I never landed up making Deviled Eggs and I am still itching to do so. Nevertheless I did do a lot of cooking last evening. Cooking can be so therapeutic sometimes of course I speak only for myself. Not everybody’s idea of de-stressing would be to cook up a storm in one’s kitchen, that by the end of it, the kitchen looks tornado stricken. Last evening that is exactly what happened after my tiny lil tiff with someone from work and I was sooooo upset but I would not wallow in self pity. I went veggie shopping at the weekly Friday Haat that sits outside my apartment complex and where there are a multitude of vegetable vendors getting all their supplies from the neighboring villages in the NCR. It is such a colourful affair replete with the rustic air and charm. As I child I so hated going to sabzi mandis. I remember making faces every time Ma had to pick up something up from the veggie market in Calcutta and the place always seemed dark, dingy, smelly and dirty when I had to watch my feet at every step. These haats however are so much more of an enjoyable experience because they are always out in the open and yesterday I took a round of the entire stretch of the road and paid attention to the different little make shift stalls. There are spice sellers sitting with their spices on display and I was tempted into picking up some garam masala and mirchi powder which got over. The Mirchi powder was a fiery orangish red in colour. I was so fascinated with the brilliant colours and the pungent smells emanating from the spices. There was also this tiny little chola batoora stall that was doing brisk business. What can I possibly say about the smell of the batooras being fried except that it was mouth watering. I so wish I could have sampled a plate of those golden fried, fluffy batooras and spicy choley with lots of onion, sprinkled with lemon juice but alas my metabolic system allows me such luxuries only once a week and I had exhausted my share of this week with a bowl of icecream. Hmmphhh!
Anyways I came back home and was in the frame of mind to do a lot of cooking and that is exactly what I did. I had marinated some chicken with ginger garlic paste the day before and for a change I didn’t want to make the customary Chicken Curry but something slightly different. So I experimented and by default ended up making the chicken in tomato sauce and honey with Rosemary. The result was delicious. I also managed making koftas with plantain, potatoes and cheese and was so happy when they turned out just fine.
Oh and how tedious is it taking pictures while cooking ? Salute to all those marvelous food photographers. Pray tell me do you consistently take pictures while cooking because if you do and take those beautiful pictures then hats off to you. I had a tough time as I was torn between wanting to ensure that the food tastes perfect and yet I wanted to capture a particular moment in frame. Plus I wanted the pictures to be aesthetically pleasing to the eye. I am guessing I only managed with the taste and damn it only I can be witness to that. Please have a look at my so not impressive pictures and here goes the recipe.
Chicken-500 grams
Ginger Garlic Paste-1 tablespoon
Refined oil- 2 tablespoons
Onion chopped-Half(Medium sized)
Salt
Rosemary-A few sprigs
Tomato Sauce-3 tablespoons
Honey-2 tablespoons
Pepper- A few pinches
Method
Marinate the chicken overnight in ginger garlic paste. Heat the oil in the pan and sauté the onions with a sprinkling of salt. Let the onions turn slightly brown then add the tomato sauce and let it cook for a couple of minutes before adding the chicken with the Rosemary. Put in the honey and add two cups of water. Taste it and add salt as per your requirement. I like my chicken to retain the slight sweetness of Honey and the hotness of the tomato ketchup. Cover the pan with a lid and let it cook for 15-20 minutes. When the chicken is nicely cooked and has that lovely reddish brown colour, you’ll be able to smell the sweet honey and the rosemary, then the chicken is done. Serve with Garlic bread.
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My kofta curry is inspired by the traditional Bengali Kach kolar kofta that I grew up eating especially during Monsoons. My Grand Mum would and my Great Aunt still does rustle up this simple kofta curry made of Plantains(Raw Bananas) and potatoes in a jiffy and the outcome is always this light yet flavorsome curry that delights my taste buds and isn’t too rich in the spice and oil content hence easy on my stomach. In Bengal one is always advised to consume Plantain in some form or the other when suffering from any stomach ailment or indigestion. I did my own take on the koftas and added cheese to increase the yummy quotient. The rest of the recipe is almost true to its origins. Oh and just so you know we Bengalis love our Plantain. There are so many different ways to rustle up dishes from this humble plant. This is just one of the many recipes.
Plantain Kofta Curry(Kach Kolar Kofta Curry)
Ingredients
Raw bananas-2
Medium sized potatoes-2
Cheese Slice-1
Onion chopped-Half(Medium sized)
Ginger garlic paste-1 tablespoon
Turmeric-1 teaspoon
Garam masala- I teaspoon
Raisins- A few(optional)
Refined Oil
Salt
Sugar-Half teaspoon(optional)
Method
Cut each raw banana in two halves and boil them in the pressure cooker with the potatoes. After 15 minutes take them out. The peels of the banana would have separated. Peel it off. Peel the potatoes and mash the raw bananas and potatoes together. Make certain that there aren’t any lumps in the mixture. Add the cheese and mash the mixture further. Add salt according to your taste and a pinch of garam masala powder and the raisins. Divide the mixture into 8 equal potions and shape it into round koftas. Deep fry them in the pan till golden brown. Keep them aside on an absorbent paper and allow the excess oil to be soaked by the paper. Meanwhile heat oil the pain again, put the bay leaf, add the onions and sauté them till they turn golden brown. Add the ginger garlic paste, turmeric powder and garam masala and stir fry for 5 to 10 minutes till the oil separates. Add 2 cups of water and salt to taste and some sugar(such a Bengali trait). When the water comes to a boil add the koftas and let it simmer for 5 minutes. Serve hot with plain rice. Yeayyyy my ideal soul food on a rainy day. Reminds me of home.
Wow so my lengthy blog post comes to an end. Now to post my recipes with the imperfect photos but you know what I am so excited. Really! Next up will be Fish curry in a coriander, onion, tomato sauce. :D Till then adios.
