Sunday Kitchen Marvels

When each parent is staunch in her/his food choices, one a vegetarian and another a non-vegetarian food lover, all it takes is some dedicated Saturday planning and an entire Sunday to put together dishes that would appeal to both camps. 

Here you can see (left to right)- Doodh Shukto, Komola Katla and Jhingey Aloo Posto to be finished off with steamed Basmati rice. 

Shukto, a Bengali staple, its more like a palate cleanser. My mother proclaimed it had immense health benefits, which I doubt, was a ploy to feed us this slighly bitter dish. 

Today I attempted to replicate my mother's recipe for Doodh Shukto. Doodh is Bangla for Milk, dear Uninitiated. All you need are various vegetable like Bringal/Eggplant, Potato, Bitter Gourd/Karela/Korola, Jhingey/Ridge Gourd, Carrot, Lauki/Bottle Gourd, Drumstick/Shojna/Moringa, green chillies and of course milk. Vegans can opt for alternative varieties of milk. 

Another ingredient that Bengalis swear by, is Posto or Poppy Seeds or Khuskhus. All you need to do is soak some for 30 minutes or more and then make a coarse paste. Use the mortar stone or the mixer-grinder, choice is yours. At the same time, dice the veggies so that its easy to shallow fry them. 

Bengalis are generous with the use of mustard oil, however, if you favour ghee or other oil, feel free to indulge. Next you need to land a spoonful of Paanch Phoron in the hot oil, let it splutter and then allow the vegetable to jump in. Take them out once there appears a tinge of golden brown. Add the Posto Paste along with its dear friends, mustard seed paste and fennel seed paste in the pan and cook on medium flame. Add small amount of water to avoid disaster. Let the gravy simmer and once a beautiful aroma hits your nose, add the vegetable back. Once each element mixes intrinsically with the rest, pour milk and/or water and season with salt, turmeric and sugar and simmer the vegetable till they are soft. All it now needs is a dollop of ghee to sum up the cook. Some lean towards Mustard Oil (no surprise there) to garnish the dish. Choice is yours!

Komola Katla is the next on the menu. I wouldn't believe the freshness of this combination if I hadnt tasted it. Komola, a.k.a orange accentuates the flavours and transports the dish to a whole different level. 

So what all do you need? Katla fish and orange juice, obvious, right? Duh. Onion, garlic and ginger ground to a paste, cumin seed and powder, coriander powder, green chillies, tomatoes, all- pervasive mustard oil and lots of excitement to work with a new ingredient. 

The fish steaks, already marinated with turmeric and salt, need to be shallow fried in mustard oil, that has been enhanced by some cumin seeds. As the fried fish is set aside to slip into a day dream, cook the pastes, tomato pieces, green chillies till the pulp emanates a crisp aroma. Pour some water and boil the gravy and all this, under cover. The fish steaks go in a well-cooked gravy to be further boiled for 10-15 minutes. 

Ladies and gentlemen, the moment is here. Time for the crown ingredient to meet the rest. Pour the freshly squeezed cup and a half of orange juice and continue the cook for not more than 5 minutes. Add the ground Garam Masala and stir a couple of times and voila! Komola Katla is ready!

Dish 3 - Aloo Jhingey Posto. I would not get into it in details. This is our standard aloo posto recipe with the addition of jhingey. The only important point is to ensure that the Jhingey is cooked well to let it mingle well with the Posto, green chillies, Kalo Jeere/Kalaunji and the mustard oil. Do not want to remind you that salt and/or sugar and a hint of turmeric are essential. 

There you go! Three dishes from my very own Bangali Rannaghor. I was left exhausted and abundantly proud of my efforts. Who says, perfection is a myth!