Sunday, September 5, 2010

Lau bakolir bor / Bottle gourd fritter (Assamese)

Lau bakolir bor / Bottle gourd fritter (Assamese)
Ingredients

* 10 pieces of tender bottlegourd peel (appx. 1 inch by 2 inches size)
* 50 gms besan/gram flour
* 1 pinch baking soda
* 1/2 tsp nigella seeds/kalounji
* 1 tsp poppy seeds/posto
* 1 pinch turmeric powder
* Salt to taste
* water to make the batter
* Mustard oil

Method

1. Wash and drain the peels.
2. Make a paste of the gram flour, baking soda, turmeric powder, salt, nigella, poppy seeds and water.
3. Heat mustard oil in a frying pan. Dip the peels in the paste.
4. Deep fry the peel upon medium heat one by one till crispy and done.
5. Put the fried bors/fritters on paper napkin to soak excess oil.
6. Serve hot as starters.



Baremehali xaak bhaji / mixed herbs fry (Assamese)

Baremehali xaak bhaji / mixed herbs fry (Assamese)






Ingredients

* 50 gms spinach
* 50 gms Mustard green
* 20 gms fenugreek leaves
* 4-5 sprigs of curry leaves
* 1 small bunch of coriander leaves
* 1 tbsp bengal gram
* 3 tbsp mustard oil
* 10-12 cloves of garlic chopped
* 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
* Salt to taste

Method

1. Clean, wash and drain all the xaak/herbs.
2. Wash and soak the Bengal gram for an hour.
3. Chop all the herbs together.
4. Heat mustard oil in a pan.
5. Fry the chopped garlic and add the Bengal gram.
6. Sprinkle turmeric and salt. Stir for about half a minute.
7. Add the chopped herbs and stir upon medium heat till done.
8. Serve Baremehali xaak Bhaji with rice.

Note.. its advised to have saag or herbs in the afternoon or morning meal. back home in north east people avoid having saag at dinner. 
 




Masundari bhaji/ Chamelion Plant Fry (Assamese)

Masundari bhaji/ Chamelion Plant Fry (Assamese) 

 




Ingredients

* 150 gm masundari xaak/ chameleon plant leaves
* 1 tbsp chopped garlic
* 3 tbsp masoor daal
* 1 tbsp mustard oil
* 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
* Salt to taste

Method

1. Clean, wash and drain the leaves.
2. Wash and soak the daal for half an hour.
3. Heat oil in a shallow frying pan. Fry the chopped garlic.
4. Sprinkle turmeric powder and add the daal.
5. Upon low heat stir fry the daal for awhile and add the leaves.
6. Sprinkle salt and upon medium heat stir fry till done.
7. Serve with rice or even as starters.

Banhor Sungat Maas

Banhor Sungat Maas/ Fish cooked in a Bamboo Hollow (Assamese)



Ingredients

* 5-6 pieces of boneless fish
* 1/2 tbsp crushed garlic
* 2 slit green chillies
* 1 onion chopped
* 1 tsp crushed ginger
* Salt to taste
* 1 tender bamboo hollow
* 1 banana leaf
* 1 -1/2 tbps coriander leaves
* 1 tbsp mustard oil

Method

1. Clean, wash and drain the fish.
2. Clean the banana leaf. Dry it and pass over low fire to make the leaf pliable.
3. In a small bowl mix crushed garlic, slit green chillies, mustard oil and salt.
4. Add the mixture to the fish and mix well.
5. Fill the bamboo hollow with the fish and seal with soften banana leaf.
6. Place the hollow over charcoal fire/barbecue fire.
7. Rotate the bamboo hollow from time to time till it is evenly burnt.
8. Leave it to cool. Slit the bamboo hollow into half to open.
9. Add chopped onions, crushed ginger,coriander leaves and mustard oil to the fish and mix well.
10. Serve as a side dish or even starter.


Chabray bhaat

Chabray bhaat (nepalese)

Ingredients

* 250 gm rice
* 1/2 inch cinnamom
* 1/2 tbsp turmeric powder
* 1 tsp salt
* 4 bay leaves
* 2 tbsp ghee
* 1/2 tsp black cumin seed

Method

1. Soak rice in water with bay-leaves and cinnamon for 20 min.
2. Heat ghee in a shallow pan/karahi.
3. Add black cumin seed,cinnamom and bay and fry for 10-15 secs.
4. Add rice and fry for 5-7 minutes.
5. Pour water and leave it till rice is cooked.
6. Serve hot.



Kharoli/ Mustard Chutney

Kharoli/ Mustard Chutney (Assamese)

Ingredients

* 100 gms mustard seed
* 1 banana leaf
* Indigenous Soda ash (to knead the ground seeds)
* Salt to taste

Method

1. Clean, wash and dry the seeds
2. Clean the banana leaf and pass it over fire to make it pliable.
3. Dry grind the seeds and sieve.
4. Put the mustard seed powder on the banana leaf.
5. Sprinkle salt. Add soda little at a time and knead.
6. Knead well for 15 minutes or until oil appears on the leaf.
7. Make a ball, flatten it and wrap it with the leaf to form a parcel. Tie the parcel with a string.
8. Keep the parcel inside a container and keep it in a warm place.
9. On the 3rd day the Kharoli is ready to eat as chutney.



Thukpa

Thukpa (Tibetan & Arunachali Dish)




Ingredients


* 250 gm: Meat (beef/pork/mutton/chicken), minced
* 300 gm: Egg noodles
* 2 large: Onion, finely chopped
* 1 Tablespoon: Onion leaves, chopped
* 3 flakes: Garlic, chopped
* 4-5: Green chili, sliced
* For soup: About 3 litres of clear bone soup - beef/ pork/ mutton / chicken stock. Add 1
* 1 Teaspoon: Salt


Method

1. Fry chopped onions with garlic and green chilies, then add minced meat, fry for 10 min. Add salt to taste. Then keep aside after cooking.
2. Boil 4 litre of water vigorously and drop noodles, boil for 2 min, stirring occasionally.
3. Drain the noodles through a large sieve and run cold water over them to stop them from sticking. Squeeze the water from the noodles and transfer to a serving bowl.
4. Pour hot soup into bowl with noodles.
5. Put fried meat-onion mixture and finely chopped green onion leaves on top of it.
6. Thukpa is ready to serve hot.