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| Cloudy skies of Kolkata |
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| Kolkata Rains |
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| Khichuri |
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| Beguni |
Beguni is a popular Brinjal fritter, that is a hot favourite in Bengal. A hot and crispy piece of beguni brightens up any rainy day especially if you are stuck at home.
In Bengal, every neighborhood and street corner has a shop that sells all sorts of vegetable fritters along with beverages, hot and cold .
You will find batter fried Eggplant being sold in a corner snack shop. It is served along with Dal and Bhaat for a casual lunch or dinner. Often, it can be seen on a Bengali wedding parties lunch menu as well.
In Beguni, the correct cut of the vegetable is very important. Choose a fat and long Egg plant . Cut off the stem and wash. Pat dry. The egg plant needs to be cut lengthwise into thin slices. Not paper thin and not too thick either. We in Bengali use the "Bothi" to slice. The Bothi is held with the feet and with both the hands, the brinjal is cut into thin long slices. If that is unavailable to you, and you find cutting difficult, then cut the brinjal into rounds.
The "batter " is very important as well. In order to make fluffy fritters, its very important to mix all ingredients and then beat the batter very well with hand.
Ingredients for the Batter:
Brinjal (Eggplant)........................................................1
Besan/Beson(Chickpea Flour).....................................1cup
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| I prefer to cut the long brinjal lengthwise and the small brinjal into rounds |
Turmeric Powder (Holud Guro)..................................1/2 tsp
Salt............................................................................1/2 tsp or as per taste
Green Chilly Paste (Kacha Lanka Bata)......................1 tsp
Sugar..........................................................................1/4 tsp
Jowan/Ajwain (Bishop's Weed).................................1/4 tsp
Baking Powder...........................................................1/2 tsp
Nigella Seeds(Kalo Jeere)...........................................1pinch
Fresh Garlic Paste(Rosun Bata)....................................1/2 tsp (Optional)
Hot Oil .......................................................................1 tbsp
Refined /Mustard Oil (For deepfrying)...........................2 cups
For Garnishing :
Chaat Masala..............................................................1 tsp
Put the oil to heat in a deep pan or a wok and mix all ingredients well. While the oil is heating up, remember to beat the batter very well with hand.
The use of garlic is optional. Sometimes I have seen snack shops use Asafoetida (Hing ) instead of garlic.
Many a times, on a rainy day, a dish of crispy fried Beguni and Ghee flavoured Khichuri makes its way to our table. My mother in law's favourite lunch.
At other times, Mr Hubby wants a dish of crispy hot Beguni with Puffed Rice(Moori) and the favourite daily soap on television makes the evening really delightful and fun.
If your whole family is with you and you are having an adda session ,then a stack of beguni will make your day.
Forget the calorie count for a day and enjoy!!!
Bhaja Moog Dal er Kichuri
Ingredients I Used :
Split Green Gram (Sona Moong Dal)...............................................1/2 cup
Fine Rice (Gobondo bhog Rice).....................................................1/2 cup
Potato...........................................................................................4,small (Or 2medium)
Green Chilly (Kacha Lanka),slit......................................................4-6
Green Peas (Motorsuti).................................................................1/2 cup
Tomato,chopped............................................................................2,medium
Cauliflower (Phoolkofi)..................................................................1 small
Water.............................................................................................6 cups
Tempering :
Bay Leaf (Tejpata).......................................................................2
Whole Garam Masala,crushed
Green Cardamom..........................................................................2
Cinnamon.......................................................................................1 inch
Cloves............................................................................................2
Cumin Seeds(Jeere Gota)................................................................1/4tsp
Dry Red Chilly (Sukno Lanka).........................................................2
Ginger Julliens.................................................................................1 tsp
Pure Ghee (Clarified Butter)............................................................1 tbsp
Dry Spices :
Turmeric Powder............................................................................1 tsp
Roasted Cumin Powder..................................................................1/2 tsp
Salt.................................................................................................as per taste
Sugar..............................................................................................as per taste
Red Chilly Powder.........................................................................1/2 tsp
Garam Masala Powder....................................................................1/2 tsp
Garnishing :
Pure Ghee........................................................................................1 tbsp
Khichuri is basically Rice and Lentils cooked together. I first had khichuri as a child of six months and that was just rice and dal boiled together with a lot of healthy veggies. This is almost the same. Only this one is an elaborate one made of roasted Moong Dal, rice, vegetables and an array of fragnant spices and tastes delicious along with a mixed vegetable dish of Labra.
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| Labra |
The whole task of preparing Khichuri needs quite a bit of preparation.
On very low to medium heat, roast the lentil till golden in colour and a nice aroma fills your kitchen. This will take some time and can not be done in a hurry. Once done soak in water and keep aide.
I used Gobindo bhog Chaal and Sona Moog Dal, short grained and aromatic variety of Rice and Daal.
Take 4 small potatoes .Peel and chop into halves or you can chop medium size ones into 4 pieces. Coat with a pinch of salt and Turmeric.
Chop the cauliflower into pieces, keeping the size of the florets large. Wash and drain. Leave to dry.
When dry coat with a pinch of turmeric and salt.
Chop the tomatoes too.
Keep all the ingredients ready. Now we are ready to cook.
Heat 2 tbsp oil in a pan and fry the potato and remove when golden. Add some more oil (As required) and fry the cauliflower next and remove.
In a separate, deep & large pan, heat 1 tbsp pure ghee with 1 tbsp oil & add the temperings and saute.
Next , add the roasted moog dal and stir to mix. Put in the rice and the dry spices. Saute all well for a few minutes. Then add water to cover all. Vegetables and peas need to go in next.
Since I used Sona Moog Daal and Gobindo Bhog Chaal, I put them in both together, as both take almost the same time to cook.
Now, wait for the water to come to a boil and then cover and let cook on low heat till all are soft.
Lastly, drizzle the pure ghee. You can keep aside a pinch of garam masala and sprinkle it on top .
Keep covered for five minutes after adding the ghee.
Served with Fries, Labra, Omlette, Hilsa Fish fry (no, we are not talking about the fancy Fish Fry here. It's just a slice of fresh fish seasoned with salt & turmeric and fried in mustard oil),
Chaatni etc Khichuri is a meal to have on a cold rainy day.
COMING UP : LABRA
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