Friday, August 30, 2013

Spicy egg curry...


I was not in a mood for cooking anything elaborate, but again I'm not a dal-chawal person, so made my favorite Egg Curry, the Bengali way. It is quick, easy and yummy. We call it Dim Kosha in Bengali. Hard boiled eggs in an onion and tomato based thick gravy with loads of garlic and chilies. I am always a big fan of any egg dishes, boiled, poached, fried, omelet, curries...all are welcome.


This egg curry needs only a few basic ingredients, but first thing first, to make this curry you need to make hard boiled eggs. Now what's the big deal about that? Here comes a confession, there was a time when, everytime I used to make hard boiled eggs they used to crack. And even if they didn't crack, I found it difficult to peel them smoothly. With time I found few simple techniques that make the egg job much easier. The most common reason why eggs crack is temperature, we store eggs in refrigerator and if you put the cold eggs in hot water they will definitely crack. So take a deep pan filled with cold water, dip the uncooked eggs in the pan and heat over low heat. After 5-6 min, increase the heat to medium-high and let it boil, keep it boiling for 6-8 min. Remove from heat, transfer the eggs into cold water. Crack the eggs and peel. I'm sure you will be thrilled to get perfectly done eggs without any mess. Make sure you are using good quality fresh eggs. Store eggs in the egg carton or the egg counter on the fridge with the pointed end down.


So here is the spicy egg curry (dim kosha)I made for my lunch today.

Things needed to make Egg curry:

  • Hard boiled eggs: 6
  • Onion: 3 cups
  • Garlic: 3 tbsp
  • Tomato: 2
  • Cumin powder: 2 tsp
  • Turmeric powder: 2 tsp
  • Red chili powder: 2 tbsp
  • Kashmiri red chili powder: 1 tsp
  • Green chilies: 3-4
  • Salt to taste
  • Sugar: 1 tsp
  • Oil to cook



Steps of making Egg curry:

  1. Boil eggs, peel them, smear with little salt and turmeric powder, keep aside. I like to prick the boiled eggs with a toothpick or fork, to ensure the eggs get all the flavors from the curry.
  2. In a deep pan or kadhai heat a tablespoon of oil, preferably mustard oil. When the oil is hot fry the boiled eggs over high heat till the surface takes a nice brown color. Take out and keep aside.
  3. In the same pan, add more oil (3 tablespoon), when the oil is hot fry the sliced onion to red. Make sure the onions are very thinly sliced.
  4. As the onion takes a red color add the garlic. I like my garlic to be crushed than paste and I use my garlic crusher for this. You can use garlic paste or grated garlic whichever suits you. Mix the garlic and cook for 2-3 min.
  5. Add chopped tomatoes. Discard all the seeds from the tomatoes and chop them fine. Add a pinch of salt, mix well, cover and cook for 5-6 min or till tomatoes are done.
  6. Add turmeric powder, cumin powder, red chili powder, kashmiri red chili powder and mix well. Cover and cook over low heat till oil separates.
  7. Add 1/4 cup of hot water, salt and sugar as per taste and the eggs, mix well. Cover and cook for 4-5 min. Add green chilies. Serve hot with steamed rice or paratha or bread.

Print Recipe
Spicy Egg Curry (Bengali style)
(Serves: 3-4)
Ingredients
Hard boiled eggs: 6
Onion (very thinly sliced): 3 cups
Garlic (crushed): 3 tbsp
Tomato (finely chopped, desseded): 2
Cumin powder: 2 tsp
Turmeric powder: 2 tsp
Red chili powder: 2 tbsp
Kashmiri red chili powder: 1 tsp
Green chilies: 3-4
Salt to taste
Sugar: 1 tsp
Oil to cook (preferably mustard oil)
Procedure:
1. Smear the hard boiled eggs with salt and turmeric powder, fry them and keep aside.
2. Fry the onions to red.
3. Add crushed garlic, cook for 2-3 min.
4. Add tomatoes, salt, cook till tomatoes are done.
5. Add dry spice powder, cook till oil separates.
6. Add water, egg, salt, sugar, cook for 5-6 min.
7. Add green chilies and serve hot.

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Tuesday, August 27, 2013

How to cook jasmine rice...


How many of you love the fried rice from a Chinese take out? I know most of you are raising your hand. But what makes that fried rice special is the basic ingredient, the rice. The Chinese fried rice we eat from these take outs use Jasmine rice. Jasmine rice is a mildly fragrant rice variety from Thailand, used in Southeast Asian cooking. The cooked rice has a sticky moist texture. Sometimes it is confused with Basmati rice from India, but these two are very different. Never replace one with the other. Use basmati rice for making pulao, biryani etc, and use jasmine rice to make Chinese fried rice, Thai rice preparations etc.





If you haven't cooked jasmine rice before, it may be a little tricky, as cooking jasmine rice requires as little water as possible. The rice should be steamed rather than boiled. Properly cooked jasmine rice results into fluffy, slightly chewy, fragrant, well formed grains. This cooked rice can be served plain with little soy sauce, sesame oil and a sprinkle of spring onion or you can make it into a delicious fried rice. But before going into the fried rice part, one needs to know how to cook jasmine rice. It is easy, but you may need to try 2-3 times to perfect it. There are a few little techniques I have learnt while cooking this particular rice and I would love to share my experience with you all.

To be honest, the first time I cooked jasmine rice I was really disappointed. I thought I wasted my money buying a bag full of jasmine rice. After that the bag was sitting quietly in my kitchen cupboard. I found it while making place for other stuff. I was not sure whether I should give it a try or not, hesitantly I tried and to my surprise it came out good. And after that there was no looking back, I regularly use jasmine rice to go with Thai and Chinese dishes and of course for making fried rice. There are various different brands of jasmine rice available in the market. I use long grain, white jasmine rice.


With time I have tried to improve the outcome, and this is the full proof method of cooking jasmine rice, I follow.

Things needed to make Jasmine Rice:

  • Jasmine Rice: 1 cup
  • Water: 2 cups
  • Salt: 3/4 tsp
  • Oil: 1 tbsp
  • Lime juice: few drops
  • A deep pan with tightly fitted lid
  • A fork or chopsticks


Steps of making Jasmine rice:


Measure the rice, wash it till the water runs clear. And make sure you have washed the rice well. Measure water with the same cup used for measuring the rice. In a deep pan add washed rice and water, add all the other ingredients. Cover the pan and let it boil, as the water boils reduce the heat to medium and keep the lid ajar (half open). Give one or two gentle stir in between. Cook till all water evaporates. Switch off heat, remove the pan from heat, cover the pan and rest the rice for 10-12 min. Open the lid and fluff the rice gently with a fork or chopstick. Serve hot.


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Saturday, August 24, 2013

Chilli fish....


Chinese food is popular world wide. India is no exception. The influence of Chinese cuisine is quite obvious, from fried rice to Hakka noodle, and chiili chicken to gobi manchurian. The Chinese seasoning and cooking technique blended with Indian taste developed these popular Indo-Chinese delicacies.

Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Mocha-chingri....Banana blossom 'n shrimp


Banana blossom is called Mocha ('cha' pronounced as in chair) in Bengali. I  had posted a recipe, Mochar ghonto, with this not so common vegetable almost a year back. If you remember, I referred to it as a 'Bizarre food'. And to prove me correct, the original Bizarre food guy Mr. Andrew Zimmern  in one of the episode of his show listed 'Mochar ghonto' as a bizarre food from India. The vegetable looks very different and tastes completely different from any other regular veggies, and most people find the cleaning procedure for the vegetable as the most time-consuming and difficult. It takes a fair bit of patience to make the vegetable ready to cook. And that is one of the reason why I last posted a recipe with this vegetable almost a year back :). But the taste of the cooked product at the end takes away all the pain. 

Friday, August 16, 2013

Walnut and choco-chip cupcake


It's almost over. I have only two more weekends left before my little first grader goes back to school. Time flies, otherwise how did these 90 days of summer vacation went by? And surprisingly enough I spent these 90 days quite peacefully. Whatever presupposed anxiety I had, my little one proved them all wrong. We had loads of fun together, learning new things, crafts, baking, movies and loads of reading.

Now it's time check the school supply list, prepare to go back to the regular routine for bedtimes. Yeah, no more relaxed bedtime (I will miss that so much.....lazy me), the alarm will be set again, the kid will be back to school and Mommy dear will be back to routine.

When it involves my kid, the most challenging part I face is food. What to prepare for breakfast, what to pack in the lunchbox, then what to make for after school meal or snack. I know all parents face the same problem, especially if your kid is a picky eater. 

Other than the usual meals, for snacks I prefer to make something that can be packed if needed. Cupcakes are one of those thing that me and my kid both like. They are quick and easy to make, and if you keep the frosting part aside, it can be stored for 4-5 days. Moreover you can have different variations, just add some fruits or nuts or chocolate or keep it plain.

On this back to school note, I made some walnut and chocolate chip cupcakes. I bake the cupcakes, cool them down and store in an air tight container for future consumption. You can add frosting just before serving, some whipped cream or drizzle some chocolate sauce on the cupcakes or add a scoop of ice cream on top, the kid will be delighted. 


Things needed to make Walnut and Choco-chip Cupcake:

  • All purpose flour: 1 cup
  • Baking powder: 1 tsp
  • Salt: 3/4 tsp
  • Unsalted butter: 1/2 cup
  • Granulated sugar: 3/4 cup
  • Eggs: 2
  • Vanilla extract: 1 tsp
  • Milk: 3 tbsp
  • Semi sweet choco chips: 1/2 cup
  • Walnut: 1/4 cup


Steps of making Walnut and Choco-chip Cupcake:


1. Pre-heat oven to 375 F. Line a muffin tray with cupcake liner, keep aside.

2. Make sure all the ingredients are at room temperature. Mix flour, salt and baking powder in a bowl and keep aside. 

3. With an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar. I used unsalted butter, you can use salted butter, in that case do not add salt to the flour as mentioned in step 1. As you beat the butter and sugar, scrap the sides with a spatula and mix.

4. Add the eggs and beat well, scraping the sides as needed. Add vanilla extract and mix well.

5. Sieve in the the dry ingredients to the wet mix and gently fold in. Add milk and mix with a spatula. Fold in the chocolate chips and broken walnut pieces.

6. Fill the cupcake liner with the cake batter upto 3/4th. Bake at 375 F for 20 min, or till a tooth pick inserted at center comes out clean. Let the cupcake cool down on a wire rack.



You can do frosting on the cupcake, of your choice. But I usually skip the frosting part. Either I drizzle some chocolate sauce just before serving or top the cupcake with some peanut butter or sometimes as a special reward for the kid I serve the cupcake topped with a scoop of ice cream. This I drizzle chocolate sauce and sprinkle some broken walnuts on the cupcake.



Print Recipe


Walnut and Choco-chip Cupcake
(Yield: 6)
Ingredients:
All purpose flour: 1 cup
Baking powder: 1 tsp
Salt: 3/4 tsp
Unsalted butter: 1/2 cup
Granulated sugar: 3/4 cup
Eggs: 2
Vanilla extract: 1 tsp
Milk: 3 tbsp
Semi sweet choco chips: 1/2 cup
Walnut: 1/4 cup

Procedure:
1. Pre-heat oven at 375 F.
2. Cream butter and sugar.
3. Add eggs and vanilla extract, beat well.
4. Sieve in the dry ingredients, add milk, gently fold in with a spatula.
5. Fol in the walnut and choco-chips.
6. Line a muffin tray with cupcake liner, fill in each upto 3/4 th, bake at 375 F for 20 min.



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Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Prawn in sesame and mustard gravy...


After coming back from our weekend trip I was not in a mood to cook any elaborate dish, nor I had the supplies in my pantry. Luckily I had some large prawns in the freezer. I like prawns not only for its taste but also for the reason it needs very little cooking time. For such large gorgeous prawns one needs some special recipe. So I choose my friend Trina's sesame and fish recipe, an unique and quick one.

Friday, August 9, 2013

Sweet and sour mango pickle....


In India pickle has its own special place. Pickles are made at home with utmost care. Family-favorite traditional recipes are handed down from one generation to the other. Indian pickles are very different compared to Western pickles. Indian pickles are strong, sharp, and most importantly spicy in nature. Both fruits and vegetables are used for making pickle. Mango is one of the favorite and most commonly used fruit for pickling. During summer, Mango is one fruit that is available in plenty, and is used to make various types of pickle. The intrinsic diversity of the Indian subcontinent is even reflected in the way pickles are made in different regions of India, each varies distinctly from the other.

Today I made one of my favorite mango pickle, a sweet and sour pickle, 'tok-misti aamer achar' as we say in Bengali (tok=sour, misti=sweet, achar=pickle).  As the sweetening agent is jaggery or gur, we also call it 'Gur-aam', (aam is mango in Bengali and gur is jaggery).

As a kid I have seen the whole process of making pickle almost every year and so many of my childhood memories are associated with it. My aunt used to make the whole year's supply of pickle for our entire family. I remember the wedges of raw mango smeared with salt and turmeric kept under hot summer sun to dry. The sun drying helps to reduce the moisture of the mango and leads to a longer shelf life of the pickle. There are  of course certain rules regarding how long one need to keep them for  drying in the sun and it is determined by the type of pickle to be made. The mangoes for sweet and sour pickle does not need to be dried for long. I still remember those  lazy and hot summer afternoon, when my aunt used to make this sweet and sour pickle, and the whole house used to be filled with that heavenly aroma of the spices. The pickle filled jar were then placed under hot sun for curing, a very important step for pickling. But we were not supposed to touch any of those sacred jars. They were very well protected from our dirty hands, to ensure the health of the pickles....then again who can stop a bunch of naughty kids, determined to taste some of the pickle without letting the adults know. I know this is not a very good example to set as a parent, but the joy of sharing those looted pickle with your cousins are priceless, golden memories of childhood.

Let's not get any more nostalgic and come back to the sweet and sour pickle recipe.


Things needed to make Sweet and Sour Mango Pickle:

  • Raw Mango: 1 kilo (2 lb)
  • Sugar cane jaggery: 1 kilo
  • Salt
  • Turmeric powder
  • Fennel seed: 1 tsp
  • Fenugreek seed: 1 tsp
  • Cumin seed: 1 tsp
  • Nigella seed: 1 tsp
  • Mustard seed: 1 tsp
  • Dry red chili: 4-5
  • Mustard oil: 1 tsp


Steps of making Sweet and Sour Mango Pickle:


1. Wash the mango and pat dry. Peel the mango and cut into wedges. Discard the white soft-stone from the center.



2. Smear the mango wedges with little salt and turmeric powder and keep under hot sun for 1-2 hrs.

3. Take the spice seeds and two dry red chilies in a flat pan and dry roast, till nice aroma releases, about 2-3 min. Take care not to burn them. Let it cool down. Coarsely ground the seeds. Just give few pounds to break the seeds, no need to powder them. Keep aside.

4. In a pan add very little water and the jaggery cubes, cook over medium heat till the jaggery melts. I used sugar cane jaggery for making this pickle, as that's the one traditionaly used to make Bengali pickles. Switch off heat, keep the jaggery warm.

5. In another pan heat a teaspoon of mustard oil, as the oil is hot add a teaspoon of the freshly made spice and rest of the whole dry red chilies. Add mango wedges, give a quick stir. Add the jaggery and mix well. Cook over low-medium heat till the mangoes are done. Stir in between. When thew mangoes are completely cooked, bring it to boil, and keep boiling for 4-5 min, be careful not to splash any hot jaggery. Switch off heat, sprinkle the rest of the freshly made spice, mix and let cool down.

6. Take a sterilized glass jar with tightly fitted lid, pour the mango pickle in the jar. Cure under hot sun for 6-7 days. Relish your pickle with your meal or after your meal. I prefer to do the latter. Store pickle in a dry place and once a week cure under hot sun.





Print Recipe and PDFPrint Recipe
Sweet and Sour Mango Pickle
Ingredients:
Raw Mango: 1 kilo (2 lb)
Sugar cane jaggery: 1 kilo
Fennel seed: 1 tsp
Fenugreek seed: 1 tsp
Cumin seed: 1 tsp
Nigella seed: 1 tsp
Mustard seed: 1 tsp
Dry red chili: 4-5
Mustard oil: 1 tsp
Turmeric powder
Salt

Procedure:
1. Cut raw mango into wedges, smear with salt and turmeric, dry under sun for 1- hrs.
2. Dry roast whole spices and two dry red chili, coarsely ground them, keep aside.
3. Melt the jaggery with little water.
4. In a pan, heat mustard oil, add 1 teaspoon of the spice and remaining red chilies.
5. Add mango, stir, add jaggery. Cook till mango is cooked. Boil for 3-4 min. Sprinkle rest of the ground spices.
6. Keep in a sterilized glass jar, cure under hot sun for 6-7 days.

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Monday, August 5, 2013

Misti pulao...Bengali style sweet pulao


Misti Pulao is a traditional Bengali rice dish. The word 'Misti' in Bengali means sweet, so it is essentially a rice preparation that tastes sweet. This is also referred as Holud Pulao or Basanti Pulao, as both holud and basanti stands for the color yellow. So if I need to translate Misti Pulao I would prefer to say yellow-colored, fragrant, mildly sweet signature Bengali rice dish. Huh that's I call 'lost in translation'!!!!

I remember my mother used to make this for any special occasion at home. Before the invasion of Chinese food, Dhaba food and Pizza etc, this pulao used to be a must for any parties. I make it often at home, specially for our Sunday lunch, to go with the mutton curry. Mutton curry and Misti Pulao must have been bestowed by the Food God, a pair made in heaven. If you haven't tasted it yet, you are surely missing something.

Like other traditional Bengali dishes I learnt this too from my mother. For me, she makes the best Misti pulao on Earth. This pulao needs some special ingredients, first the rice, it has to be Gobindobhog (a fragrant rice cultivated in West Bengal (India), Bangladesh), and saffron for the unique flavor. But it is difficult to get Gobindobhog rice outside West Bengal, either you can try Kalazira rice from Bangladeshi store or just go with Basmati rice. I have seen my mother using as little saffron as possible to the dish, as saffron is the most costly spice in the world. Sometimes I have seen her not using any saffron, she used to smear the rice with turmeric powder to get that beautiful yellow color. Mothers know how to make a meal cost-effective. The another must thing for this dish is ghee or clarified butter. The rice needs to be cooked in ghee, or else you won't get that flavor and taste. According to my mother, you can skip the saffron but not the ghee.


The misti pulao goes best with spicy mutton curry. For mutton curry recipes check these links,

And here is how to make Misti Pulao...

Things needed to make Misti Pulao:

  • Rice: 1 cup
  • Water: 2 cups
  • Cashew nuts: 1/4 cup
  • Raisins: 1/4 cup
  • Ginger (grated): 1 tsp
  • Bay leaves: 1-2
  • Shahjeera / black cumin: 1 tsp
  • Cinnamon: 1 stick
  • Green cardamom: 3
  • Cloves: 6-7
  • Nutmeg powder: 1/8 tsp
  • Saffron: a pinch
  • Milk: 2 tbsp
  • Turmeric powder: 1/2 tsp
  • Sugar: 2-3 tbsp
  • Salt to taste
  • Ghee /clarified ghee: 4 tbsp
  • Turmeric powder




Steps of making Misti Pulao:


1. Soak rice in water for 30 min. Wash and drain. To get a nice yellow color without using any food color smear the rice with turmeric powder. This is one little trick I have learnt from my mother.

2. Soak saffron in lukewarm milk, cover and keep aside.

3. In a deep pan, heat 1 tablespoon ghee (clarified ghee), fry cashew nuts ans raisins till they turn brown, keep aside. You can use oil along with ghee. But it is preferable to cook this rice with ghee only.

4. In the same pan add more ghee, as the ghee melts, add bay leaves, shahjeera, cinnamon, green cardamom, cloves, cook for 1 min. Add soaked rice, grated ginger and gently give a stir. Cook for 3-4 min. the rice needs to fried in ghee. Add milk-soaked saffron and cook over medium heat for 1-2 min. Add hot water to the rice. The water and rice ratio is 2:1. Add salt and sugar, mix gently, cover the pan. As the water starts to boil, keep the lid ajar and cook for 8-9 min. Switch off heat, sprinkle nutmeg powder and little more ghee, cover and let stand for 10-12 min. Serve hot with mutton curry.





Print Recipe and 

PDFPrint Recipe
Bengali Misti Pulao
(Serves 3-4)
Ingredients:
Gobindobhog Rice: 1 cup
Water: 2 cups
Cashew nuts: 1/4 cup
Raisins: 1/4 cup
Ginger (grated): 1 tsp
Bay leaves: 1-2
Shahjeera / black cumin: 1 tsp
Cinnamon: 1 stick
Green cardamom: 3
Cloves: 6-7
Nutmeg powder: 1/8 tsp
Saffron: a pinch
Milk: 2 tbsp
Turmeric powder: 1/2 tsp
Sugar: 2-3 tbsp
Salt to taste
Ghee /clarified ghee: 4 tbsp
Turmeric powder: 1 tsp

Procedure:
1. Soak rice for 30min, wash and drain.
2. In a pan heat ghee, fry cashew nuts and raisins, keep aside.
3. In the same pan, add more ghee, add bay leaves, whole garam masala, shajeera, grated ginger and rice, cook for 3-4min.
4. Add saffron (soaked in milk), salt and sugar, mix well. Add hot water, let it boil. Partially cover the pan cook for 8-9 min. Switch off heat
5. Sprinkle nutmeg powder, and ghee, cover and let stand for 10-12 min. Serve hot.

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Friday, August 2, 2013

Macher chop...Fish croquettes


We, Bengalis' are passionate about so many things, Rabindrasangeet, football, movies etc and etc, but if you ask me which one is the most important, I would say food. Any discussion either starts with food or ends with food. We so often complain about the high prices of the vegetables and fish and meat, but again that does not stop us to devour the delicacies made out of them. Be it  at an expensive restaurant or  at a street food joint, we equally enjoy both.

Today I want to share a Bengali style snack recipe with you all. You can serve it as a snack along with afternoon tea or as starter in a party. It is a deep fried croquette made with fish. In Bengali it is called Macher chopMacher chop or Bengali style fish croquette is one of my favorite snack. And the recipe is very close to my heart. I learnt it from my mother.

Generally fishes like bhetki (Bekti), rui (Rohu), katla are used for this preparation. You can use tilapia or swai (basa) fillets too. The fish is first cooked with some spices then made into patties, then they are dipped in egg-wash and rolled in breadcrumbs. The breadcrumb coated fish patties are deep fried to perfection. I love eating hot freshly fried fish croquettes with some spicy Kasundi (Bengali style mustard sauce).

Try this for you weekend snack and enjoy with your friends and family.

Things needed to make fish croquettes:

  • Fish fillet or fish with bone: 500 gm
  • Onion cubed: 1 small
  • Garlic: 1 clove
  • Ginger: 1/2 inch piece
  • Whole garam masala
  • Peppercorns
  • Bay leaves: 2-3
To make the patty:
  • Onion (chopped): 4 tbsp
  • Garlic paste: 1 tbsp
  • Ginger (grated): 2 tsp
  • Red chili powder: 1-2 tsp
  • Green chilies (chopped): 1-2 tbsp
  • Cumin powder: 2 tsp
  • Garam masala powder: 1 tsp
  • Mashed potato: 1 cup
  • Fresh coriander leaves (chopped): 3 tbsp
  • Fresh mint leaves (chopped): 2 tbsp
  • Sugar to taste
  • Salt to taste
To coat and fry:
  • Egg: 2
  • Water: 2-3 tbsp
  • Breadcrumbs to coat
  • Oil to fry


Steps of making fish croquettes:


1. Clean the fish pieces. You can use either fish fillets or fish with bone. I personally prefer using fish with bone, as that imparts much more flavor. In a deep pan add water, cleaned fish pieces, cubed onion, garlic cloves, ginger piece, whole garam masala (cinnamon, cardamom, cloves), peppercorns, bay leaves and salt, let it boil. As the water boils the scums will float, discard that. Reduce heat and cook for 12-15 min. Switch off heat and with a slotted spoon take out the fish from the broth. Strain the broth, keep it for future use to make soup or other dishes.

2. Let the fish pieces cool down. If you are using fish with bone, then discard skin and fish bones, mash the fish.

3. In a pan heat 2 tbsp oil, when the oil is hot add chopped onion. Cook till the onions change color.


4. Add ginger paste and grated ginger, mix well and cook for 3-4 min.


5. Add the mashed fish and mix well, cook for 2-3 min. Add mashed potato, salt and sugar, mix well.


6. Add cumin powder, red chili powder, garam masala powder, mix well. Add chopped coriander, mint and green chilies, mix well.


7. Let the fish mix cool down. Make round shape with the mixture. You can make any shape of your choice. I made flat round patty.



8. In a bowl crack the eggs and mix with some water. In another bowl or deep plate keep the breadcrumbs. Dip each round fish patty into the egg wash, roll in breadcrumb to coat well. Keep aside. Repeat the process for all other patties.


9. Dip the coated patty into egg wash and again roll in bread crumbs, one by one. As you roll them in breadcrumb press gently with your finger and palm to give a definite smooth shape. So you need to coat twice.


10. Heat oil in a deep pan or kadhai, fry the fish croquettes to brown.


11. Serve hot with tomato ketchup or kasundi (mustard sauce) and onion slices. Enjoy with friends and family.



Print Recipe and PDFPrint Recipe
Bengali style fish croquettes (Macher chop)
(Yields: 15)

Ingredients:
Fish: 500 gm
Boiled and mashed potato: 1 cup
Onion cubed: 1 small
Garlic: 1 clove
Ginger: 1/2 inch piece
Whole garam masala
Peppercorns
Bay leaves: 2-3
Onion (chopped): 4 tbsp
Garlic paste: 1 tbsp
Ginger (grated): 2 tsp
Red chili powder: 1-2 tsp
Green chilies (chopped): 1-2 tbsp
Cumin powder: 2 tsp
Garam masala powder: 1 tsp
Fresh coriander leaves (chopped): 3 tbsp
Fresh mint leaves (chopped): 2 tbsp
Sugar to taste
Salt to taste
Egg: 2
Water: 2-3 tbsp
Breadcrumbs to coat
Oil to deep fry

Procedure:
1. Cook fish pieces with cubed onion, garlic clove, ginger piece, whole garam masala, bay leaves, peppercorn and salt, for 15 min.
2. Strain, let the fish pieces cool down.
3. Mash fish pieces, discard skin and bones.
4. In a pan heat oil, cook chopped onion till red, add garlic and ginger paste, cook for 3-4 min.
5. Add mashed fish, cook for 2-3 min, add mashed potato, salt, sugar, cumin powder, red chili powder, garam masala powder. Mix and cook for 2-3 min.
6. Add chopped coriander, mint, green chilies. Mix well. Let the mixture cool down, Make flat round patties from the mixture.
7. Dip each patty in the egg-wash, then coat with breadcrumbs. Again dip in egg-wash and coat with breadcrumbs. Do double coating for all the patties.
8. Heat oil and deep fry and enjoy your fish croquettes.


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