Sheet Kaal'er Sada Sobji - White Winter Veggies

Bengalis eat a lot of vegetables seasonally and winter is a big celebration of seasonal bounty. The markets in Kolkata come alive with a huge variety of produce ranging from new potatoes, deliciously tasty cauliflower, tomatoes, kohlrabi, radish, onion scapes, and lots more. It's not just the markets; every locality has its vegetable vendors setting up on street-sides and corners and there are vendors with 'vans' that cycle through the neighbourhoods calling out their wares, and they all offer the best of seasonal produce. It's like this all year round but my favourite is winter when, I feel, everything is a little more lush and delicious! 

This sheet kaal'er sada sobji is one of the best celebrations of winter produce. It's a simple preparation with hardly any spices where the vegetables do the work to make for something truly delicious. Pair it with hot phulkas or daal and rice and you will have a nutritious and tasty meal. 

Turnip

Kohlrabi

Radish

Bottle gourd

1 cup each, cubed, or less but in equal quantities. 

Green chillies 2-3

Nigella seeds 1/2 tsp

Mustard oil 1-2 tbsp

Sugar 1/2 tsp

Salt as required

Method

Heat the oil in a wok or kadai and chuck in the nigella seeds and a couple of green chilies split lengthwise. Once the seeds have sizzled add the cubed turnip first and sauté for a couple of minutes. Cook this recipe throughout on a medium flame. Cover the wok and let the turnips cook for a few minutes and then add the cubed kohlrabi. Once again sauté for a bit and then cover and cook for a few minutes. 

Follow the same process adding the radish cubes next and finally the bottle gourd. Take care not to brown the vegetables. Once all the veg is in the wok add salt, mix well, cover and cook on low heat till the all the veg is cooked through. It should all cook in its own moisture but if you feel the veggies are sticking add very little water. Sprinkle a bit of sugar and add a couple of green chilies, cover and cook for a further five minutes. 

You can also add cubed potatoes or even pumpkin to this dish if you like, it works very well. 

Serve with phulkas or as a side with daal chawal. 

Edible Flowers from the Bengali Kitchen

Over the last few years my trips to Kolkata were quite frequent and in contrast to the standard visits in summer, I happened to be in Kolkata in the winters too. Moni's house is in a quiet lane in Selimpur and a variety of vendors come to the 'goli' or lane calling out their wares. From umbrella repair to ice cream, from variety plastic products to fresh veggies and fish, everything comes to our doorstep.

I found the steady stream of vendors quite entertaining and slowly began to buy vegetables and fish for the novelty of buying at the door, so much in contrast to my life in Mumbai where veggies were either bought online or from a supermarket, an entirely impersonal experience. As I chose vegetables every morning I started examining the variety on the cart more closely and questioning the vendor about specific vegetables I was unfamiliar with. I'd also ask Jethima from upstairs or go bug Moni to identify ingredients and then to cook them for me. My interest vegetables and local ingredients grew and if you've ever enjoyed winter vegetables in Bengal, you'll understand just why I succumbed.

What a glorious variety there was! Leafy greens, beans, brinjals, gourds, root veggies, the list can go on and on. And among all this bounty I found an array of edible flowers and inflorescence that are all a regular, even mundane, part of the Bengali kitchen, enjoyed in season and then looked forward to once the season was over. As I took photograph after photograph the subziwala, seeing my interest and quite entertained by my enthusiasm, started bringing unusual seasonal ingredients to show me every morning. I'd happily be awake at 6 am waiting for him to make his first circuit of our goli. Thanks to him I learned about many vegetables that are a part of the Bengali's winter meals. Not only did I learn from him, Moni and Jethima, the neighbourhood mashimas (aunties) also started educating me, making the entire experience richer and so much more interesting.

Edible flowers maybe trendy today and perceived to be modern and hip but for the Bengali they are a part of everyday meals and I discovered a wide variety in Kolkata, some of which I have listed here. Whether it's the blooms, inflorescence or stems, the flowering portions of many plants are commonly cooked into simple dishes or more elaborate fare.

Malabar Spinach or Pui Shaak is a common ingredient in many Indian kitchens, but did you know the inflorescence on this plant is also eaten? It's sold separately as an individual ingredient and I first saw it on the subzi cart.

Pui Mituni (inflorescence on Malabar Spinach)

Similarly the inflorescence on Spinach or palak, called Shish Palong in Bengali, is also a delicacy and Jethima made a quick stir fry with potatoes for me. 

Shapla or water lilies also star on Bengali menus. The stem is cooked with prawns or made into fritters. While prepping the stems may feel tedious the resultant fritters are perfect as a snack at tea time or are served as the accompanying bhaja in the daal course of a traditional Bengali meal. The flowers aren't eaten but they look lovely floating in a flat vessel full of water.

Shapla or Water lIlies

Then there were onion scapes or Peyaanj Koli as we call them in Bengali. Such a pretty vegetable! Mostly added to chorchoris or made into a simple bhaja with potatoes, the markets are filled with these in season. 

Peyaanj Koli

This post would be incomplete if I didn't mention Kumro Phool or pumkin flowers. Mostly served batter fried, sometimes with a stuffing of prawns (yes, we Bengalis cook many veggies with prawns) I had plenty of these thanks to my beloved Jethima.

Kumro Phool 

On my last trip to Kolkata I encountered Jukti Phool. This flower enjoys a very short season and, from what I understood from the vendor in Gariahat market, is gathered from plants growing in the wild. A strongly bitter flower, it can be stir fried with potatoes and panch phoron or can be used in a sukto to impart the bitter notes.

Jukti Phool in the foreground with other Sukto ingredients

I also found Bok Phool or Agasti phool on an earlier trip to the market. These are cooked by many communities across India and I have seen many getting excited over them on myriad food groups on Facebook. These too are mostly batter fried and served as a tasty snack, much looked forward to by the Bengalis when in season. A simple chickpea flour batter seasoned with salt and chilli powder, a dash of turmeric and some nigella seeds is made, the flowers (stamens removed) are dipped in and then deep fried till crisp and golden. Sometimes maida and/or rice flour are added to make the batter lighter and the fries crisper but all these are variations from kitchen to kitchen.

Bok Phool outside Gariahat Market

Mocha or banana blossom is very widely known so it wasn't really a discovery for me. This much treasured ingredient in cooked a million ways by the Bengali - ghonto, chop, with prawns, chop with prawns... the list can go on and on. 

Mocha or Banana Blossom

And here's a picture of the man himself, the shobjiwala or veggie vendor. As I write this I realise I've never asked him his name as I always called him 'bhai' or younger brother. 

Aloo Potol Begun Bhaja - Simplicity Personified

A visit to Kolkata always means a whole lot of Bengali food for me to look forward to. No, not just the biryani, chaap, roll, rezala, and other delicious fare, but the simple daily fare that graces tables in Bengali households every day. The clean flavours of the vegetables (or fish) with a minimal stroke of spices make many of these daily mundane dishes quite delicious and are light on the tummy too. When you're on holiday you know you're going to indulge in a lot of fancy food and it's these simple homely meals that help keep the balance between indulgence and over indulgence.

This afternoon we had the typical 'bhaat-daal-bhaja' sort of meal with random leftovers to add variety. While bhajas are usually very basic with the fish or vegetable simply smeared with turmeric and salt and then fried in hot mustard oil, sometimes one might add a smattering of nigella seeds (kalonji) along with a fresh green chilli or two for a little more flavour. You can either have just one vegetable or a combination of them too. 

I was in the mood for a little more so I made a bhaja tempered with nigella seeds using a combination of potato, eggplant, and pointed gourd (potol).

1 Potato 

2 Potol or pointed gourd 

1 Small eggplant 

1/4 tsp Nigella seeds 

Salt 

Turmeric 

Mustard oil

Peel the potato and the pointed gourds. Cut all the vegetables into small cubes.

Sprinkle them with salt and turmeric and mix to coat them properly.

Heat mustard oil in a wok or kadai. Once the oil is hot chuck in the nigella seeds and let them sizzle.

Put in the vegetables and stir well for a minute.

Cover the wok and reduce the heat letting the vegetables cook for around 5 minutes.

Stir occasionally and cook till done. I like to brown the vegetables a little.

Serve with hot rice and daal.

A Haat in the Heart of the City- A Real Farmers' Market in Gurgaon

I was packing at the end of my holiday. Things were strewn all over the bed and my suitcase and rucksack were on the window-seat in my room. As I juggled clothes, packets of spices, a bunch of black carrots, and other miscellaneous bits of shopping, I happened to glance out of the window to the vast open ground across the busy road. I saw a temporary market coming up - tarps were being laid out, small pick up trucks and tempos were being unloaded, bright LED lights were being set up. I dug out the DSLR and zoomed in to have a look - the camera works very well as a binocular! It was a weekly bazaar - a haat. I couldn't wait to go check it out. If I could trudge across from Gurgaon to Khari Baoli in Old Delhi there was no way I wasn't going to hop across the road right here at home.

My cousin Atanu was happy to come along with me and we set off to take a look. I'd seen piles of cauliflower, carrots, onions, potatoes, and loads of fresh greens, and I was hoping to see some less familiar produce too.

The place was teeming with people - labourers, craftsmen, housemaids, rickshaw drivers, but no one from the many high rise towers that are just across the road. The sellers had set up their shops on the ground and there were piles of vegetables in front of them, just haphazardly placed. There was quite a cacophony of voices and we stood out like a pair of very sore thumbs! We went around 9pm and things were already dying down by then; the market started earlier in the evening around 6 o' clock. This is a weekly haat and seems to be quite a popular one because there were at least 30 to 40 vegetable sellers and a line up of snack sellers on one side catering to the crowd.

I ignored the snack stalls and jumped into the fray with the crowd, looking to see what vegetables were up for grabs. I was hoping I would find some more of those famous 'kaale gajar'. I'd bought a conservative 500gms at Khari Baoli and I yearned to buy more.Fingers crossed! At first glance it seemed like a sea of beautiful, juicy, red carrots, fresh white cauliflowers, and an array of glistening green leafy spinach, methi, mustard greens, etc.

As we wandered around among the vendors I saw huge beetroots, lotus stems, colocasia roots, little hillocks of green peas, and something called maati aloo which I have never seen before. I regret not buying any though I did take a photo.

There were huge flat 'papdi' beans, white turnips with a purple blush, mounds of garlic, onions, potatoes, cabbages, and many varieties of brinjal - one was big, round and purple, while another was like large green mottled eggs. And then my heart stopped - kaale gajar! There were just a few left - so I bought the lot.

We also came home with a bag full of tender finger-like red carrots, some arbi, a cauliflower, and some big fat gorgeously green papdi or 'seem' as we Bengalis call them.

There was too much frantic activity around so I couldn't ask much about the market but I can tell you it's in the field opposite Jalvayu Towers in Sector 56, Gurgaon. If you know the Tau Devi Lal Biodiversity Park, it's just behind. Follow the perimeter of the park and you will see the lights of the haat in the evening. The haat is on every Thursday in the evenings all through the year.

Ditch the air-conditoned aisles at Spencer's and come get your veggies from here next week. You'll find more at the haat. This is what a real farmers' market is, not those ones that are held on 5 star hotel grounds.

Much Ado about Oats

I have always disliked oats. Don't ask me why because I have no logical reason to put forth. I'd never eaten oats but porridge always looked sludgy and unappealing and I also dislike milk. There was no hope for oats as far as I was concerned.

Life went happily by and I never saw or felt any need to add oats to it. Till diabetes entered the scene and after years of struggling to reduce the carb intake and manage the sugar levels, the hubby convinced me to at least try oats - Don't make porridge, he said. Why don't you make your veggie upma with oats instead, he urged. Finally he just insisted that I make it once and eat it only because he was telling me to. Quite reminiscent of the parents' dialogue "you have to do it because I said so". Sigh.

So I finally did. I made oats with a ton of vegetables and a smattering of spices and took the plunge. Literally. This was a month or so ago and much to my surprise I didn't hate it. In fact, it was quite palatable and I knew I would grow to even like it. A little bit of online advice from my foodie buddies and a few tweaks later I was on to a good thing!

Oats with Plenty of Veggies

1/2 cup Quaker Oats
1 cup or more assorted vegetables chopped into small cubes
1 tbsp cooking oil
turmeric
chilli powder
jeera powder
salt
chopped green chillies
Sliced or chopped onions

I use potatoes, carrots, green peas, cauliflower, capsicum, coloured peppers, brocolli, whatever I have at hand.

Dry roast the oats in your kadai or non stick pan for a few minutes. I like to do this so the final product is not very porridge-y in consistency. Remove to a plate or bowl.

Heat oil in your wok or kadai and add the vegetables and fry lightly. Cover and let them cook for a bit, reduce the flame. Once the vegetables are nearly done add the dry spices and salt and stir well. Now add the oats and cook stirring frequently so that the oats and vegetables are mixed thoroughly.

Now add a generous glass of water and let the whole thing cook till the water is all absorbed. I like to cook it till it is dry and coming off the sides of the wok. You can leave it loose if you like.

Garnish with shredded fresh coriander and add a good squeeze of lemon and serve hot.

This is a very filling meal and works for breakfast or lunch or even dinner. Oats fill you up really well and I find that I don't get hungry for at least 4 to 5 hours. More importantly, the urge to nibble is not there. From the diabetic point of view the good thing is that my sugar levels don't spike. A winner all around, I think!

It's a nice feeling when you continue to grow, you let yourself open up to new experiences and new tastes too. It's even better when you manage to get past a blind spot. However the smug satisfaction on the hubby's face is purely priceless :)

1 December 2013
Marathon Bloggers

Nonta Suji - Bengali Style Savoury Semolina with Vegetalbes

Nonta Suji is something my mom made fairly regularly when I was a kid. There is a sweet version called Suji'r halua, more familiar to non Bongs as sooji ka halwa. I prefer this savoury version and it's one of those things my mom makes brilliantly.

It's fairly easy to make - the only downside is that there's a decent bit of chopping involved. lazy as I tend to be, I love this so much I don't mind the extra hard work involved.

Nonta Suji

1 medium potato, peeled and cut into matchsticks
1 carrot, peeled and cut into matchsticks
1 capsicum, cut into small long strips
1 onion, sliced but not too finely
1 or 2 green chillies, roughly chopped
half cup green peas
half cup semolina or suji
salt, turmeric, chilli powder, jeera/cumin powder
1/2 tsp kalonji or nigella seeds
2 tbsp mustard oil

Heat the oil in a kadai and once it's smoking hot reduce the heat and add the kalonji. Let it sizzle and then add the potatoes and carrots. Let them fry for a 3-4 minutes. Cover the kadai so it cooks quickly. Add the onions and the green chillies. Stir well and make sure you don't burn the onions. Once the potatoes are cooked through add the salt and the dry spice powders and mix it all well. Add the capsicums and the peas now and give it all a good stir. Let it cook for a minute and then pour in the semolina.

Roast the semolina well stirring constantly. Let it coat all the vegetables nicely. Your mixture should look dry. You can increase the heat but then you must keep stirring or the semolina will burn giving the final dish an unpleasant taste.

Add approximately a cup of water. Pour in 3/4th and see. The water should just float above the level of the veggies and semolina. Don't pour in too much all at once. Add the rest only if needed. Stir away and keep mixing. The water will get absorbed into the semolina and you will have a thick mass of veggies and semolina in less than a minute. Let it get quite thick, it should not fall off the spoon but should actually be difficult to move.

Squash a portion into a bowl and upturn it onto a plate. Garnish with a fresh green chilli and fresh coriander if you have them at hand.

Pan Roasted Chicken with Vegetables

I love chicken but K hates it. So I usually cook chicken for myself and it works out fine because I'm usually on my own for lunch most days. One recipe I use very frequently is this one, with variations depending on what vegetables and spices I have at hand. It's a one pot dish and I often have it just as it is, with no accompanying bread.

This pan roasted chicken is very adaptable. Use different spice mixes, change the vegetable combinations, add a dash of soy sauce.. the permutations are endless.

Chicken, cut into pieces
2 large onions, sliced thickly
2 carrots, cut into batons
2 potatoes, cut into batons
6 cloves garlic, chopped
Mushrooms, sliced thick
1 large capsicum, sliced thick
Salt, pepper, bottled spice mix, olive oil

Heat oil in a large deep pan and put in the potatoes and the carrots. Let them cook a bit and then add the onions. Keep the heat at medium and let it all cook covered for about 5 mins. Add the garlic too. Throw in the mushrooms and, if you're using an entire chicken, add the leg and thigh pieces. Stir around and then let it cook for another few minutes. The mushrooms will give out a ton of water so let it dry out. Do give it the occasional stir, don't ignore it completely.

Tip in the rest of the chicken and let it all cook covered for about 10 minutes. Do go back to it an stir the pieces around so they all brown a bit. Add salt and pepper and a good generous dash of any bottled spice mix that you like. I'm very partial to a Cajun Spice mix. You can also bung in fresh herbs or dried ones and avoid the spice mix entirely. Whatever works for you. Add the sliced capsicums last and give it all a good stir.

Once the chicken is cooked you're good to go. Have it on it's own, like I do, or have it with a crisp salad and bread.

Marathon Bloggers Day 15

A simple chorchori - mixed vegetables tempered with paanch phoron

Since K has started working at the University of Mumbai as Assistant Professor, I suddenly find myself having to  make him packed lunches. Since he shares the lunch with his colleagues (of course he devours their goodies too) I try to make vegetarian food as often as possible so no one is left out.

Now vegetarian food is a challenge indeed and after a couple of weeks of paapri/ gwaar/ french beans with potatoes, cabbage, bhindi bhaaji or cauliflower with green peas, K protested that more variety was required. Sigh...these are veggies we're talking about! What do I know about variety??!!

Well, being a Bengali, I should have known quite a bit. Bengalis have a huge and rich tradition of vegetarian cuisine and it's mind boggling just how delicious some of the dishes are. So I duly called up my mother and demanded a recipe. Something simple that didn't involve grinding masalas or making pastes, just something I could throw together on a busy working day.

Keeping in  mind the vegetables I had bought, this is what she told me to make.

Sim, begun, kumro ar alu chorchori

Paapri, eggplant, red pumpkin and potato cooked with paanch phoron

Here's how-

Cut the vegetables into smallish equal sized pieces.

Heat mustard oil in a wok or kadai and let the oil heat up nicely. When the surface of the oil shivers reduce the heat and put in about half a teaspoon of paanch phoron. My mix contains kalonji, methi, rai, saunf and radhuni. That's nigella, fenugreek, mustard, fennel and wild celery seeds (also known as ajmoda in Hindi). Add one or two dried red chillies. Kashmiri or Bedki, whichever you have.

Once the spices sizzle add in the potatoes and the pumpkin pieces. Stir everything nicely and fry the vegetables well.

After about 8 to 10 minutes add in the cut eggplant pieces and the strung and cut paapri. Stir everything and continue to cook. Lower the heat and let the vegetables cook slowly. Cover the wok and stir once in a way just to see that it doesn't burn at the bottom.

Add half a teaspoon of turmeric powder and salt to taste. Mix well and sprinkle a little water to generate some steam to cook the vegetables through. Cover. This preparation must not have any gravy so be sure to add not more than a tablespoon or so of water.

Serve hot once the veggies are done. The pumpkins should practically disintegrate, the potatoes should be soft and buttery.

You can use a variety of vegetables including radish, leafy greens, the favourite of Bengalis - the potol, plantain, green peas, etc.


The beauty of this dish is really its simplicity. A simple paanch phoron and dried chilli tempering and just turmeric and salt. The flavours of the vegetables themselves come through and you have a delicious and healthy dish to lap up!

And thus starts my exploration of Bengali vegetarian cuisine...

Chicken Salad with Home-made Honey Mustard Mayo

This divinely simple salad is what we had for dinner yesterday...thanks to my dear hubby..

We were both tired of the usual rice/roti/dal/subzi routine and I was a bit off the cooking wagon. So hubby volunteered..

The salad is quite simple-

Take a cup each of cubed carrots, potatoes and medium cut french beans, all boiled but firm. Boil them separately. Cool and combine in a bowl.

Boil some chicken with salt and pepper. Once cooled, chop into small cubes or strips. Add to the veggies.

For the mayo-

Crack two eggs in your blender, add a tablespoon of honey, a good squeeze of mustard, a pinch of salt, two tbsp vinegar, some pepper and start blending with a thin stream of neutral oil. About a cup or a bit more is what you'll require.
Once the mayo is done, add as much as required to the salad and refrigerate the rest in a closed container.

Mix the salad and add a dash or two of tabasco for a bit of bite.

Serve the salad absolutely chilled.

Of course you can add other veggies to the salad- beetroot, cucumbers, lettuce, cherry tomatoes, whatever you fancy. Of course ham, salami, chopped boiled eggs will work wonderfully well too. Hubby used what we had at home.. The true joy of the salad of course was in the mayo- not your generic store bought variety but home-made and absolutely delicious and simple.

Hubby's tip- use chicken leg meat, preferably as breast meat tends to dry out and taste stringy.

As usual it was polished off before I could take a picture...

Minced Chicken with Vegetables

The last time we stocked the freezer we bought a ton of chicken and plenty of chicken mince. Here is a simple preparation that both, hubby and I love. the good part is that it is chockful of vegetables and is very light on the spices. Its a perfect light summer lunch, and if you make it soupy, its a wonderful comforting soup in winter.

Here's how-

500g Chicken mince
1 large onion finely chopped
1 large carrot, cubed small
8 -10 french beans, strung and cut small
1/2 cup green peas
1 large tomato, chopped fine or tomato puree
1 large potato, cubed small
Celery, chopped fine
3-4 cloves garlic
2 bay leaves
3 cardamoms
fresh cracked pepper
Salt
olive oil
mixed herbs

Heat the olive oil in a pan/wok. Saute the garlic and the onions. Add the bay leaves and cardamoms. Shake around. Don't let the onions brown or burn. Add the vegetables and stir well to mix. Cook covered for a minute. Add the minced chicken breaking up any lumps and mixing well. Cook on a high flame for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the tomato and stir well. Add salt and pepper and cook covered till the mince is cooked. Add water, about a cup full. Let it come to a boil and then simmer till the veggies are cooked through.

Remove from flame and pour into your serving bowl. Garnish with mixed dried herbs.

You can turn this into a hearty winter One-Dish meal by making it soupy and adding some macaroni or other small pasta to it.