Mahalaya special: Karaishutir Kochuri/Peas Kochuri and Aloor Dam

Mahalaya and Durga Puja are two such special occasions that are strongly connected to our childhood nostalgia. We could hardly find a Bong who is not emotionally attached to the innocence of his or her childhood on the day of Mahalaya. For me, this is the most beautiful festival and this is the time I miss my days in Kolkata the most. Durga Puja and Mahalaya bring back all my childhood memories when life was so simple and beautiful.

The day of Mahalaya signifies welcoming of Debipakkha and end of Pitripakkha. The 10 days of grand festivity also starts from this day. There are few things or I can say memories that immediately come to our mind when we talk about Mahalaya. Like, getting up early in the morning and listening to the uninmitable voice of Birendra Krishna Bhadra chanting 'Mahishashurmardini' on radio and after that watching the dramatic representation of 'Mahishashurmardini' on television. There was a wonderful festive mood easily seen on people's face, the joyous festivity surrounds the atmosphere. The sweet fragrance of Shiuli flower spread over everywhere, beautiful cotton-candy clouds take over the blue sky, and the mystic feeling in the air let us know that the biggest festival is not far. It is the time we must welcome The Goddess of supreme power.  These feelings cannot be expressed in words, these can only be cherished forever.

Apart from the religious significance and rituals of Mahalaya, food and appetite take an integral part on this day. Bengalis cannot survive without lip-smacking food be any occasion, the celebration of any festival is never complete without good food, be it vegetarian or non-vegetarian. Today I will be sharing one such eternally loved and popular breakfast delicacies, which is a complete vegetarian recipe (and that means no onion, no garlic).

Karaishutir Kochuri/Peas Kochuri is an Indian deep-fried flat bread stuffed with mashed green peas mixed with various spices. It is a typical Bengali breakfast or snack time delicacy, served with Aloor Dam and Cholar Dal (chana dal). This fills the breakfast list of Bongs most commonly in Winter as fresh green peas are easily available in market in bulk quantity. But this concept is slightly fainted nowadays, thanks to the advanced technology, frozen green peas can be seen in almost every household refrigerator. Even I used frozen greean peas and if you are doing that as well, make sure to thaw well in advance.


Karaishutir Kochuri/Peas Kochuri:

Total Time: 1 hour
Serves : 10

Ingredients:

Green Peas : 2 cups
Ginger : 1" slice
Red chili powder: 1 tsp
Salt : as preferred
Sugar : as preferred
Green chilis : 2-3
Bhaja Masala (roasted and ground whole cumin, whole coriander, dry red chili and bay leaf) : 3-4 tsp
All purpose Flour : 3 cups
Oil : sufficient for deep frying
Kalonji /Kalo Jeera : 1 tsp
Warm Water : to make the dough

Procedure:

To make the dough:

1. Take a deep mixing bowl, add all purpose flour and mix together salt (1 tsp), sugar (1 tsp) and vegetable oil (4-5 tsp).
2. Add warm water and make a smooth dough kneading it well for 5-6 minutes. Cover and let it rest for 20-30 minutes. You can srinkle little oil over the dough to keep it moist and stretchy.

To make the green peas stuffing:

1. If you are using fresh green peas, cook them covered in boiling water for 4-5 minutes and strain immediately. If you are using frozen peas, thaw them well in advance.
2. Now transfer them in a grinder, add green chilies and ginger. Make a fine paste adding little water time to time
3. Take a pan or wok and heat 2 tsp of oil. Temper it with kalonji and add the green peas paste...bring the heat to medium and cook the mixture stirring frequently, scraping the sides of the pan...this process should continue till the paste dries out and comes into a lump.

4. Keep aside to let it cool.

To Make the kochuris:

1. Divide the dough in (not very small) portions, little bigger than needed for puri/luchi. With 2 cups if green peas, i made almost 16-18 portions.
2. Make small balls from the stuffing mixture, as shown in the picture below. Stuff the dough with the mixture, make sure not to overstuff them and wrap well keeping the sides folded well.

3. Now roll the dough very carefully and don't for get the oil the rolling pin as well as the rolling surface. This will make the process easy.
4. Heat enough oil to deep fry the kochuris. Now drop the rolled out dough one at a time and fry them till they are golden brown. Make sure to heat the oil well before frying them and then keep the flame medium while frying. Kochuris should be puffing well both sides if the oil is heated enough.

Serve hot kochuris with Aloor Dam and Cholar Daal.
I will give those recipes in another post for sure.

Fish Batter Fry -- Bengali Style

If you are a Bengali and moreover from Kolkata, you must be a dedicated lover of our very own street food or fast food. You can't ignore the sheer joy of having street food from the different locales of the city. The delightful variety of never ending list includes phuchka, bhelpuri, jhaalmuri, eggroll, chicken roll, macher chop, kobiraji, fish fry, cutlet, mangsher chop, ghugni, singara, tele bhaja, and many more. Now you should understand why I am telling the list goes never ending 😄😄. Whether you are a student, banker, corporate, teacher, clerk or from any other profession, your evening snack is incomplete without having any of these delicacies on your plate.

I'm going to share one of the most popular and widely loved street foods from the streets of Kolkata,  Fish Batter Fry. This is one of the most wanted appetizers on the wedding menu lists as well. I always tell stories about our Indian and Bengali wedding ceremonies to my daughter, as she has never attended and experienced one. I try to give her an idea about how big-fat and grand our wedding functions are including the big list of the menu. This fish batter fry is one such epic appetizer. I know some of you people may be emotionally attached with such food and can go back to your golden days in Kolkata 😇😇.

As our city of joy is always identified by its food and culture, people from Kolkata are always bound to be emotionally tied up with such nostalgia.

The purpose of my blog is never to be confined within the food recipes. Rather I always try to cling the string of people's heart by my passion of writing. If I start writing, I can never stop myself. So by not wasting any more time, I will directly go to the recipe.

Fish Batter Fry

Total time   : 30 minutes

Servings      : 5-6 people

Ingredients:

To marinate the fish:

• Fish fillet (Tilapia or Bhetki, if you are in Kolkata) : 1.5 -2 lbs
• Salt                                                                            : As required
• Black pepper                                                             : 1 1/2 tablespoon
• Lemon juice or vinegar                                             : 2-3 teaspoon

To make the batter:

• All purpose flour                                                       : 4 tablespoon
• Corn flour /corn starch                                              : 1 tablespoon
• Baking powder                                                          : 1/2 teaspoon
• Butter                                                                         : 1/2 stick or 50 grms
• Egg                                                                             : 1 medium
• Milk                                                                            : 1/4 cup
• Salt                                                                             : As per taste
• Green chili paste                                                        : 1 teaspoon
• Black pepper                                                              : 1-2 teaspoon or as much spicy preferred
• Water                                                                         : Little as required

 Directions:

1. Wash the fish fillets and cut into bite size or little bigger pieces if you want... Marinate them with the ingredients written above.
2. Now for making the batter, take a wide mixing bowl. Put all purpose flour, corn starch, baking powder and salt together. Melt the butter and mix very well using your hand.
3. Next add egg to the mixture and whisk well. Add milk and then water (if required) and stir thoroughly. You can use a hand blender or electric blender as well. I generally use the spoon and mix slowly all of them together. The consistency of  the batter should not be very thick or runny. It will be little thicker than the pakora batter.
4. Heat enough oil in the pan (not for deep fry). Coat the fish fillet generously into the batter and drop them carefully in the hot oil. Don't forget to reduce the flame to medium after putting the fillets, or else the batter may be not cooked properly.
5. Drain the fried pieces on a paper towel and serve hot with your favorite sauce and salad. Kasundi or mustard sauce goes best with them along with some onion slices. Ummmm....tastes heavenly !!!!