Aloor Chop / Fried Potato Patties

In Jhumpa Lahiri's The Namesake , one of the first images that consume you, is that of Ashima Ganguli tossing up jhal muri across the Pacific. You identify with her migrant pain, you realise that mixing jhal muri is something that makes Ashima feel closer home. Not to forget the pungent mustard oil, with its wasabi-like kick when used raw, and a key ingredient in jhal muri .

It's easy to Ashimas abroad. And it is even easier to find a clerical Borobabu, Ashokda , a typist Reenadi or a parar Tukai haunting their favourite roadside stalls for shingara , kochuri, roll, jhal muri and phuchka, chow mein, mishti, beguni, chop and cutlet, idlis and dosas , lassi and kulfis , jalebi and omriti . All that's needed are an 'Italian' style stall (made with fired bricks, of course), ability to stew in your own juice, a saturated disposition (shallow ones stay out) and an appetite for a disinfecting fire ordeal. Street food in the city is more than just culinary or gastronomic delight - it epitomises the 'kaalchar' and the very essence of this historical city that has embraced all. It's a social activity because you're enjoying a snack with other people on the street.
 
A South Kolkatan wouldn't mind travelling all the way to Salt Lake just to refute his colleague's claim that AE market's phuchkas are better than the ones served at Vivekananda Park. Likewise, a Salt Lake resident wouldn't mind travelling to Dacres Lane for the sumptuous chow mein and chilli chicken.
And what's miles when it comes to Putiramer kochuri or a brain chop? And how on earth can you be a daily passenger and not savour the extra-oily jhal muri served on locals?

Muri , Beguni , fuluri and alur chop  - the snacks that fed hungry mouths at home,at office,everywhere for Bengalees.

 Alur Chop 

What You Need

For the Chop/Patties

Potatoes ~ 4 Large
Onion ~ 1 medium chopped
Garlic ~ 3 cloves minced
Ginger ~ 1 tbsp minced
Green Chili - 4-5 chopped fine
Roasted Cumin Powder ~ 1 tsp
Red Chili Powder ~ to taste
Salt ~ to taste
Mustard Oil ~ a few drops(optional)

For Batter

Besan/Chickpea Flour ~ 1 cup
Rice Flour ~ 1 tbsp or Poppy Seed ~ 1 tsp
Baking Powder ~ 1/4 tsp
Salt ~ to taste
Water ~ 3/4 cup

For Frying

Plenty of Oil

How I Did It

The Patties

Boil the potatoes, peel the skin and mash them. Use your fingers or a masher.

Heat little Oil in a Kadhai/Pan. About 1-2 tsp should be fine.

Add the chopped garlic, minced Ginger, the green chillies and the onion.All of these should be chopped real fine so that you do not bite into anything but the potato when eating the chop.

Sauté till the onion wilts and is pinkish brown.

Add the Roasted Cumin powder and Red Chili Powder and saute for a minute.

Add the mashed potatoes.

Add salt and mix the masala well with the potatoes.Add a few drops of Mustard Oil to the potatoes if you want.
Make small balls of the mashed potatoes.
Flatten them between your palm .

Batter and Frying

Make a batter with the ingredients .  The batter should be tight as it has to form a coating on the potato patties.

Heat Fresh Oil in Kadhai/Pan. The patties would be deep fried so add enough oil.

Dip the patties in the batter, so that the batter uniformly coats the patties
Gently release the dipped patties in the hot oil .

Fry till both sides are brown.

Remove ,take care  so that the excess oil drains out.

Sprinkle some Chat Masala or kala namak/black Rock salt(beet noon) on the patties while serving

Muro Ghonto

Bengali kids  when they have not tasted anything beyond mother's milk ,at their Annaprashan or Rice Ceremony, an occasion to mark the intake of first morsel of rice by a Bengali baby, they are offered to suck Payesh and then presented with a silver plate with rice, dal, bhaja, maacher muro(fried fish head), fish curry, chaatni, mishti. A moment with the fish head is captured on either a film roll or a piece of digital memory .For fish loving Bongs anything fishy is "not fishy" but auspicious and might even bring good luck.

When we were kids we were pushed into this barbaric activity (of eating fish head) with an incentive that devouring fish head especially the brain part of it would enrich our brains and also make our vision stronger."Khub buddhi hobe (You will have a high intelligence)", my Ma or Aunt would shout.

By the time we were teenagers and had lost sight to myopia and also lost faith in "more buddhi" when we saw veggie eating South Indians topping the IIT-JEE every year.

The deed was done, we were now fish head loving converts for life.

Muri Ghonto is a dry dish made with fried fish head (known as maacher matha or muro in Bengali), potatoes, very little rice and spices. Don't turn up your nose, it smells nothing but heavenly and tastes more so. If you haven't sucked onto a piece of fish head and pondered on the complexities of life while doing so, you have not lived a full life.

To eat and relish Muri Ghonto you need a long leisurely afternoon, enough time to deal with fish head pieces without being rushed, company that will let you sit cross-legged on your dining chair and rest your elbows on the table, people who will not make fun of your facial expressions and of course a nice nap afterward.

When I made this,my husband had with Rice,I itself.One of friends(Paku) called then and gave a great comment "Bhat diye bhat khli tora?"(Have you guys had rice with ric as side dish?)

Muri Ghonto

What You need

Fish Head (Rui/ Katla)

Oil

Bay Leaves
Cardamom
Cinnamon
Green Chilly
Onions
Ginger
Salt to taste
Ghee
Coriander powder
Garma masala
Red Chilly powder
Turmeric
Rice
Water
Potato
Prep: Wash and clean fish head, sprinkle salt and turmeric and let it sit for 15-30 minutes. I used half of a regular sized fish head for fish like Rohu or Rui. I have not used fish head of salt water fish or any other fish than Rohu for this dish ever and do not know how it might taste.
How I do it

Heat Oil in a Kadhai/Frying Pan

Fry the Fish head till its nicely fried. While frying try breaking it into medium sized pieces, kind that is easier to suck on but will not choke you. Remove and keep aside.

Fry 2 cut and cubed potatoes to a light golden, remove and keep aside

Temper the Oil with a large Bay Leaf, 2 green cardamom and a 1/2" cinnamon stick

Add the paste of one medium sized onion and fry till the oil separates and the onion has taken on a light brownish hue

Add 1-2 tsp of fresh grated ginger, 2-3 slit green chillies, 1 tsp of Cumin powder and saute the masala with a sprinkle of water for couple of minutes. Now add back the potatoes

Saute for a minute

Add 1 cup of uncooked and washed Gobindo bhog( a variety of rice).  Basmati Rice also works.

Fry for a couple of minutes and add the fried fish head pieces.

Add 1 tsp of fresh Garam Masala Powder, 1/4 tsp or less of Red Chilli Powder, salt and mix well.

Add about 1 cup of water and cover and cook at low heat.

Check to see if you need water in between, and stir in between.

Cook till the rice and potatoes are done. It should be moist but will not have a gravy.

Add Ghee on top.(Optional)

 

Mashala Egg / Egg Kosha

Saturday Mornings are a time of great relaxation for me. Here there are whole 48 hours given to me , to be used as I wish and that puts a lot of pressure on me.Because I starts thinking how can I utilise my 48 hours.

With such lofty ideas in mind I go to bed late on Friday. I just while away browsing the TV or laptop, justifying the "me time". Naturally I am not shining bright and happy when Saturday dawns.

I get up late and then I hyperventilate. I draw up lists, I draw one for the hub too, dividing up the chores to be finished which eventually means I can take a nap.

By the time I start cutting n chopping veggies, it is 10 and my husband still sleeps. No breakfast has been made, myself has been fed only tea and buiscuits and the house looks like a scene of volcanic eruption. In between all these he wakes up and  switch on the TV and tries to watch something.No meat and fish in refrigerator and no question of  bazar  (market) on saturday for husband,I pan to try out Egg.

A year back I was not interested in cooking, at all. I never even dreamt that cooking could actually be therapeutic. Now eating was another genre altogether, that I loved. I sincerely believed Eating good is therapeutic.

It is not that I didn't know how to cook, I knew the basic dal, bhaat, macher jhol and also noodles and chili chicken.And I knew Egg Kosha.

I started cooking after marraige, once I moved out to Kolkata ,I tried cooking.And now I think its in my blood which helps me a lot.

Today I will share my  Egg Kosha/Mashala Egg receipe.

What You need 

Egg ~ 4 boiled
Green Chillies ~ 2-3 slit
Ginger ~ 1/2 inch ,grated

Garlic~2-3 cloves

Onion~ 1 large one

Tomato ~ 1 diced

Corriander leaves
Salt

Oil  

Turmeric~pinch

Red Chilli Powder~ 1/2 tsp

Cumin powder ~ 1tsp

Corriander Powder ~1tsp

Garam Mashala~ 1 tsp

How I do it

Finely chop 1-2 onions, 1-2 garlic cloves, grate ginger.Now make a paste of them.

Heat Oil in a deep bottomed pan/ Kadai

 

Add the onions,When onions  are well fired add garlic and ginger. Also add the spices -  1/2 tsp chili powder,cumin powder,corriander powder and 1 tsp salt.Mix well n saute.

Add the chopped tomatoes, a pinch of turmeric, little salt and saute them. Then cover and cook the tomatoes at low heat. The juicy tomatoes will release a lot of liquid and will cook in their own juice. Every minute or so, remove the lid and give a good stirAdd diced tomatoes .One can also use tomato sauce/puree. 

Now add boiled egg.My advice is to cut 2 eggs half for better taste.Add about 1/4-1/2 cup of water and cook for a few more minutes.Sprinkle garam Mashala.Mix well in low heat.

Add some fresh corriander leaves.

Serve with Roti/Rice or Paratha.

Moong Dal er Bhaja Pithe/ Fried Lentil Sweet

My neighbors are very nice people. They didn't utter a word when I did not sent back the

 tiffin carrier which they gave me filled with golden pieces of KaNthal(Jackfruit) from their native village and some rosogullas in occassion of their new cutie baby boy.

My Ma had always taught us that a plate, bowl, whatever that had been filled with food should never be returned empty and so I feel obliged to reciprocate by sending back the plates with some edible items. And as I am so much Phankibaj(lazy and like shortcuts),that I could not make some thing which can be sent in tififn box.Actually I wanted to give them some home made sweets because I do not have anything lovely like those KaNthal to give them.

As I have told  that I am usually lazy and have no time to make Chana(Main ingredient for sweets), so this is a quick shortcut which I love. 

                                            Moong Dal er Bhaja Misti

What you Need

Moong Daal - 2 cups

Cardamom - 15

Sugar - 1 cup

Salt - 1/2 tsp

Oil - for frying

How I Do It

1 . Soak Moong Daal for 3 hours. Grind finely.It should be paste ,not lot watery.
2.  Put a wide open pan on flame and add the finely ground moong daal to it.

3 . Add sugar and salt and oil and stir continuously till the moong daal become light yellow in color.Keep stirring the moong daal continuously else it may form lumps.

4.  Ground the cardamom and add to the moong daal.

5.  Remove to another dish and spread uniformly.

6. When cool, cut into desired shapes.

7. Heat oil in a kadhai and deep fry till golden brown.

FootNote: Now I Use Mixer/Grinder to make paste for Soaked Lentils/Dal, Posto/PoppySeeds or other spices.But I still remember in my valuable memory that every morning my Pishi(Father's Sister) used to make paste with SheelNora-A smooth black nora of stone grating on  a pock marked slab of stone-Sheel, turmeric stained by use and age with a  rhythmic regular pressure of her hands.