Amader Rasona

~ A humble effort to satisfy the taste-buds.


Shukto


Updated : 11th Sept, 09

I am back !!!! Its been long since I posted any recipe in my blog. It was a very busy and important week for us. Now, I will post all the recipes one by one that I prepared recently. But before I post any new recipe, let me complete this post first !! :)

Shukto is an authentic bengali dish ( vegetarian) which is bitter in taste, a very healthy dish as prepared with veggies and minimum spices and served in the beginning of a traditional bengali lunch. There are many variations , but I am giving the recipe which I have learnt from my Mother.

Ingredients :

Potato - 1, cut into cubes
Eggplant - 1 small, cut into cubes
Bitter Gourd - 4-5, cut into cubes, i used cut frozen pieces
Drum Sticks - cut into small pieces

Other veggies that can be added - green banana, papaya, beans, sweet potato, pumpkin, gourd (lauki) etc.

Can add vadi too.
Ginger paste- 1tsp
Oil
Salt & Sugar to taste
Mustard paste/ Posto paste (optional) - 1 tbsp
Milk (optional)- 2-4 tbsp

For tempering :

Panchphoron - 1tsp
Whole red chilli - 1




Method :

Nowadays, I soak mustard seeds overnight and then grind in my magic bullet, earlier it used to become bitter, but soaking the seeds overnight makes them soft, so the paste turns out great !! I do the same with Poppy (posto) seeds, but these doesn't need to be soaked overnight. Then grind them along with little salt.

Vadis must be fried first and then kept aside.
Then saute the eggplants and other veggies, bitter gourd being last. ( This step can be skipped and the veggies, except eggplant, can be added for steaming directly, ).
Keep aside the sautéed veggies.
Add panchphoron to the oil. Let it splutter. Add the Red chilli.
Add all the veggies with some salt. ( At this stage, very little turmeric powder can be added, I didnt use).
After mixing them properly, add little water so that the veggies can be cooked. Cover and cook for about 10 mins.
Then add little sugar , ginger paste, mustard/poppy paste and add the milk. Let it cook for some time. This dish has little gravy, so dont add too much water. After the veggies are almost done, add the vadis.
Remove from the heat when the veggies are completely done. Ghee can be added before taking off the heat, which will give a nice aroma to this dish.

Serve with white plain rice in the beginning of lunch.

[Original post : Hmm...this is actually a draft post, publishing it coz I need the URL :P
I came to know from Shanthi of shanthi krishnakumar's cookbook that she is hosting state special event and when I checked, I saw today is the last date !! The event is so interesting that I would really like to participate. But no time to cook today :P So I searched through my pictures and found one snap of 'Shukto' that I had prepared few months back. This is a traditional bengali dish that is served in all occasions.


I am sending this recipe for her State Specials Event .
I will be really busy for next few days, will be back with the recipe very soon. :) ]

Updates : I am very happy that I could participate in her event, and it is very sweet of her to give all the participants this "Participation award".

Thank You Shanthi. :) Hope to participate in your events again !!



Well well... it just took me one second to decide which one to post first from the list... :D yeah, it has to be Phuchka.....as I was soo happy after making these !! Phuchkas are famous street-food available all over India. Known as Pani puri or Golgappa outside Bengal, Phuchkas are hot favorite among all age groups in West Bengal !! But the actual charm in eating these is, I guess, while standing on the footpath, in a circle around the phuchka-wala holding those shalpatar-bati :) Back in Kolkata, one will rarely think of making these at home. It reminds me of the Durga Puja days, when we used to go pandal-hopping and eat phuchkas without miss !! We, the Kolkatans, have these with mashed potato inside the crispy balls along with hot and spicy tamarind water. So, that day when I found this website full of cooking videos, I just couldn't wait to try these myself. And guess what... after about 40 mins...we were munching on phuchkas !! It is really soo easy and the video is awesome... many of you might be aware of Manjula's Kitchen and her recipes. Those who are not, do have a look in her website... lots of veg recipes, which are both easy to make and yummy for our taste buds !! I must say, I have followed her instructions in to-to and the phuchkas came out perfect. Only I substituted tamarind water in place of mint water.

Phuchka ( Pani Puri/ Golguppa)


I wanted to make 20 phuchkas , so I took 1/3 rd of the flour and suji as shown in the website.

Ingredients:
  • Semolina/Sooji - 1/4 cup
  • All purpose Flour/ Maida -1/3 rd of the amount of Sooji : that makes 1/12 th cup or 1/3 rd portion of a 1/4 measuring cup
  • Water- 1/6th cup ( as needed )
  • Tamarind paste
  • Salt to taste
  • Red chilli powder
  • Potatoes -2, boiled and mashed
  • Green Chilli -1-2
  • Bhaja Masala ( Roasted cumin seeds and red chilli ) - to sprinkle on mashed potato.
  • Oil for frying




Method :

Mix the flour and sooji with water and make a soft and plaible dough.
Keep it covered with damp cloth for 10 mins once its done
Then make 20 small balls from the dough, keep them covered with damp cloth to prevent from drying.
Take two kitchen clothes , wet them , and place one on the counter-top.
Start rolling the balls into 2 inch diamter puris/luchis and keep them on one damp towel and cover them by the other damp towel. According to Manjula Ji, this step helps the puris to puff on all sides.
Heat the oil in medium high, shud be at least 1 and half inch high in pan ( like we take while frying luchis).
When the oil is hot, start frying the rolled puris. Press them lightly on one side, and when they puff up, turn over and press lightly on the other side.
When they are golden-brown in color on all sides, take them out of the pan and place on paper towel.


I made 20 phuchkas, all were very crispy - but 10 were puffed up. This was because when i was putting them in the pan, some got folded as they were moist. As the oil was very hot, I cudnt unfold them properly, thus 10 turned out to be papris !! :D With them I made papri-chaat the next day. Will post that also sometime.

Make tamarind water by mixing tamarind paste with water, red chilli powder and salt . This can be done in better way, I hurriedly added these as I cudnt wait to eat the phuchkas !! :P
Then make a hole on each phuchka , put some mashed potato and tamarind water ..... and Enjoy !! :)

I have some very important things to do in the coming week. Will post again when I am done. Till then, take care everybody !! :)

P.S. Can anybody please suggest me how to keep my kitchen roach-free ?? Two rounds of fumigation done by the pest control dept. and daily Raid spray is not helping !! Its such a menace !! Any tips, friends ?? Thanks :)







I was very busy last few days , so didnt get the time to post in my blog. And when I peeped in my blog today....I was pleasantly surprised by so many awards from my friends :) A few days back Pinky had passed me three awards with a tag and today Shaista showered me with 2 lovely awards along with the other three again !! :) I am so elated...and flattered ....... Your comments mean a lot to me and I thank you both Pinky of Esho-Bosho-Aahare and Shaista of MIXCALCULATIONS for passing me the awards . Its already a month now that I have started blogging... and here I am posting 5 awards with a tag......... :)

The three lovely awards I received from Pinky are :




And here is the tag to these three awards :



What is your current obsession?


Cooking new dishes.


What are you wearing today?


Capri and a top.


What's for dinner?


Most probably some American dinner-baked chicken and roasted veggies...didnt make it for quite some time.


What is the last thing you brought?


Some apparels - my husband gave me for my coming b'day and Durga Puja :)


What are you listening to right now?


Right now, none.


What do you think about the person who tagged you?


Great creative cooks... :)


If you have a house totally paid for,fully furnished any where in the world,where would you like it to be?


Doesn't matter where, as long as my family is with me.


What are your must have pieces for summer?


Sunglass, Umbrella , cotton clothes, sunscreen , cold water.


Which language you want to learn?


Spanish... urgently !! :P


Who do u want to meet now?


My parents and in-laws ... its been more than a year now :(


What is your favourite colour?


Blue.


What do you try to cook when you have cooking blues(when you feel real lazy to cook something)?

Bhaat ar aloo-sheddho ( Rice and boiled/mashed potato).


What are the cosmetics/make-up/perfumes that you can't live without?


Moisturiser. can live without others, but like to use lipstick, kajal and my Ralph Lauren perfume :)


What is your favourite piece of clothing in your own closet?


My pashmina saree and a stylish black leather jacket.


What is your favourite magazine?


Presently, EVERYDAY by Rachael Ray.


If you had $100 now,what would you spend it on?


Save it to buy an SLR camera for my hubby.


Describe your personal style?


Simple. I like traditional styles more.


What are your favourite movies?


A lot. Uttam-Suchitra bengali movies, Gupi-bagha series, other Satyajit Ray movies, some old hinidi movies like Khubsoorat, Kajal's movies, Titanic, Notting Hill etc etc...the list goes on !!


Give us three styling tips that always work for you?


I try to remain simple, natural and comfortable.


Coffee or tea?


Tea.


What inspires you?


Dreams ... I hope to live up to the expectations of my dearest ones who love me the most. The greatest inspiration has been my parents and my husband... always.


What do you want to become in life ?

A pediatrician.


Which other blogs you love visiting?


Till now, other food blogs...there are sooo many !!


Favourite dessert/sweet?


Rasogolla and Lyangcha.


Favourite season?


Spring.


Which is your dream destination?


Switzerland.


Which is your favourite international cuisine?


Indian.


What is your favorite line?


Tough time never lasts, but tough people do.


What is the meaning of your name?
One who makes friendship :)

In which God do You Trust?


I believe in all Gods -The Almighty.


My question :

What do you like to do or have in a rainy day ??

I like to have hot Khichuri with begun bhaja and omlette :)


The rules are:

Respond and rework – answer the questions on your own blog, replace one question that you dislike with a question of your own invention,and add one more question of your own. Then tag eight or ten other people.


Today, I received 2 fabulous awards along with the above three from Dear Shaista ... :)


The rules are:

Put the logo on your blog or post.
Nominate at least 7 blogs

Let them know that they have received this Scrumptious award by commenting on their blog.
Share the love and link to this post and to the person you received your award from.





Inspire you
Encourage You
May give Fabulous information
A great read has Scrumptious recipes
Any other reasons you can think of that make them Scrumptious!



Now its my turn to pass these awards to 7 people. But how to choose..... there are soo many blogs that I love to follow.... with great recipes and excellent write-ups !! And there are many more which I would follow in the future. But since I have to ... I would select the blogs I mentioned in my first post and some more which I have recently come to know. They are :


Mandira of Ahaar

Indrani of Appyayan

Sandeepa of Bong Mom's Cookbook

Sharmila of Kichu Khon

Yasmeen of Health Nut

Kitchen Flavours of Yummy Food

Subhie of Subhie's Kitchen


All of you deserve these awards muuuuch more than me..... and I am very happy to pass them on to you !! :)



I have prepared some new dishes in the past week. Will try to post them asap.


My upcoming recipes :

  • Tandoori Chicken
  • Luchi Aloor-dum
  • Dosa
  • Gobi Manchurian
  • Medu Vada
  • Phuchka ... I was soo happy after making these :D
Stay Well !!



About my blog

Hello Friends,

Welcome to Tulip's Blog :) Tulip is one of my favorite flowers, hence the username :)
Here I will be posting about the experiences in my kitchen , recipes mostly from Bengal and other parts of India, and some international cuisines as well !! Enjoy your stay here and please share your comments :) ... Keep Smiling !!

Contributors :



E-mail me at rasona2009@gmail.com

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