Piyaju vs Beguni

There has always been a debate at our house on which is better? The Piyaju or the Beguni. Deep down, I'm sure we think it's both because no Ramadan day is complete without iftar that doesn't include these both. Beguni is deep fried battered eggplant and Piyaju is sort of the Bengali pakora made with Lentils and onions. They are both friend and are extra crunchy...And ofcourse by no means are they healthy...But come on! We all know that anything unhealthy is very tasty! So here we are sharing these recipes of two iftar delicacies. Of course there are more to come!!

Beguni (Deep fried Eggplant)
Ingredients:
1 large eggplant, thinly sliced
Oil to fry

Batter Recipe:
Besan (aka Gram flour or chickpea flour)
salt to taste
.25 tsp of turmeric powder
.5 tsp of red chilli powder
.5 tsp of cumin powder
.5 tsp of baking powder
salt to taste
water

Procedure:

1. Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl.
2. Slowly add water to make the batter smooth and semi thick consistency.
3. Dip the eggplant and coat in batter
4. fry in oil over medium heat until light golden brown

Serve hot

Piyaju

Ingredients

.5 cup of Masoor Daal (Lentils), soaked for 3-4 hrs in hot water, you can soak overnight as well
1 Onion, thinly sliced
3-5 green chillies, sliced
.25 tsp of turmeric powder
.5 tsp of red chilli powder
.5 tsp of cumin powder
.25 tsp of ginger powder
.25 cup corriander, thinly sliced (optional)
salt to taste
Oil to fry

Procedure:
1. Blend lentils in a blender to make a paste. You made add a little bit of water to make loose.
2. in a bowl, combine all ingredients and let sit for 5 mins
3. Make small flattened balls and fry in oil over medium heat until golden brown
4. Pat on tissue paper and serve hot.




Photo Credits:
Picture of Piyaju was found on wikipedia.com
Picture of Beguni was found on kichukhonn.blogspot.com

Fish with Cauliflower and Tomatoes

Fish, ideally, any less bony fish would work, eg. Tilapia etc..
1 onion, medium sized, thinly sliced
1 tomato, 8 wedges
1-2 cloves of garlic, sliced
.25 tsp of tumeric powder
.5 tsp of red chilli powder
.5 tsp of cumin powder
3-4 green chillies, slivered
coriander leaves to garnish
salt, to taste
oil

First and foremost, it is very important that you wash your fish with salt several times. If the fish smells all your efforts of cooking this or any fish dish is going to go to a waste.

1. In a deep skillet, saute onions and garlic until light golden brown

2. Add spices, salt and green chillies. Continue to fry

3. Add .5 cup of water and simmer

4. Add fish, cauliflower and tomatoes and continue to cook, from time to time keep on adding water so that there is light and thin gravy. Cover and let simmer. move the saucepan around instead of stirring so that the fish does not break.

5. Once the cauliflower is soft and fish is done sprinkle with a little more of cumin and garnish with coriander and serve.

Borhani for your Biryani

Borhani is a light refreshing minty and spicy yogurt drink that is usually sipped while enjoying a scrumptious plate of Biryani, a layered meat rice dish. This drink is highly popular during weddings as it is the perfect match with Biryani, which is normally served at Bengali Wedding. Though it can be enjoyed on a hot summer day!


Ingredients:

4 cups yogurt
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 green chillies
1 teaspoon coriander
2 tablespoons mint leaves
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground mustard

If wish, you can use little bit Bit Laban/Kala Laban (aka gray salt) - 1/8 tsp

Directions:

1. Beat yogurt with a beater. Strain through a cheese cloth.

2. Grind chillies and mint leaves finely.

3. Roast cumin seeds and coriander very lightly over a low heat, grind them.

4. Combine spices and blend with the yogurt.

5. Season to taste with more spices and a little sugar and salt.

6.Keep in the refrigerator.

Serve cold at lunch or dinner.

Chotpoti by Susmita Ghosh

This is probably the most popular snack among the urban people of Bangladesh. Usually this is available in fast food store. This is also known as Futchka when it is served on top individual fuchkas. (Fuchka is nothing but puffed and crispy medium size puri. A hole is created on top of futchka and chotpoti is served within it. Fuchka acts as a kind of serving plate).

Ingredients:

2 cups  White pea, soaked overnight
2 Onions, medium sized and thinly sliced
1 Tomato, thinly sliced
2 Potatoes, large, boiled and thinly sliced
2 Egg, boiled & thinly sliced
1 Cucumber, thinly sliced
½ bunch Coriander leaves, finely chopped
3 Green chillies, chopped
1 tsp Rock salt, to taste         
2 tbsp Vinegar/Lemon Juice
Regular salt, to taste
2 tbsp Sugar
100 grams Tamarind         

Dry masala(whole):
1 tbsp Cumin             
1 tbsp Coriander          
4 Red Chillies
5 or 6 Cloves, whole             
6 Black pepper      
1 tsp Five spice        
½ tsp Aniseed            
Roast all the dry masala in a hot pan very lightly, cool and grind altogether.

Directions:

1. Cook the soaked white peas with little salt & turmeric in a pressure cooker till they become soft. The peas should not be totally meshed and they should be left with little water (don’t make it dry).

2. Boil the tamarind in a cup of water. Add little red chilly (one pinch), sugar and pinch of dry roasted cumin powder. Boil for ten minutes. Cool and strain and keep the watery portion only. Cool and then add lemon juice and rock salt.

3. Take a big bowl. Mix the cooked white peas, tamarind juice as cooked in the
last step and other ingredients. Mix them thoroughly.

4. Place it small individual serving plates. Garnish with coriander leaves, onion
sprinkles, crushed fuchkas/nimkies.

5. Depending on your taste you can vary the amount of roasted masala and tamarind
juice.

This recipe was found on http://sutapa.com/contributed5.html#chotpoti

Tidbit: White pea is aka kabuli chana or if neither is available you may
use canned Garbanzo Beans aka Chick Peas

Lamb Chaap

Ingredients:

Boneless Lamb meat
Kabab spice
Minced onion
Black pepper
Grated green chili
Grated green papaya
Minced ginger/garlic
Mustard Oil
Gram Flour (Besan)
Salt
Cooking Oil

Preparation:

1. Mix all the ingredients (except gram flour and oil) with the meat and marinate for a minimum of an hour or so.

2. Then add gram flour on both side of the chaap and fry till meat is tender.

Fish Kaliya

Ingredients:

2 large Rui Fish
3 teaspoons turmeric powder
3 teaspoons
salt
2 teaspoon panch phoran
1 teaspoon cumin powder
2 teaspoons coriander powder
3/4 teaspoon chili powder
1 Tablespoon plain plain yogurt
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
oil for deep frying
3 medium sized potatoes
1 large onion, finely chopped
2" ginger root , peeled and grated
2-3 cloves of garlic, finely sliced
2 dried red chili

Directions:
1. Cut each fish into 4 quarters as evenly as possible. Wash and drain the fish and place in a bowl; rub the pieces with 2 teaspoons turmeric powder and one teaspoon of salt and let sit about 15-20 minutes.

2. Heat the oil for deep frying in a small deep vessel . Deep fry the fish a few pieces at a time - 5 mins. each side and then set them aside.

3. Peel the potatoes and cut each one into 4 long wedges. Wash the potatoes drain and set aside.

4. Heat 6-8 tablespoons of the oil add red chili peppers into it and add the panchphoran. When the panchporan begins to sputter, reduce the heat to "low" and add the ginger and garlic and stir fry for 30 sec to a minute.

5. Next add the onions and stir fry them on "medium" heat until they are soft and golden brown.

6. Now reduce the heat to the lowest setting and add the remaining turmeric powder, chili powder, coriander powder and cumin powder stir fry for 2-3 mins.

7. Raise the heat to "medium-high" and now add the potatoes. Stir fry for 5-6 minutes making sure they are evenly covered in all the spices.

8. Add the yogurt and stir fry for another minute or two and then add water and bring it to boil. Cover the pan, reduce the heat to "low" and let it cook for 15 mins.

9. Now add the fish and stir once. Cover and cook some more until the vegetables are done.

10. Sprinkle the garam masala and take off from the heat. Serve hot with rice.

FeatherBack Fish Balls. (Chitol Machher Kofta)

Ingredients:
Fresh Chitol fish paste - 2 cups
Finely chopped onions - ½ cup
Ginger paste - 1 teaspoon
Garlic paste - 1 teaspoon
Chili powder - 1 teaspoon
Cumin powder - 1 teaspoon
Ground turmeric - ½ teaspoon
Black pepper - ½ teaspoon
Garam masala (cinnamon, cardamom and cloves) - ½ teaspoon
Finely chopped green chili - 1 teaspoon
Chopped corainder - 2 teaspoons
Salt - 1 teaspoon (or as needed)
Oil - ½ cup

Preparation:

1. Mix the fish paste with ½ teaspoons each of ginger, garlic, chili powder, cumin powder and salt.
2. Now mix the paste with the garam masala and black pepper, and make small balls out of it.
3. Heat oil in a pan and deep fry the fish balls until they are reddish.
Keep aside.
4. Now brown the onions in the same pan, and add the rest of the ginger, garlic, chili powder, cumin, turmeric, salt and some water. Mix well for 2 minutes.
5. Add the fried fish balls to the pan and mix with the sauce slowly.
6. Add in about ½ cup of water and coriander, cover and keep over low heat.
7. After 3 to 4 minutes, when the gravy thickens, turn off the heat and serve hot.

Tidbit: The fish balls can also be served separately once they are fried and cooked.

Doi Begun

Ingredients:

3-4 Japanese eggplants
1 teaspoon turmeric powder
2 onions, sliced finely
3 teaspoons cumin seeds
8 oz plain yogurt
a little water
1.5 teaspoons salt
pinch of chilli powder
pinch of garam mashla
pinch of ground corriander
Oil for frying


Preparation:

1. Cut the eggplants into 1/2 inch thick slices. Rub the turmeric powder and 1 teaspoon of salt on the slices of eggplant, allow to sit for about 10 minutes.

2. Heat oil in a skillet of frypan and fry the egplant slices until brown on both sides and cooked (just as you would for begun bhaja). Set aside.

3. Now fry the sliced onion on medium-low heat until golden brown (8-10 mins). Set these aside too.

4. Roast the cumin seeds, allow them to cool and them crush them or grind them into a powder.

5. Add the rest of the salt and the cumin to the yogurt and beat it, adding a little water (about 4 Tablespoons) to it to make it considerably thinner. When it is uniformly mixed set aside.

6. Now take a serving dish and arrange the fried eggplant and onions in alternating layer (it is nice if you start with a layer of eggplants and finish with a layer of onions on top).

7. Pour the diluted yogurt mix on top of the dish evenly.

8. Garnish with chilli powder, corriander powder and garam mashla.

Serve chilled.
Serves: 4 people
Serving ideas: This dish goes exceptionally well with any Biriyani.

Bhaja Bhaat (This is one of my fav!!)

Ingredients:

Cooked Rice

Cooking Oil

1 Onion, thinly sliced

Dry Peppers/Red Peppers
Salt, to taste

Preparation:

1. Take a non-stick pan and add heat and oil

2. Then add onion and peppers till they turn brown

3. Add cooked rice and sprinkle salt

Tidbit: You can also add tomato and parsely if desired.

Bhuna Khichuri

Ingredients:

1 Bayleaf

2 -3 Cardamoms
1 cup of Daal (1/2 Moong Daal, 1/2 Masoor Daal) thoroughly washed

2 cups Basmati Rice, thoroughly washed

3 cloves of Garlic
3 slices of Ginger
1/2 tsp of Turmeric

Canola Oil

1 Cinnamon Stick
Salt, to taste

Preparation:

1. On medium high heat, fry ginger, garlic, cinnamon stick, bay leaf and cardamom

2. Then add the rice, daal and fry them in the heat

3. Boil 5 cups of water and add the water into the pot when rice and daal are fried.

4. Add salt and turmeric powder.

5. Once the water starts boiling, cover the pot for about 20 mins on medium low heat.

6. Add fried onions (Beresta) once done and remove the pot from the heat.

Tok Begun

Ingredients

1 eggplant, cubed or 4-5 small eggplants cut into slits for a prettier presentation
1 onion, chopped
3 Roma tomatoes, chopped
1 tbsp garlic paste
1 tsp ginger paste
1 tsp tamarind paste
1 tsp cooking oil, of your choice
a pinch of sugar
juice of half a lime
.25 tsp of Panch phoran spice (Bengali five spice - consists equal parts of fenugreek(methi), nigella seed (kalonji), mustard seed or (rai or shorshe), fennel seed (saunf or mouri), cumin seed (jira))

Directions

1. Heat oil on medium/high heat.

2. Add onions, cook until soft.

3. Add tomatoes, ginger, garlic. Cook for 5 mins until soft.

4. Add eggplant, sugar and tamarind. Stir.

5. Cover and cook on low heat for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

6. Add the lime juice and paach phoran. cook for 2-3 mins

Serve Hot with Rice

Zee's Rezaala

Rezaala is a scrumptious curry dish that originated from the Moghul Period. It is a popular dish amongst the South Asian Countries, particularly in Bangladesh and the Northern part of India.

Ingredients:

(Please note that these are guesstimated measurements)

4lbs Goat Meat
1 tbsp Conola Oil
1-2 tbsp Yogurt
1 tsp Garam masala powder
3 or 4 Cardamom, whole
1 Cinnamon stick
3 or 4 Cloves, whole
6 or 7 black pepper
2 tsp ground pepper
4 onions, chopped
1. 25 tsp ginger paste
1.25 tsp garlic paste
Salt, to taste
1 tsp red chili powder, to taste

Preparation:

1. In a pot, mix all the ingredients
2. Cook under medim heat until the meat is tender. on occasion when mixture becomes dry add water to maintain gravy.

Total cook time: about 1hr and 30 mins