Simply Food

ALOO KORMA

noreply@blogger.com (Nita's Kitchen) — Sat, 27 Nov 2010 15:00:00 +0000

It was my hubby's birthday. I thought of whipping up two new dishes he has never had, home made. One vegetarian and the other non veg.

Usually people would go in for an authentic recipe of Kashmiri Aloo Dum when making it. I simply did not want to add so many ingredients and tried a different version altogether. It actually came out well ! You could try mine or go for the actual elaborate recipe. A little change here and there as per your suitability I am sure is not harmful. :)

Nevertheless it can not be called Kashmiri Aloo Dum for that matter. I would like to give it a name : Aloo Korma.

Kashmiri Dum Aloo

[ACTUAL RECIPE]

Serves 4

Preparation Time 30 Minutes

Ingredients
18-20 small-sized potatoes
Oil to deep fry
5-6 dried Kashmiri chillies
2 cups of yogurt tspn of cardamom powder
1 tspn of dry ginger powder
2 tblspns of fennel powder cup of mustard oil
A generous pinch of clove powder
A pinch of asafoetida
Salt to taste

1 tspn of roasted cumin

1 tspn of garam masala powder

Recipe
Peel and prick the potatoes all over with the help of a fork. Keep in salted water for fifteen minutes. Heat oil in a kadai and fry the potatoes on medium flame till golden brown. Make a paste of dried kashmiri red chillies.

Whisk the yogurt with Kashmiri red chilli paste, cardamom powder, dry ginger powder and fennel powder.

Heat mustard oil in a pan. Add clove powder and asafoetida. Add half a cup of water and salt and bring to a boil.

Stir in the yogurt mixture and bring it to a boil. Add fried potatoes and cook till the potatoes absorb the gravy and oil floats on top.

Serve hot, garnished with freshly roasted cumin powder and garam masala powder.

MY VERSION :

Serves : 8

Ingredients :

1 & 1/2 kg diced potato

Dry red chillies - 3/4

Bay Leaf- 2

Whole Garam Masala- 4 cloves, 1/2 inch cinnamon stick, 2/3 green cardamoms

Paste of Coconut and Poppy seeds with 1 green chilli

Ghee/clarified butter : 2 tbsp

oil for cooking [soybean/groundnut/ricebran/mustard] - you can choose your own- 4 tbsp
Salt and sugar to taste

Time : 40 minutes

Boil the potatoes, strain & keep aside.
In a wok/kadahi add oil and when heated put bay leaf, whole garam masala, dry red chillies.
When it crackles add the pre boiled potatoes ,saute for sometime, add the coconut and poppy paste. Add some warm water. Saute again and let it stand for sometime on low flame.
Finally add milk, salt and sugar to taste. Stir well. Milk gives it a thick, creamy consistency. In case you do not want to use milk completely for the gravy , use half milk and half water mixture.

When done, check seasoning, add ghee before removing from fire. Transfer it to a serving dish and garnish with green chillies.

OPTIONAL : you can also add fried capsicum, red and yellow bell peppers for garnishing.

BEST HAD WITH ROTI/TANDOORI ROTI/LACCHA PARATHA.

Potato Keema Pancake

noreply@blogger.com (Nita's Kitchen) — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 17:44:00 +0000

This is a very delicious snack if had right out of your pan , hot , with a sauce of your choice. Serve it with pickle or coriander chutney for a variation.

For 8 pcs Pancakes you will need :

125 gms potato flakes [readily available in the market]
125 gms rice flour
100 gms boiled chicken mince
4 tbsp chopped coriander
2 green chillies finely chopped
2 eggs
1 tsp baking powder
sufficient water to make a batter
salt to taste
oil for cooking

Method :

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Heat oil in a non stick pan or griddle and with your fingertips make a circle about 3''. Cook on both sides using a little oil or lower flame and cook covered with a lid[in case you are using a pan]. Serve hot with a chutney or sauce of your choice. Enjoy as a quick snack.

p.s- Children love this !

noreply@blogger.com (Nita's Kitchen) — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 13:40:00 +0000

BADSAHI CHICKEN [ Serves 4]

(Chicken with Poppy seeds, flavoured with dried Melon seeds)

Ingredients :

Chicken- 500 gms cut into pcs
Turmeric powder- ½ tsp
Ginger paste- 1 heaped tsp
Garlic paste- 1 tsp
Paste of 1 small onion
Diced onion – big- 1
Paste of 1 tsp dried melon seeds [charmagaz/anardana]

For tempering :

Mustard oil – 2 tbsp
Ghee- 1 tsp [Clarified butter]
Tej Pata [ Bay leaf]
Whole garam masala [dalchini, lavang, choti elaichi]
Salt and Sugar to taste.

Green chillies & Dhania [coriander leaves for garnishing]

Preparation time : 20 min

Cooking time: 20 min

Method :

Par boil chicken with a little salt, turmeric powder, onion and garlic paste with water in pressure cooker. Keep aside. In a kadahi/wok, add mustard oil , ghee. When hot , add tej pata and whole garam masalas. Fry diced onion till soft . Add the boiled chicken and stock . Finally add the pastes of poppy seeds and melon seeds. Saute on low flame for sometime. Cover with lid and let it simmer for a while. Check to taste seasoning. Add salt and sugar as per taste. Remove from fire , when chicken is fully done on a glass dish and garnish with green chillies and coriander leaves.

Serving suggestions : best had with steamed rice/pea pulao/tandoori roti/rumali roti.

Moving away to other cuisines for the time.........

noreply@blogger.com (Nita's Kitchen) — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 13:33:00 +0000

Ingredients :

500 gm potatoes[ preferably baby potatoes]
Onion [diced or made into a paste- 2
Nigella seeds [kala jeera/ kalaunji] - 1/4 tsp
Tomato puree- 1
Garlic paste- 1 tsp
Red Chilli Powder - 1-2 tsp [according to taste; you can also replace this powder by Kashmiri Chilli Powder only for the red colour]
Mustard oil- 20gms
Salt to taste
Ghee or clarified butter
Green chillies for garnishing

[this is a very old tried and tested recipe and comes out very well with hot parathas or rotis, ideal for dinner or brunch]. Serves 4.

Method :

Pre boil the potatoes, peel skin and keep aside for some time. Heat a wok/kadahi, add mustard oil. When warm enough, add nigella seeds, diced onions or onion paste [I prefer diced onions as it softens easily and does not take time to get cooked] , garlic paste and saute for some time. When the onions have softened or changed colour add tomato puree, red chilli powder , saute on low flame for sometime sprinkling a little water now & then so that the gravy does not dry up. Add the boiled potatoes , saute for 5 minutes and cover with a lid. Let it cook for sometime on low flame till all masalas have blended with the potatoes. Adjust gravy thickness with water. Add the salt for seasoning. Remove from fire, transfer it to a serving bowl. Garnish with green chillies and ghee.

PART VI

noreply@blogger.com (Nita's Kitchen) — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 13:26:00 +0000

PART VI

Bengali People
There is a popular saying 'What Bengal thinks today, Rest of the India will think tomorrow'. This tells what a rich genetic inheritance the people of Bengal have. Bengal has been home to great social reformers like Raja Ram Mohan Roy and Vidyasagar. The great saint Ram Krishna Param Hans and Nobel Laureate Rabindra Nath Tagore also had their roots in Bengal's soil. Today, Bengalis reflect a mixture of traditional values and modern traditions. They have deep affinity toward art, craft and music and mainly believe in socialism.

Religions in West Bengal
People belonging to almost all the religions practiced in India can be seen in West Bengal. However, Hindu and Muslim domination still prevails. The minority communities in the state include Christians, Buddhists, Sikhs and Jains. Fairs and festivals form an important part of all the religions of Bengal. It is said that in Bengal, there is a festival for every season, every region and every occasion. Apart from the grand festivals, like Durga Pooja, Diwali and Id, small sects organize fairs at various dargahs and mandirs in West Bengal.

Bengali Theatre
The theatre in Bengal dates back to 18th century. Reflecting the rich art and cultural lineage of the state, it gained prominence during the freedom struggle of India, when it was used as a tool of expression. Apart from the religion folk dramas prevalent in many parts of Bengal, Bengali plays with nationwide popularity are also churned out on a regular basis. Girishchandra Ghosh, Rabi Roy, Sisir Bhaduri, Badal Sircar, Shobha Sen and Soumitra Chatterjee are some of the prominent names in Bengali theatre.

Bengali Cinema
The tryst of Bengal with cinema began in 1890s, when the first "bioscopes" became popular in Kolkata theaters. By 1900, the first production company in Bengal was set up, by Hiralal Sen, named the Royal Bioscope Company. The first Bengali movie, Billwamangal, was released on 8th November 1919, only six years after the first full-length Indian feature film, Raja Harish Chandra. In contemporary phase, the immense contribution of great Bengali director Satyajit Ray can not be ignored. Other prominent film makers in the Bengali film industry are Bimal Roy, Ritwik Ghatak, Rituparno Ghosh and Aparna Sen.

Bengali Literature
Bengali literature is regarded as one of the richest in the world. Michael Madhusudan Dutt, Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, Dinabandhu Mitra, Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Kazi Nazrul Islam, Rabindra Nath Tagore, Sharat Chandra and Ishwar Chandra Bandyopadhyaya are some of the classic names in Bengali literature. The first evidence of Bengali literature is formed by a collection of 8th-12th century CE Buddhist mystic poems from Eastern India, named Charyapada or Charyageeti. The first Bengali novel was Alaler Ghorer Dulal. Bengali literature includes a variety of classic prose, poetries and fiction and non-fiction drama.

Tribes in West Bengal
A discussion on the culture of West Bengal is incomplete without the mention of its tribal population. There is a variety of tribes found in almost all the nooks and corers of the state, which add a beautiful flavor to its culture. About 38 in number, the tribes comprise nearly 2% of the entire population of West Bengal.

Bengali Music
Bangla Music forms an important part of Bengali cultural heritage. In fact, the music of West Bengal compliments and adorns its culture. There is a lot of variety within Bengali music, from Bangla classic to Banga folk and even rock. Apart from the vocal and instrumental classic, Majlishi classic (with thumri and toppa) form an important part of Bengali Music. Then, there is the Rabindra Sangeet, Ganasangeet, Jeeban mukhi gaan and Bengali film song.

Bengali Cuisine
Bengali people are considered to be great foodies and the appreciators of good taste. The staple Bengali food comprises of rice and fish. Fish recipes also form a part of every festive celebration in Bengal. Salmon, Hilsa, Bhekti, Magur, Carp, Rui and Prawns are some common verities of fish cooked in the state. The typical Bengali food has a distinct kind of taste, due to the use of mustard oil and panch-foran (mix of five special types of species). The perfect blend of sweet and spicy flavors in dishes is considered the forte of Bengali cuisine.

PART V

noreply@blogger.com (Nita's Kitchen) — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 13:25:00 +0000

RELIGION :

Two major religions practiced in Bengal are Islam and Hinduism. In Bangladesh 88.3% of the population follow Islam (US State Department est. 2007) while 9.2% follow Hinduism. In West Bengal, Hindus are the majority with 70% of the population while Muslims comprise 23%. Other religious groups include Buddhists and Christians amongst others.

SHORT HISTORY OF BENGAL AND BANGLADESH :

Bengal is mentioned as a distinct region of South Asia in some of the earliest Hindu texts, and throughout the first millennium AD. it was governed by a succession of Buddhist and Hindu rulers. Islamic armies arrived in the region in the late twelfth and early thirteenth centuries, and gradual Muslim conquest—culminating in Mughal rule after 1576—set the stage for widespread conversion of the local population to Islam, especially in eastern Bengal. Not long thereafter, European contact with, and competition for power on, the Indian subcontinent began, and the British period of India's history is usually dated from England's takeover of the administration of Bengal in 1757. Lasting until 1947, British rule had a profound impact on Bengali culture and society, especially with the introduction of English as the medium of higher education after 1835. Hindus responded more rapidly than did Muslims to opportunities provided by English education, and the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries saw the rise of a highly Westernized elite, mostly, but not exclusively, Hindu in composition, whose intellectual attainments were coupled with efforts at sociocultural and political reform. Bengali elites provided major leadership to the Indian nationalist movement as a whole, which began to develop in force after the mid-1800s. Bengali Hindus tended to support a nationalist party called the Indian National Congress in its vision of a free, secular India to follow British rule. But most Bengali Muslims believed, as did many Muslims throughout India at that time, that they had benefited less than Hindus under British rule and feared that they would suffer discrimination in a free India dominated by the country's Hindu majority. The Muslims of Bengal were thus more attracted to another nationalist organization, the Muslim League, which in 1940 advocated a separate postindependence state for Muslims, to be known as Pakistan. The British acceded to India's independence in 1947, at which time the subcontinent was partitioned into two separate nation-states: India, with a Hindu majority, and Pakistan, with a Muslim majority. The predominantly Hindu western districts of Bengal then comprised the Indian state of West Bengal, whereas the mainly Muslim Districts of eastern Bengal formed the eastern province of Pakistan (called East Pakistan). Pakistan's national unity was based on common religious identity of its citizens as Muslims, but it was undermined by the nation's linguistic diversity and growing conflict between the country's ethnic groups. Over time the Bengali Muslims of East Pakistan came into increasing confrontation with the non-Bengali Muslim groups of West Pakistan, where a preponderance of the economic wealth and political power of the country was concentrated. In 1971 the schism between East and West Pakistan erupted into a civil war—a national liberation struggle from the Bengali point of view—resulting in the breakup of Pakistan and the emergence of Bangladesh as a new nation. This history helps to explain why the Bengali population is divided into its two major political entities: the Hindu-majority Indian state of West Bengal, with its capital at Calcutta; and the Muslim-majority independent nation-state of Bangladesh, with its capital at Dhaka.

PART IV

noreply@blogger.com (Nita's Kitchen) — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 13:24:00 +0000

Bengal played a major role in the Indian independence movement, in which revolutionary groups such as Anushilan Samiti and Jugantar were dominant. Bengalis also played a notable role in the Indian independence movement. Many of the early proponents of the freedom struggle, and subsequent leaders in movement were Bengalis such as Chittaranjan Das, Khwaja Salimullah, Surendranath Banerjea, Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Titumir (Sayyid Mir Nisar Ali), Prafulla Chaki, A. K. Fazlul Huq, Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani, Bagha Jatin, Khudiram Bose, Surya Sen, Binoy-Badal-Dinesh, Sarojini Naidu, Aurobindo Ghosh, Rashbehari Bose and many more. Some of these leaders, such as Netaji, did not subscribe to the view that non-violent civil disobedience was the best way to achieve Indian Independence, and were instrumental in armed resistance against the British force. Netaji was the co-founder and leader of the Indian National Army (distinct from the army of British India) that challenged British forces in several parts of India. He was also the head of state of a parallel regime, the Arzi Hukumat-e-Azad Hind, that was recognized and supported by the Axis powers. Bengal was also the fostering ground for several prominent revolutionary organisations, the most notable of which was Anushilan Samiti. A large number of Bengalis were martyred in the freedom struggle and many were exiled in Cellular Jail, the much dreaded prison located in Andaman.

PART III

noreply@blogger.com (Nita's Kitchen) — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 13:24:00 +0000

contd.....PART III

The Bengal Renaissance refers to a social reform movement during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in the region of Bengal in undivided India during the period of British rule. The Bengal renaissance can be said to have started with Raja Ram Mohan Roy (1775-1833) and ended with Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941), although there have been many stalwarts thereafter embodying particular aspects of the unique intellectual and creative output. Nineteenth century Bengal was a unique blend of religious and social reformers, scholars, literary giants, journalists, patriotic orators and scientists, all merging to form the image of a renaissance, and marked the transition from the 'medieval' to the 'modern'.

Raja Ram Mohan Roy is regarded as the "Father of theBengal Renaissance."

PART II

noreply@blogger.com (Nita's Kitchen) — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 13:23:00 +0000

MIDDLE AGES :

One of the first recorded independent king of Bengal was Shashanka, reigning around the early 7th century. After a period of anarchy, Gopala came to power in 750 by democratic election. He founded the Bengali Buddhist Pala Empire which ruled the region for four hundred years, and expanded across much of Southern Asia, from Assam in the northeast, to Kabul in the west, to Andhra Pradesh in the south. Atisha was a renowned Bengali Buddhist teacher who was instrumental in revival ofBuddhism in Tibet and also held the position of Abbot at the Vikramshila university. Tilopa was also from Bengal region.

The Pala dynasty was later followed by a shorter reign of the Hindu Sena Empire. Islam was introduced to Bengal in the twelfth century by Sufi missionaries. Subsequent Muslim conquests helped spread Islam throughout the region. Bakhtiar Khilji, an Afghan general of the Slave dynasty of Delhi Sultanate, defeatedLakshman Sen of the Sena dynasty and conquered large parts of Bengal. Consequently, the region was ruled by dynasties of sultans and feudal lords under the Delhi Sultanate for the next few hundred years. Islam was introduced to the Sylhet region by the Muslim saint Shah Jalal in the early 14th century. In the early 17th century, Mughal general Islam Khan conquered Bengal. However, administration by governors appointed by the court of the Mughal Empire gave way to semi-independence of the area under the Nawabs of Murshidabad, who nominally respected the sovereignty of the Mughals in Delhi. After the weakening of the Mughal Empire with the death of Emperor Aurangzeb in 1707, Bengal was ruled independently by the Nawabs until 1757, when the region was annexed by the East India Companyafter the Battle of Plassey.

A little about myself & Bengali Culture

noreply@blogger.com (Nita's Kitchen) — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 13:20:00 +0000

Food has often been labelled in two precise categories.

1. Food required for daily consumption &
2. Foods made for the gourmets !

I fall in the second category. :) For me the basic idea is not only to eat/make a good meal but how you can keep the variety of colours intact on the dining table. Sometimes it is also necessary especially in the daily diet to incorporate nutritious food for children and family. I take this opportunity to excuse my own self and readers [I have found none sadly] for not being a regular blogger. Blogging generally requires a daily update but due to several constraints, duties and personal matters I will not be able to be a regular blogger. Instead I pray that this blog is a means of sharing what is known to me or has been passed down from generation to generation regarding simple home made meals. Considering the fact that I am a Bengali by birth, born and brought up in Kolkata my love for the city and the city's passion for food has been an exhilarating experience which I have gathered during my growing up years till date. For this reason [and for the fact that I love History I thought of delving into the BACKGROUND of the BENGALI CULTURE. This might be in several parts beginning with a History of the Bengali Origin finally finding its way down to the different types of Bengali cuisine.

PART I :

The Bengali people are an ethnic community native to the historic region of Bengal (now divided between Bangladesh and India) in South Asia. They speak Bengali(বাংলা Bangla), which is an Indo-Aryan language of the eastern Indian subcontinent, evolved from the Magadhi Prakrit and Sanskrit languages. In their native language, they are referred to as বাঙালী (pronounced Bangali). They are an Indo-Aryan people, though they are also descended from Mongolo-Dravidians, closely related to Austro-Asiatic, Dravidian, Assamese, Sinhalese, Munda, Tibeto-Burman peoples. As such, Bengalis are a homogeneous but considerably diverse ethnic group with heterogeneous origins.

They are mostly concentrated in Bangladesh and the states of West Bengal and Tripura in India. Today Bengalis are settled all over the Indian sub continent as well as in UK, USA .

THE ANCIENT HISTORY:

Remnants of civilisation in the greater Bengal region date back 4,000 years,^] when the region was settled by Dravidian,Tibeto-Burman and Austro-Asiatic peoples. The exact origin of the word Bangla or Bengal is unknown, though it is believed to be derived from the Dravidian-speaking tribe Bang that settled in the area around the year 1000 BCE.

After the arrival of Indo-Aryans, the kingdoms of Anga, Vanga and Magadha were formed in and around Bengal and were first described in the Atharvaveda around 1000 BCE. From the 6th century BCE, Magadha expanded to include most of the Bihar and Bengal regions. It was one of the four main kingdoms of India at the time of Buddha and was one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas. Under the Maurya Empire founded by Chandragupta Maurya, Magadha extended over nearly all of South Asia, including parts of Persia and Afghanistan, reaching its greatest extent under the Buddhist emperor Ashoka the Great in the 3rd century BCE. One of the earliest foreign references to Bengal is the mention of a land ruled by the king Xandrammes named Gangaridai by theGreeks around 100 BCE. The word is speculated to have come from Gangahrd (Land with the Ganges in its heart) in reference to an area in Bengal. Later from the 3rd to the 6th centuries CE, the kingdom of Magadha served as the seat of the Gupta Empire.

contd................