are also one of the special part of this dish and while it can be a bit tricky at first, after a while you will get the knack of it. The main thing to remember is to not over work the dough or else you will end up with heavy/fall down dumplings.

Ingredients:

1 coconut grated and mixed with 4 pints water.
1 medium onion chopped
1 lb cassava, peeled sliced into 4" lengths
1 lb eddoes, peeled and cubed into 1" pieces
2 lbs green plantains
2-3 young ochroes, top and tail removed
1 cup of chopped spinach
Salt to taste.
Any hot pepper of your choice( optional).

For Dumplings:

4 cups all purpose flour
4 level TT baking powder
1 1/2 cups water

Method:

1. Soak the grated coconut in the water and then extract the milk.
2. Pour the coconut milk in a pot and place it on high flame to come to a boil.
3. As soon as it starts to boil, add the salt, stir, then place all the vegetables, minus the ochroes and spinach; into the pot.
4.Add the onions,peppers and whatever other seasoning of your choice.
5. Cover the pot loosely or else it boil over. Turn down the heat to medium low and allow the veges to cook.
6. When the veges are almost done,add the ochroes and spinach.
7. It is now time to make the dumplings. Do not make them before hand or else they may become tough/fall down.
8. In a deep bowl, add the flour and baking powder. Mix together with a fork until incorporated fully.
9. Add the water a little at a time and stir. When it all starts to stick together,using your hands, break off lemon sized pieces and shape into hot dog shapes. Please do not overwork the dough or else it will give you tough dumplings.
10.Immediately place the dumplings into the pot and make sure that they are covered with the soup. Cover the pot at once.
11. Cook for 2-3 minutes-- test by sticking the dumplings with thin sharp knife.If it comes out clean, the dumpling is done.
12. Remove at once from the heat and allow to rest for a minute or so.

13. Serve hot with a splash of hot pepper sauce on top. Enjoy!!

Fry Ochros/Stir Fried Okras

2011-08-01T16:11:00.000-07:00

Fry ochro is the term that Guyanese and Trinidadians use to call the dish- Stir Fried Okras. Have Googled to see the various stir fried okras recipes and apart from Guyanese's and Trinidadian's, every other recipe has a host of ingredients in their dish.

My recipe here, is the way that my ancestors have cooked ochroes. It is so simple and yet very delicious. With just a few ingredients, most of all it allows the taste of the ochros to shine. It is easy to cook too-- the only points to note are:
1. Make sure you wash and dry the ochros thoroughly before cutting them or else you will have a mess of very slimy vegetables.
2. You have to use a little more oil if you want nice crispy ochroes. You can put the ochroes in a colander/strainer and allow the excess oil to drain off after cooking. This oil however has a very tasty flavour that is especially delicious when eating with rotis.
3. When cooking, do not stir too often as you will end up with slimy mush.
4. Add salt towards the end of the cooking.

Fry ochro is delicious with rotis or with dal and rice.

Ingredients:

1 lb ochroes, washed, dried and chopped.
6--8 TT oil
1/2 cup onions chopped
6 pegs garlic

Method:

1. Heat oil in karahi/heavy bottom pan.
2. Add the onions and garlic and stir fry for 1 minute.
3. Add ochros and stir to coat with the oil.
4. Allow to cook until the underside is brown, then stir to allow the other sides to brown.
5. When both sides are brown, add the salt and carefully stir to incorperate.
6. Remove from heat when you see that it is nicely browned and crispy--not burnt mind you!
7. If necessary, drain off the excess oil by placing in a colander/strainer.
8. Serve hot. Enjoy!!

Karhi/ Kadhi.....

2011-07-28T16:51:00.000-07:00

Karhi is one of the dishes that came with our Ancestors from U.P/Bihar. Its method of preparation is similar to the Kadhi from the other states but ours do not have dahi, we add green mangoes or tamarind to give it its sour taste.

Karhi/Kardi is a dish that many are hesitant to make. It has a bad reputation as being something
that is very difficult to make however it is not. This recipe takes the complication out of making karhi even though it is from scratch. Some people make their karhi with readymade ground split peas and the taste is very different from the one made from scratch. Mangoes are used here but you can also use dried tamarind. Add as much as you like as the main reason for their addition is to give the karhi a sour flavour. This is what makes karhi unique.

Karhi can be served with rice or rotis. It is also very important to sprinkle some hot pepper sauce on top before eating--this really adds to the flavour/taste.

Pholouri is another name for pakoras. www.wiwords.com/word/ calls it--"Savoury fritter made from seasoned split pea flour." It is the balls that we make for the karhi as you will see below:

Ingredients for the pholouri:

1 pint split peas dal
1 medium onion, chopped
5 flakes garlic
1 tt haldi powder
1 TT jeera powder
Oil for deep frying.

1. Wash and soak dal overnight or at least 12 hrs.
2. Drain off all the water and blend with the onion and garlic in a food processor. Do not add any water at all. Blend into a paste. The texture must feel smooth and not grainy.

3. Place the dal into a bowl.
4. Remove 1 1/2 cups and place into another deep bowl and keep aside.
5. To the larger quantity of dal, add the 1 tt haldi, 1 TT ground jeera and 1 1/2 tt salt. Mix with a fork until it is evenly incorporated. The mixture will be light and fluffy.
6. Heat oil in a karahi or frying pan. Oil must be medium hot so that the pholouri/balls of dal would not burn.
7. For those who cannot make pholouri--dip out a tablespoon of the dal mixture and use a teaspoon to make the ball smooth and then place the ball into the oil. Place as many as your pan can hold but do not over crowd. Do not turn until the balls start to turn light gold. Turn the balls now to make sure that they are evenly cooked. Remove with a slotted spoon. Put the balls on the place that has been lined with a paper towel. Wait until the oil is heated again and fry the rest of the mixture this same way. Keep aside when all is done.

For the gravy:

1 TT oil
5 flakes garlic chopped
1 TT whole jeera
1 TT haldi/tumeric powder
3 TT jeera powder
2 tt salt or to taste
3-4 green mangoes, peeled and sliced, do not discard the seed/ tamarind
5 cups water

Method:

1. Take the bowl with the 1 1/2 cups of ground dal and add the 5 cups of water to it.
2. Also add the haldi and 1 TT of ground jeera.
3. Heat the 1 TT oil in a very deep pan/karahi.
4. Add the whole jeera when it starts to splutter add the chopped garlic and fry until lightly brown.
5. Add the liquid mixture to the karahi . Stir until it is thoroughly mixed.
6. Turn the heat to the highest. Keep and eye on this as it can easily boil over.
7. As soon as it starts boiling, add the pieces of mangoes--seed and all or the tamarind.

8. Turn down the heat to medium high and cook until the mangoes are 1/2 cooked.
9. Add the pholouri/balls now. Stir until all the pholouri are saturated.

10. Cook for 5 minutes more and then sprinkle the remaining 2 TT jeera on top.

11. Remove from heat and serve at once. Enjoy!

If you want to serve it later, remove the pholouri from the gravy or else it will soak up all of the gravy. When ready to serve again just put them back into the gravy and reheat again.

Channa and Allu Curry ( Chickpeas and Potato).

2011-07-06T16:52:00.000-07:00

After adding water.

After the gound jeera has been added.

Channa and allu with boiled rice and mango acchar on the side!

Channa and Allu curry is almost similar to Cabbage and Potato curry. The only difference is the amount of water added and one needs to add a little more masala with this curry.Channa is basically bland and when added,it will absorb the flavours so one needs to add a bit more masala than with the cabbage curry. Cabbage also has its own water unlike the channa bean so with this, more water is added. If you need more gravy, add a cup more of boiling water, just at the stage before the potato is completely cooked through.

It is always better to use channa that you boiled yourself as the canned ones sometimes do not absorb the flavour of the gravy totally. I wash and soak my channa overnight then pressure cook it the next day and always do enough to freeze extras. This comes in very handy whenever I need to cook this again or make anything that needs channa. When using canned, pour it into a colander/sieve and wash under cold running water so as to get rid of the extra saltiness and the canned taste.

Trinidadians have their own special channa and allu recipe that I will share soon. The difference with Trindadian takari and our curry is that they use bandanya/shado beni which is never used in Indian Guyanese cooking.

Ingredients:

2 lbs potato, scrubbed,washed and cubed.
1 lb boiled channa.
2 TT tomato paste
1 cup chopped onions
5 pegs garlic chopped finely
2-3 TT oil
1 1/2 TT turmeric/haldi powder
4 1/2 TT garam masala
1 TT ground jeera powder
salt to taste
4 cups hot water.

Method:

1. Heat oil in a heavy bottom pot/karahi.
2. Add chopped onions and stir fry for 1 min.
3. Add chopped garlic and fry for 30 secs.
4. Add the potatoes to the pan and stir until the pieces are coated with the onion/garlic oil.
5. Add salt and stir again, turning down the heat to medium low. Allow the potatoes to fry for about 2 minutes.
6. Add the tumeric and fry for 2 mins.
7.Add the garam masala and fry for 2 minutes, the potatoes will start to stick to the bottom of the pot so stir completely.
8. Add the hot water and stir.
9. Add tomato paste and stir until completely dissolved.
10. Cover the karahi, turn the heat to medium low and allow to cook until the potatoes are 1/2 cooked.
13. Add the channa stir until it is evenly mixed.
14. Cover pot again and allow to cook until potatoes are completely cooked.
15. Sprinkle ground jeera over the the curry and allow to sit for about 2 minutes--do not cover at this stage as your curry will spoil quickly!
16. Remove from heat and serve hot with rice or rotis with some acchar on the side. Enjoy!

Bora in Coconut Milk

2011-07-05T13:14:00.000-07:00

Bora beans is also known as Chinese Long Beans. You can find them at all Chinese and West Indian Groceries in New York City. In Trinidad it is known as Bodi. The variety we have in Guyana is not as stiff as the Chinese and Trinidadian varieties.

Mom is from the Coastland of Essequibo. She says that they add coconut milk in almost every single curry that they make. This recipe is my Mom's and so far have never eaten it anywhere else except at home. The coconut milk is made from freshly grated coconut. Being born and raised in a land where Coconut trees are everywhere, it is almost sacrilegious to use the packaged/dehydrated kind. Even when I am in the USA, I buy the frozen, grated ones that one can get at Indian Groceries.

Ingredients:

1 lb bora beans chopped(1'' pieces)
1 cup chopped onions
1 cup coconut milk
1/2 lb tomatoes chopped
2 TT oil

Method:

1. Heat oil in heavy bottom pan/karahi on medium heat.
2. Add onions and fry for 1 min.
3. Add the chopped beans and stir until fully coated with onion/oil mixture.
4. Add the chopped tomatoes and stir again.
5. Pour in the coconut milk and raise the heat to medium high.
6. Cook until all liquid has been evaporated,starts to stick to the bottom of the karahi and the bora has an oily sheen from the coconut milk and
7. Serve hot with boiled rice or paratha rotis and some hot pepper sauce on the side for flavouring. Enjoy.

2011-05-23T19:09:00.003-07:00

Mohanbhog/ Parsad

(This recipe is Copyrighted and owned by Nanda Sahadeo. Anyone reposting it on their site without permission from Nanda Sahadeo is committing an infringement.)

Mohan Bhog literally means--bhog(food) for Mohan(Lord Krsna). It is called Parsaad in Guyana and Trinidad as this is what is offered when we do our Pujas.

It is made all over India and is made especialy during festivals in Bengal.The method of making this is identical to making Mohan Bhog in Guyana. However, it is made with Semolina/Suji. Maybe flour/Maida was adopted after our Ancestors had no access to Semolina in Guyana. I believe that they had to adapt their cooking to suit what were available when they went to Guyana and Mohan Bhog is one of the foods that demonstrates this.

What we call Mohan Bhog/Parsad in Guyana and Trinidad is called Sheera or Halwa in different parts of Bharat/India.The method of preparatiom is almost the same especially for Sheera. Bengali Mohan Bhog uses Maida/All purpose flour like we do and the method almost the same yet it comes out different as it is cooked until it becomes almost translucence. Saffron/tumeric is added which gives it colour and when it is done, looks similar to Guyanese vermicelli cakes. Odisha makes Mohan Bhog with Semolina and is special for Durga Puja/Nav Ratri.

In Maharastra, it is called Sheera and made with Semolina.

In Rajasthan and Punjab, it is called Halwa. The method of making is the same to our Parsad in Guyana. Point to note though, they do not add milk. Same used to happen in Guyana, long ago. I thought that it was because Milk was expensive but now I realise it is not so. Adding milk started during my Parents' time...2nd Generation.

One most important point to note, is that all the Recipes are Vegetarian and while they are cooked and eaten at any time, they are also especially made for Hindu festivals. Have seen a few Guyanese recipes online for Mohan Bhog having eggs as an ingredient. This is disrespectful and is basically not Mohan Bhog. No food/bhog to Lord Krsna will include eggs. You are disrespecting the sentiments of Hindus, should you use eggs and call it Parsad/Mohan Bhog. Muslims make Sirni which is similar in method to Mohan Bhog and this has eggs.You are making Sirni and not Mohan Bhog if your recipe has Eggs.

Another very important ingredient in Prasad is Ghee--which means that which is from the cow and not a plant/fruit. Phal ka ghee literally translate to ghee from fruits. Ghee is Clarified Butter. Ghee from a fruit is like an Oxymoron. What it really is, is Vegetable Shortening. People in Guyana use Phal ka ghee as it is cheaper and more available. The Bhog from phal will never taste anywhere near as good as that which is made from ghee.

Ingredients:

4 cups all purpose flour
2 cups Demerara/ Brown sugar
1 can (2 cups) evaporated milk
1 1/4 cups ghee
1/2 cup raisins
4-5 elachis crushed
Cherries(opt)
1/4 cup flaked almonds(opt)

Method:

1. Heat ghee in a karahi or heavy bottom pot.
2. Add the flour and turn down the flame low.
3. Mix warm milk and sugar and set aside. Wash raisins and set aside.
4.Toast/parch the flour for about 30 minutes until it is light brown--if you want a darker prasad, let it cook for 15 mins more.
5. Add the elachi and nuts if using. Allow to parch for 1 min.
6.Add the raisins and cherries.
7. Pour in the milk and sugar mixture, turning the flame upto high at this time. You need to work fast or get someone to help you either stir the mixture or to pour for you. If you do not stir the mixture briskly--lumps will form too.
8. Stir until the mixture starts to form into a huge ball. Remove from the heat at once.

Your Bhog is ready to serve to your Ishta/Bhagwaan

Note: Regular whole milk or even low fat milk or any milk substitute can be used instead of Evaporated Milk. The Latter gives it a rich taste.When using Whole milk and these other types of thinner/runny milk, please use a lesser amount--1 1/2 cups instead. This is to prevent the Prasad from being sticky.

2011-04-18T12:48:00.005-07:00

Roat /Rote /Hanuman Ji Prasad.

(This recipe is Copyrighted and owned by Nanda Sahadeo. Anyone reposting it on their site without permission from Nanda Sahadeo is committing an infringement.)

Roat is one of those foods that our ancestors brought with them when they came from India. It is an offering,that is made only for Hanumanji Puja (Jhandi). However, this can be made anytime to be eaten even without offering as it is after all a sweet. Many think Roat is difficult to make, you will see from this recipe how easy it is. All it takes is a little time and patience. Some people add raisins/currants into their recipe--this is not necessary at all and will be problematic if you want a nice crumbly roat. It can also cause your Roat to disintegrate when you fry it.. Some may add ground elaichi or cinnamon. This is to your taste or preference. It is a no-no to use a rolling pin to make the Roat, this will make it compact and tough. Use the ball of your palm to flatten the dough. This will allow the Roat to keep its soft texture and will come out flaky. A good Roat should break easily too.

This recipe will make 10 small sized roats like this size...

Or 5 larger sized Roats. Once you make the dough, you can choose your own size and with practise, will get your desired size. The key is to make sure that you fry them properly.

Ingredients:

4 cups all purpose flour
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
1-1 1/4 cups milk
1/2 cup ghee + ghee for frying.

Method:

1. In a deep bowl, mix the flour and ghee together until it is evenly mixed and is crumbly.

2. Add the sugar and mix until it resembles coarse bread-crumbs.

3. Add the milk a little at a time. Bring together to form a soft dough. It may or may not need all of the milk. Please do not knead the dough or else you will get a tough textured roat.

4. Divide into desired size--I made them the size of a tennis balls and this yeilded 10 roats with this recipe.

5. Sprinkle some flour onto a flat plate, place one of the ball into the center. Using the flat of your palms, press down gently but firmly to flatten into a evenly round shape. Then take your finger and make a small hole in the center--this allows it to fry evenly.

6. Pour ghee into a heavy bottomed karahi/pan-- it should cover the pan at least about 4 inches or so.
7. Heat the ghee --not so hot that smokes come off or else it will brown too fast and will be raw inside.
8. Gently lower a roat into the pan. The flame should be medium low.

9. Allow to brown on one side then flip to fry the other. Do not get impatient at this point. If you flip it before it is properly cooked on the first side, it may crack when you flip it. Wait until you notice the edges are getting a little golden and then you know for sure it is time to flip.

10. When both sides are a nice medium brown, remove and drain.

Your roat is ready to serve to Hanumanji.

PS.
The size of the Roat is upto you. We made a Mala of 108 Roats for our Puja. Am sharing the photo from the Puja and you will see the Roats. Hanuman Ji is in the Background .

2011-03-14T12:29:00.000-07:00

Pera Recipe

(This recipe is Copyrighted and owned by Nanda Sahadeo. Anyone reposting it on their site without permission from Nanda Sahadeo is committing an infringement.)

This recipe is made with Evaporated Milk. Will get the Whole Milk ( Fresh Cow's Milk) recipe soon. Aunty Kamla gave me this recipe and it came out well on the first attempt. There is the impression that Pera is time-consuming, labourious and very tricky to make. This recipe will take away all of these misconceptions. I usually put it on while I am cooking other things and it is only when it starts to dry out that you need to pay full attention to it.

Ingredients:

2 cans Evaporated milk

1 3/4 lbs of white(granulated) sugar.

A deep heavy bottom pan or a thick karahi.

Wooden spoon.

Method:

1. Pour the milk into the karahi and add all of the sugar. Stir well.

2.Put to boil on stove with medium heat.

3. Stir occassionally, scraping down the sides. Keep and eye on it to make sure that it does not boil over.

4.Allow to boil until almost all the liquid has evaporated.

From this point, you have to stir the Pera vigorously. Test to see if is at the soft ball stage. This means dropping some Pera into a glass of water. If it stays together, remove from flame. If not, continue to cook and keep on testing. Once you remove it from the flame, stir vigorously to ensure that your Peras are smooth and melt in your mouth and are not grainy. When you see it starting to get dry, shape into small balls then flatten between the palms of your hand. Place them in a tray to complete the drying. Your pera is ready to eat.........

Pumpkin

2009-07-19T21:28:00.002-07:00

Pumpkin is another easy dish to cook and is also one of the dishes we cook at all Hindu ceremonies--weddings,pujas,shraadhas etc etc. It is cheap and very easy to cook. Butternut Squash can be used instead of Pumpkin and the taste is almost the same, just the texture is slightly different.

Ingredients:

2 lbs pumpkin, peeled and diced.

1 small onion

3 pegs garlic

2 small peppers chopped ( to your taste)

1/2 teaspoon tumeric

2 tablespoon garam masala power

1 teaspoon ground jeera

1 teaspoon oil

1 tablespoon sugar

Salt to taste

Method:

1. Heat oil in deep pan/karahi.

2. Saute onions until transparent.

3. Add garlic and pepper and stir for 1-2 seconds.

4. Add pumpkin and stir to coat the pumpkin.

5. Add salt and stir to mix evenly.

6. Add sugar and stir again.

7. Add tumeric and stir to coat evenly

8. Add garam masala, stir to coat evenly.

9. Turn down the heat to medium and allow to cook. If the pumpkin does not give off its own water, you will need to add 1-2 teacups of water.

10. Allow to cook until it become mushy.

11. Add ground jeera.

Bhaji

2009-07-19T11:48:00.001-07:00

I used Poi Bhaji in this recipe.Any variety of Spinach can be used,fresh or frozen.Some use Coconut milk in this recipe especially with Chorai Bhaji and the variety that is available in North America. Cow's milk can also be used. This is a very easy recipe and does not have any spices,some people add whole jeera(1/4 teaspoon) when sauteing the onions at the beginning or ground jeera when it is almost done.

Ingredients:
2 lbs Spinach chopped(approximately)
1 small onion chopped
3 flakes garlic chopped
2 small peppers
1 medium tomato chopped
1 teaspoon oil
salt to taste

Method:

1. Heat oil in pan/karahi.
2. Stir fry onion until transparent.
3. Add garlic and pepper, stir for 1 second.
4. Add chopped spinach.
5. Sprinkle salt on top of Spinach--they will immediately start to loose water.
6. Add chopped tomato and stir well.
7. If you are adding coconut milk--now is the time to add--about 1/2 teacup.
8. Remove whenever you are satisfied--traditionally,Spinach is allowed to cook until all liquid evaporates.