Rinku Bhattacharya's Blog, page 86
January 21, 2014
Black and White Wednesday -
As this snowy Tuesday draws to a close, I am hoping that I can fit in this post in time to make it for a part of this weeks, Black and White Wednesday galleys.
Interestingly enough, as I have been making some of my favorite cauliflower soup, I chanced upon this picture. In between simmering and stirring, I have been facebook chatting with this week’s host Susan, who like me shares a love for the four seasons that we have here in the northeast.
Well, I shall need all the support and inspiration and of course warm cups of soup to get me up tomorrow and keep me out and about through this frigid week that mother nature has planned for us in NYC.
I have spend a busy week in the kitchen, with some spicy chilies and the like over the weekend, without realizing the weather, thankfully they shall keep me warm and in time make their way through the pages of the blog. I have thus far been a good girl with bedtimes this year, and once I hit the post button, I shall continue to keep up my resolve.
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January 20, 2014
Turnips with Green Peas and Kashmiri Seasonings
Varieties of turnips such as the purple top and the waxed turnip or rutabaga all show up in my house in the dead of winter. While I get extremely excited about the tiny turnips that ring in spring for us, I am fairly ambivalent about these other varieties.
However, today I have a dish that I am truly excited about. In fact, I made it right in the middle of the week and did not have much time to photograph it, so I had to make it again to take some pictures.
This has been quite a busy weekend, and it looks like it shall be quite an action packed year at the rate we are heading. Deepta has found quite her niche with the technogirls program of the local girls scouts league. It takes her away every Sunday and now, with the competition approaching, it seems like she is out almost all her free time.
I have done a lot of good cooking and actually, even have some interesting news that I promise to share with you later this week. I have generally resisted the urge to spend more time online on the blog or on social media, I have felt that overall, it tends to take away from creative thinking. That and well, I have kind of been busy at work. All the glow the vacation is fading away, almost too soon.
The first time I had tried a dish with turnips that had caught my attention and taste buds was at my friends Priti’s house. Her husband Mayan is from the Himachal highlands of India and turnips are used a lot in their cooking. His variation of this dish was with more sauce, and included a lot of dried mint and a nice dollop of yogurt to create a delicate soupy gravy.
Playing with some of those ideas and meandering further up to Kashmir I have composed today’s dish. This has gently touch of fennel and asafetida, both being signature ingredients in Kashmiri spicing, I have made a drier saucy creation and laced it with a generous handful of sweet peas that are readily available in my freezer all times of the year.
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Turnips with Green Peas and Kashmiri Seasonings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
A lively dish of turnips and green peas inspired by the highlands of India.
Ingredients
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds1 teaspoon black pepper corns
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 dried red chili
2 tablespoons oil (preferably mustard oil)
1 tablespoons freshly grated ginger
1/2 teaspoon asafetida
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon Kashmiri red chili powder
1/2 teaspoon red cayenne pepper
6 to 8 medium sized purple top turnips, peeled and halved and cut into 1/2 cm pieces
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup whole milk or soy yogurt
1/2 teaspoon dried mint (optional)
3/4 cup of frozen green peas
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
Instructions
Lightly dry roast the fennel, black peppercorns and cumin seeds for a couple of minutes and grind to a smooth powder and set aside.Heat the oil and add in the ginger and saute lightly for a minute.
Add in the asafetida, turmeric, kashmiri red chili powder, and the cayenne pepper and mix well.
Stir in the turnips with the powdered spices and cook for 2 minutes until the turnips are well coated.
Stir in the salt and the yogurt and mix well.
Cover the pot and cook the turnips on very low heat for 15 minutes.
Remove the cover and stir the mixture, the turnips should be very tender at this point.
Stir in the mint is using and the frozen peas and cook for 2 additional minutes.
Garnish with the chopped cilantro and serve hot.
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January 14, 2014
Chicken Curry with Tomatoes and Green Chilies
This chicken curry should really be renamed Lara’s Chicken Curry, as I last made it at my daughter’s friend Lara’s request and looks like it has become quite a hit. I have had at least three kids over since then, who have heard about this chicken curry and want some of it. In fact, much to my daughter’s concern that their quota of pasta and cheese which is the usual play date staple might be seeing it’s demise.
There is nothing very unusual about this recipe, it is definitely easy, certainly flavorful enough to appeal to a diversity of people in your world. And hey, what’s not to love about a stewed and spiced chicken dish while the weather is still cold and chilly.
I seem to have beaten my own record for sleeping, but, I am enjoying my slumbers while I can. I have certainly been waking up nicely refreshed. I would say this is sign of growing old, except that most people tend to have reverse problems with their sleep as they get older. LOL!
The problem with all this sleep is that I never have enough time for anything, especially since my cooking competes with my love for reading and this in turn competes with my love for sleeping.
All of this feeling rushed makes me nostalgic for India, just imagine getting this kind of produce delivered at home everyday. Yes, this is a picture of my mother’s favorite vegetable man. She was not happy about the picture taking as she felt that this diminished her bargaining power for the day!
Well, down to this chicken curry, it falls in the genre of basic chicken curries, such as this one, or even this one from Soma’s blog. This is a simple and comforting dish that will work well anytime of the week.
Print
Chicken Curry with Tomatoes and Green Chilies
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
A simple and flavorful chicken curry that is perfect for all occasions.
Ingredients
3 tablespoons oil1 medium sized red onion, finely chopped
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 pounds of boneless, skinless chicken thighs cut into smaller pieces
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon salt or to taste
1/2 teaspoon sugar
2-3 cloves
3 green cardamoms
1 large stick of cinnamon (about 2 inches, broken)
1 tablespoon cumin-coriander powder
2 tomatoes chopped
3 green chilies, minced
4 tablespoons sour cream
1 tablespoon finely chopped cilantro
Instructions
Heat the oil on medium heat for about a minute.Add in the onion and cook the onion stirring well for about 4 minutes, until the onion wilts and begins to turn gently golden.
Add in the ginger and the garlic and cook for another minute.
Add in the chicken and mix well.
Turn the heat on medium high and cook the chicken for about 3 minutes until well mixed.
add in the turmeric, salt, sugar, cloves, cinnamon, cumin coriander powder and cook for 2 minutes.
Add in the tomatoes and cook for about 6 to 7 minutes, until the tomatoes are well mixed and the juices being to run clear with the oil leaching through the sidea.
Add in the green chilies and the sour cream and mix well.
Turn the heat onto low and simmer for at least 15 to 20 minutes.
Turn off the heat and let the mixture rest for 5 minutes, garnish with the cilantro and serve.
Notes
This recipe is a great dish to make ahead as the flavors improve overnigh.
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January 12, 2014
6 Ballygunge Place in Kolkata, India
The world changes and in time, we need to learn to change with it or we are left behind.
The first year that I visited Kolkata and had found out about the upcoming wave of Bengali restaurants, I was rather bemused and unsure about what I thought about them. To me even a decade ago, this was a rather alien concept, although I had ventured to Aheli at Peerless, Inn at my husbands’ (as we know he is not a Bengali and pre-fatherhood he was as adventurous about trying things as me). This even more than ten years ago closer to twelve, and the thought of a Bengali restaurant seemed strange. However, it is fairly mainstream today, and the good thing is that most of these places are reasonably true to the traditional flavors.
The restaurant that does get my vote for home style Bengali cuisine is however not Oh! Calcutta, but 6 Ballygunge Place. I did enjoy my visit to Oh! Calcutta, it was a visit with mom to 6 Ballygunge Place that sealed the deal for me so to say. Interestingly enough, they are even located in what I would consider a rather residential neighborhood rather than a commercial thoroughfare. They do have other branches all over the city.
Unlike other restaurants of its ilk, this spot has extremely deftly, decided to give the end user, what they really want a complete Bengali meal, done in the home style manner. The Bengali kitchen and table is much like the southern table, to put together the trappings of what might be considered a full fledged meal, there are a cornucopia of small dishes that while individually simple do add up collectively in terms of time.
It is not something that the average household can indulge in everyday anymore. My mother is getting along in years and after the passing of Dad, I have also increasingly realized that there is more that I would like to do with her rather than just spend time doing other things with her. So, this folks has become more than an annual ritual. First off, like other restaurants in Kolkata, they always have seasonal garb, after all, what is Kolkata, without its festivals. Even my husband was amused and startled to see the Christmas spirit in Kolkata, this year.
Look at the introductory plate here, they actually have alu-korola makha. This simple medley of mashed potato and bitter melon is something I never expect to find outside home. There everyday lunch buffet that is still at approximately under $10 per person, is quite the deal. 
Simple homey dishes such as Begun Bhaja, Fried Eggplant, the mentioned alu-korola makha (mashed spiced potato and bitter melon), shag bhaja (sautéed mixed greens) and alur dom (slow cooked Bengali potatoes). Hopefully all of this now has you running over to some Bengali sites, here, here and there or better yet, reaching out for my book. For a fun and lighthearted view with some Bengali gems like kasha mango, here is Malika’s site, for a chockload of anything Indian and a world of resources here is Zoe’ site and for some amazing visuals with food history here is Spices and Pisces. Well, I digress, all of this food recounting is making me hungry. 
But as you can see, that which we call starters is no small affair. All of this comes beautifully served with hot airy luchis. I love the way they serve it. Truth be told folks once you have indulged in the joys of a freshly made luchi, you will reconsider the naan. Of course, the trick is to have someone make it right.
On the non-vegetarian side of the universe they tend to have a chicken, fish and goat meat offering. The fish is usually a home style parshe (mullet) or even tangra done in mustard sauce. Usually, am surprised they do not have another fish in lieu of two mean dishes. Maybe an indication of the changing tastes. They finish of course with dessert, usually something like Misti Doi. My only wish, its about time they introduced a branch in New York.
The Co-Ordinates
6 Ballygunge Place
Kolkata, India
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January 8, 2014
Blackbean Soup and a bit of excitement for Bengali Five Spice
As I had guessed, the odds were that I would be away from this space while on vacation. I have to confess that it really is a great thing to sometimes shut out all connectivity and spend time with people, talking and savoring the moment. We had a lot of fun, and you will see some glimpses as I sift through my pictures. I came back to a bit of excitement to find out that The Bengali Five Spice Chronicles had won the Best India Cookbook (2013) in the Gourmand Awards. Now, while that does not change the book, it feels good to see some recognition for the book, especially since I stink at promoting the book. Returning to Kennedy on a bleak dull day, I missed the sounds and colors of Indian almost instantly. India is a treat for the senses in almost every possible way, it takes me just an hour in my mother’s kitchen seduces me with the tantalizing fragrance of mustard oil, panch phoron and the visual delights of freshly chopped winter vegetables. The streets echo with vendor sounds, and busines, ambience and commerce all blend together into a happy marriage. The good news is that you get spared the New Year’s recap and resolutions post, since I am trying to cope with these super chilly temperatures and jet lag. I really wish we could spend all of January in India. At the end of the day, my Bengali blood is just not thick enough for these super cold temperatures. So, yes it really is pretty obvious that I am moving onto to soup, I mean let’s face it, nothing warms and comforts better than a good bowl of soup. This one is a kid tested and approved version of blackbean soup that will nourish you and warm your cockles.
Hopefully, it will also persuade you to check out some more recipes such as this Beef Barley Soup, a collection of ten from Small Bites and of course today’s recipe which as I told you about is soup. Adding some trusted ingredients from my spice closet certainly makes this blackbean soup sing, amazing what some ginger and cumin can do. As you might have guessed by now that I do not really have any new year resolutions, so you might as well tell me about some of them.
Print
Blackbean Soup with Indian Spices
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Total Time: 50 minutes
A thick and satisfying black bean soup with a good hint of spices.
Ingredients
3 tablespoons olive oil1 medium sized onion, diced
2 pods garlic, diced
1 tablespoon ginger
1 teaspoon powdered cumin
1 teaspoon red cayenne pepper
11/2 cups black beans
3 cups vegetable or chicken stock
Salt to taste
2 tablespoons lime juice
To Finish and Serve
Chopped Cilantro
Grated Carrots
Sour Cream if desired
Instructions
Heat the oil at the base of a pressure cooker and add in the onion and cook for about 3 to 4 minutes until soft and turning softly crisp at the corners.Add in the garlic and ginger and cook for about a minute.
Mix in the cumin and cayenne pepper.
Add in the black beans and the stock and bring to a simmer.
Cook under pressure for 25 minutes, or cook on the stove top for 11/2 hours.
Remove the cover and stir well. The beans should be soft and fairly thick.
Stir in the lime juce.
Garnish with the cilantro and grated carrots and the sour cream if desired. Enjoy hot.
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December 15, 2013
Fruitcakes and Christmas, thoughts and impressions…
This is probably going to be my last post before, I close out the year, maybe and maybe not. I am not a fan of scheduling posts, I feel blogging is a spontaneous exercise and should be about the moment.
I am getting ready to go home, yes, nothing thrills me more than to be heading home to Kolkata for Christmas or for that matter anytime of the year. But, with all the British heritage in the city, Christmas is special to most Kolkata natives.
The stormy weekend, allowed me to get all my holiday baking done, loads of cookies and of course, my Christmas cake from my cookbook. I had shared the recipe with you here. Like all the recipes in my book, this is one with a lot of memories and every year, I have to make it for my mother, since the recipe is adapted from my memories of childhood Christmases. If I can get it to her in person it is wonderful, if not I mail it to her and of course have her fuss about how expensive it is. Yes, my mother feels I work to hard to waste money.
I cannot quite fathom the American dislike for fruitcakes, although I have nailed it down to commercial fruitcake mixes. I have over the years been diluting the amount of processed fruit that I use in this cake, and have been using regular raisins and cranberries and especially since this soaked in port wine and rum for a fairly long time, it makes a huge difference. Speaking of the cookbook, yes, The Bengali Five Spice Chronicles. It turns one, yes, it is a Christmas baby and if it not on your holiday gift list and you are still looking for one it makes a pretty inexpensive gift at under $15 from Amazon.
And if you are still looking for a dish for your holiday table and are willing to add some spice to your life and table, please do give my slow cooked lamb shanks a try. These are totally delectable and best of all with just a little stove top attention they get completely done in the slow cooker. If your are looking for winter warmth and inspiration, this book has plenty of ideas with recipes like this and then again, comforting curries like my Salmon with Fenugreek and Fresh Herbs (Methi Diye Doi Maach), Curried Cabbage with Potatoes and Red Lentils with Cilantro and Lime and I am sure many others that will seem heart and soul warming to you.
The journey with the cookbook has been interesting, I have met so many interesting folks virtually over just a year working and talking through the cookbook. Zoe Perret, Suvir Saran, Stephanie, Yosef, Shalini and Dahlia come to mind. I am sure there are others that I cannot think of at the moment. So, here is wishing you and yours a wonderful holiday season and I am looking forward to a great new year with everyone who joins me in my flavorful journey of chronicling the food of India, with the seasons.
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December 14, 2013
Farmers Market Fresh Monkfish Curry
In life we all have to have a least favorite season, yes, even a seasonal person like me! I think that you have guessed what is coming next, winter is kind of my least favorite season. Well, truth be told I am a fall and spring kind of a girl. I do however love to cook in winter, there is a lot of room for spontaneity and one dish comfort cooking. A lot of legumes and meat features in my kitchen, not surprising as the body tends to crave foods that keep you satisfied longer, overall however, winter is all about stews and curries, not unlike this fish curry made with monkfish.
This fish curry has an interesting history, it is the result of a barter on the last day of the Tarrytown Farmers Market. After a lot of rescheduling and fuss, I made it to a final demo where I did some soup with seasonal greens.
The soup was very well received and I sold some cookbooks to boot, well, what more can a girl want on a cold wintery morning. Although, given the number of people who wanted to buy the soup, leads me to wonder where I can really ever persuade people to cook, I just might end up being converted to selling food instead of the cookbooks.
Actually, wait I met up with an old friend who, yes, did buy one of the books! And, during the hour that I spent at the market, the fish man truly loved my soup. He was not in the biz for some reason for a cookbook, but did want to offer me something for the 2 cups of soup that he had. And, the way of the market was barter, as we were leaving on the way for lunch, I picked up about a pound and a half of the monkfish, which frankly was more than a fair exchange for my soup as it saved me a trip to buy fish. If you asked my Bengali mother, she would actually tell you that since I traded vegetarian lentils for a lively amount of fresh fish, I had actually made out on the deal.
I cooked the fish simply and we enjoyed it for dinner. The fish dish actually turned out pretty good and despite the fact that it is a part of my recent disk crash casualty, I think that you might get a sense of the dish from my pictures. The story of the disk casualty I shall save for another day, when I do not have enough to tell you about a recipe, and maybe just is not worth sharing…
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Farmers Market Fresh Monkfish Curry
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
A soft and spicy fish curry made from the steals of the last day of the farmers market season. Made with fresh herbs, monkfish and the last of the shed ripened backyard tomatoes.
Ingredients
11/2 pounds monkfish or any firm fleshed fish1 lime or lemon
1 teaspoon red cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
11/2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons oil
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 mediums sized red onion, finely chopped
11/2 tablespoons fresh ginger grated
3 tomatoes, finely chopped
2 teaspoons dried fenugreek leaves (kasuri methi)
1 green Chile minced
3 tablespoons Greek yogurt
2 tablespoons blanched almonds
11/2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh cilantro
Instructions
Cut the fish into bite sized pieces and place in a mixing bowl.Squeeze with the lime or lemon juice and toss with the red cayenne pepper, turmeric and half the salt and set aside.
Heat the oil on medium heat and add the cumin seeds and wait for the seeds to sizzle and add in the onion and ginger.
Cook the onion ginger mixture on medium heat stirring frequently for 6 to 7 minutes until the onion wilts and turns softly golden into a rich toffee color.
Add in the fish mixture and mix well. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes.
Add in the tomatoes and cook until the tomatoes are soft and pulpy (about 5 minutes). Stir in the dried fenugreek leaves and minced chili.
Place the yogurt and almonds in the blender and blend until smooth.
Stir in this mixture to the now bubbling fish curry and mix well. Cook for another 2 minutes and stir in the cilantro and serve.
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December 10, 2013
Spicy Potatoes and Broccoli – Alu Broccoli
And then suddenly I was blue…
Well, I have somehow managed injure my ear! That and a bunch of other things such as loosing the perfect picture, for out holiday card has got me a little out of sorts. One of the good things about me is that when I am down and low, I try and organize. Well, maybe it is not always good, because today I have spent to myself in a corner, sorting through pictures, things and stuff. In the midst of this, I found today’s recipe a flavorful, colorful recipe pairing potatoes and broccoli. Sort of like cauliflower and broccoli, only healthier and spicier.
Instead of packing, I cooked and cooked. Some other heartier creations, a botched attempt at gluten-free cookies, a few staples like my gingersnaps and of course everyday dinner like this simple and essential dish here. It is not one done with a lot of fanfare, I think that it works well with any kind of meal. My husband, yes, the health freak! tends to eat this dish by itself.
Print
Spicy Potatoes and Broccoli – Alu Broccoli
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
A well seasoned dish of potatoes and broccoli that is a comforting and colorful addition to the table.
Ingredients
2 tablespoons oil (preferably mustard)1 tablespoon grated ginger
2 pods of minced garlic
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
3/4 crushed fenugreek seeds
3/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
2 medium sized potatoes, peeled and diced
3 tomatoes, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups of broccoli spears
Instructions
Heat the oil on medium heat for about a minute.Add in the ginger and garlic and stir for about 30 seconds until the mixture begins to sizzle.
Add in the cumin seeds and the fenugreek seeds and cook until the seeds sizzle and smell fragrant.
Add in the potatoes and mix well.
Stir in the tomatoes and the salt and cover and let the potatoes steam cook for five minutes.
Stir in the broccoli spears and cook the mixture on medium heat until the potatoes are soft and the broccoli is tender crisp.
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December 4, 2013
Jewel of Himalaya – Yorktown Heights
Every time, I get ready for vacation, one of the interesting prep exercises end up being rearranging loose pictures to make sure that I have enough space on the phone and other storage devices for new memories and exercises. Sometimes it is fun to come across things that I have found and left to share with you on this place. Not surprisingly, you get hit with a lot of restaurant experiences. Well, this is probably not a bad time to pick up some food ideas as a lot of you are going out, with friends and if you are look for something a little different Jewel of Himalaya a Tibetan joint just might be for you.
So, Tibet is a small region nestled in the Himalayan mountains and the food has a lot of Indian influences and not surprisingly, a lot of other border influences such as Chinese influences as well. Their menu does a good job of trying to balance some of the off beat with traditional staples such as the Tikka Masala, because, lets face it, it kind of is next to impossible for a South Asian restaurant to thrive in suburbia without the obligatory naan and tikka masala.
If you want to check out something unusual and worthwhile, I would really ask you to look at items that you have not seem before, because come on folks there is so much to try in the world of spices. In an attempt to practice what I preach, I tried their rock shrimp appetizer, which appeared to be in a delicate orange scented sauce, light crisp and very satisfying.
I tried their thali (an Indian style plated meal) that was good, some items better than others. I liked the goat curry a lot. I had ordered a Tibetan fried bread, another first for me and I was not disappointed. The place located in a little strip mall had a comfortable and inviting vibe, the owner seemed to be around and very interested in things. The place also seemed to house a lot of regulars, something that is always a good sign.
So, if you are in the area and in the mood for something different, do give them a try.
34 Triangle Ctr
Yorktown Heights, NY 10598
Phone: (914) 302-2886
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December 3, 2013
Stir Fried Brussels Sprouts with Ginger and Curry Leaves
I have a feeling, if you like Indian flavors and are not very sure about Brussels Sprouts, this might be the recipe for you. My friend Susan Thaler, can never tell me enough times how much she likes this simple dish. Honestly, I have never quite understood the fuss about Brussels, and why people give them such a bad reputaion. But then again, I also love broccoli (another controversial vegetable), the tender young variety. I guess, I can say the same about these sprouts, it is important to find them young and tender. There is something disappointing that happens to veggies that happen when they stay around and loose their natural crisp and crunchy freshness.
So, I had started this recipe and a bunch of others with the hope that I would get them to you in time for Thanksgiving, but life as they say is always unpredictable. We had loads of rain last week, looks like the storm had a name as well. BOREAS, took with it our telephone and internet service for the weekend, leaving me with more time to cook and chat with friends but no real means to share my adventures with all of you, dear readers.
Hopefully, I will cull out the best of the dishes that we enjoyed and will have them up and going to enjoy through the rest of the season and ready for you should you wish to try them for next year. This particular recipe is inspired by my mother-in-law’s recipe for cabbage and what after all is a Brussels Sprout, if not a mini cabbage.
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Stir Fried Brussels Sprouts with Ginger and Curry Leaves
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
A simple Indian transformation for the wintery Brussels Sprouts, that will brings color and spark to your table.
Ingredients
1 pound young brussels sprouts2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon minced or freshly grated ginger
1 teaspoon black mustard seeds
10-12 curry leaves or 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
1 teaspoon salt
1 medium red onion, chopped
1 medium red tomato, chopped
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
11/2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons freshly chopped cilantro
Instructions
Remove the tops of the Brussels sprouts, cut them into half and then into fine slices. Set them aside.Heat the oil in a large pan on medium high heat for about a minute.
Add in the ginger and the black mustard seeds and wait until the mustard seeds crackle.
Add in the curry leaves or thyme and add in the Brussels sprouts and mix well.
Add in the salt and the onion and tomato and mix well and cook for about 2 minutes.
Stir in the cayenne pepper and the turmeric and stir well.
Cook for 3 to 4 minutes.
Stir in the lime juice and cilantro and serve immediately
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