Ria's Pasta Delicious

If you are a busy person who just wants to learn a few basic dishes in order to make quick and tasty meal, this is it. 

If you are a college student or if you are dining alone, this dish is for you.....

Ria follows a simple method, very easy to make.

Get ready to start cooking...

At the very beginning, you will have to get all your ingredients together and begin by making your sauce.

Ingredients :

Pasta....................................................................................1/2 packet

Cheese (Amul processed cheddar cheese)............................1 block(Grated)

Milk.....................................................................................1 cup

Refined Flour........................................................................2 tbsp

Salt & Pepper.......................................................................as per taste

Oregano/Mixed herbs...........................................................as per taste

Chicken Breast pieces(Chopped into bit size pieces)..............2

Bacon(Chopped into bite size pieces).....................................1 bowl

Fresh Basil.............................................................................a few

To prepare the chicken  and bacon, you will need to heat 1 tbsp oil and on low heat, stir fry the chopped chicken breast pieces and pork salami. When they are done keep aside.

For the white sauce, heat 2 tbsp oil in a pan and add 2 tbsp of flour and stir fry for a minute or two. Then add the milk, cheese, salt and pepper and mix all until thick. Cook stirring all the while. Keep aside.

How to cook the pasta :

1) Some people also add a few spoons of oil to the water .

2) Take a large pan and fill it with water and boil. Add salt to the water only when the water starts to boil. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook. Let it come to a boil. Stir once in a while with

     a Laddle/Spoon.

3) Cook the pasta till soft but not overdone. If its overcooked it will become difficult to handle.

4) Pasta cant be left to sit around as it tends to stick, so always have the sauce cooked and 

     ready before hand.

5) Drain the hot water off the pasta and then mix the other ingredients.

6) Put the white sauce, pasta, stir fried chicken breast and bacon, oregano and toss well.

     Check the seasoning.

7) Transfer to a serving dish and top with fresh basil.

Ria's Pasta Delicious

This recipe is unique , prepared by Ria for us. Unlike others who just don't want to share their"Family recipes" with others, Ria's recipe is here for all to follow on my blog .
Have fun cooking..........

Chotomashi's Chocolate Cake

Chocolate Cake

To begin with pre-heat your oven .

You can put all your ingredients one by one into a food processor to mix or mix her way....the old fashioned way.

Sieve together a cup of Refined Flour, 200grams of Coco
Powder, 2 tsp Baking Powder,1/2 tsp Sodi-bi-carb to remove impurities if any.

In another bowl take 1cup Butter and 1cup Caster Sugar and
cream it with an egg beater.

Add the maida (flour) a little at a time till it all mixes together.
At this stage we will have a stiff batter.

Mix 3/4 cup of Milk to the batter.

Beat 2 eggs and add. Also add 1 tsp Vanilla Essence.

Add 1 cup  of buttermilk.

It will all turn into a creamy mixture.

Greese an oven proof bowl with butter and sprinkle some refined flour too.

Dust the extra flour off and pour the cake batter into the tin. Bake in the oven on 180 degrees till done.

Chocolate Cake

Kaun er Chaaler Payesh

Kaun er Chaaler Payesh

Kaun er chaal is not actually a variety of rice. Its in actual seeds of some sort, quite like sago (small size sabudana) and is had during fasting when rice is  forbidden .

Khichri, soft rice, payesh etc are prepared with kaun er chaal. I prepared payesh, keer in Hindi.

Ingredients :

 Full Cream Milk........................................1  litre milk
 Kaun Er Chaal...........................................1 handful of Kaun er Chaal
 Bay Leaf....................................................2
 Sugar.........................................................4 tbsp or as per taste
 Green Cardamom Powder...........................4 cardamoms powdered
 Chopped nuts n raisins................................4-6 tbsp

Method :

In a deep pan or wok heat a litre of full cream milk and reduce it to half.Add  the bay leaves while reducing the milk.

Put the kaun er chaal in the pressure cooker to boil to soften it. It tends to remain a little hard so this is what I do.

When the milk is half add the kaun er chaal and let it boil with the milk. When the milk and kaun er chaal is well mixed add the sugar. When the sugar melts and the payesh is thick put the gas flame off and leave in the wok. Give the payesh standing time.

Sprinkle the cardamom powder and the chopped nuts and raisins. Mix.

Decorate some raisins and nuts on top

Serve chilled.

Enjoy this very different dessert.

Though I am not absolutely sure about this but I think"Kaun Er CHaal"is known by the name of Quinoa.Quinoa is a versatile seed often mistaken for a grain.It serves as a good replacement for rice on Hindu  fasting days

Hi Friends,

 Sorry for the long leave of absence. I went to Hyderabad , my elder daughter's house to be with my handsome grandson, Adhrit. Being there for over a month, its not that I was on complete leave....I did some cooking too and will put up those recipes and pictures for all of you . Hyderabad was hot and dry but the heat couldn't deter me from making visits to the kitchen ever so often. Cooked, body cooling recipes as well as the" favourites". 

Missed you all a lot. But now, I am back and will return to my daily notes. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank you for being with me n Bangali Ginnir Ranna Banna.Thank you for your support and encouragement. Many of you read regularly and I hope we have become friends by now.

While in Hyderabad, I had the opportunity to taste the local cuisine, biryani, continental as well as chinese.

Visited the local pearl market, both well known large shops and the whole sellers for beautiful pearl sets as well as others.

My grandson made me realize that preparing" Baby food " is a challenging task. All of ten months and he had us dancing on his fingertips. Unlike in India, I hear people outside our country get everything in packages. So, its easy on mothers who live abroad , but my daughter would not have her son have food out of packets, so we cooked different things and our little villan either accepted or outright rejected it. Sometimes, when we felt lazy, we had to camouflage some of the food under a lump of " Butter " and others under some" Cheese slices ", to pass off things that were not Adhrit's favourite....... but the lad is so smart !  

Preparing food for adults is far easier I thought.

I made a few new  friends and learnt a few hard truths of life. Bad or good.... life goes on, people change for the better or at least we hope they do. Those who don't wish to change, stagnate and make their own life a living hell and then, are left to lead a lonely life. I pity them. They know not what they are loosing.

For me life is about being open to changes and I love to accept people, their food and love to try out new things. Cheers to life !!!

 

Cooking at Hyderabad

Borar Jhaal

Indian families find any excuse to get together over food. Cooking up something delicious to share is all a part of the get together. This is what Indian life is all about.....Cooking, being with family and friends, chatting, celebrating with food, eating and enjoying a good healthy life on the whole...

This is a great combination of Bora and spice paste. It is typically Bengali. The paste of mustard and poppy seeds used in a dish is quite common in Bengal and Bengali's like to use it in every other dish.

The first thing you need to do is, soak a cup of Matar Dal  overnight and grind to a coarse paste.

Beat the paste well with hand to make it fluffy.

Chop an onion, half an inch of ginger and 2 green chilly's finely and mix.

Grind 4 tbsp of Poppy seeds with 2 tbsp of mustard seeds and 2 green chilly's to a smooth paste using little water. Mix Salt and Sugar as per taste and 1/4 tsp of turmeric powder to the paste .

Next, you need to put some oil to heat up. And then add the lentil paste little by little to make the Bora's. Fry all in Batches, till golden and remove.

Now add a pinch of Nigella seeds in the remaining oil and let them splutter.

Whole spices are added first in oil to bring out their flavours.

Add the slit Green Chilly's next.

Almost immediately add the spice paste mixed in some water and let it come to a boil.

 Add the Bora's and mix 1/2 a cup of water to make a gravy and let the water come to a boil and gravy thicken.There is not too much gravy in this dish.

Enjoy with hot Rice.....Bengali Style.

It's a beautiful dish and I think you should try it at least once.

Chaalkumror Ghonto

Chaal kumro can be prepared in a number of ways....Daal Diye Ghonto, Chechki Bhaja, Sukto, Narkel diye Ghonto, Aar Maach er Matha diye Chaal kumro, Chingri Diye Chaal kumro, Ilish Maach Diye Chaal kumro etc.
This preparation is very light but delicious.

Bhaja Muger Daal Diye Chaal Kumror Ghonto :

Small Wax Gourd..........................................................500 grams
Bhaja Munger daal.........................................................100 grams
Refined oil......................................................................2 tbsp
Pure Desi Ghee..............................................................2 tbsp
Cumin seeds (Sada Jeere)...............................................a pinch
Green Chilly,Chopped.....................................................4
Salt.................................................................................as per taste
Sugar..............................................................................1 tsp
Bengali Five Spice Mix(Paanch Phoron)..........................2 tbsp

This is How I  Prepare The Dish :

Dry roast the Five Spice Mix (Paanch Phoron) and powder. Keep Aside.
Peel and finely chop the Wax Gourd .
Dry roast the Mung Daal(Yellow Lentil) and then wash the lentil.
Heat the Refined Oil and 1 tbsp ghee in a wok  and add the cumin . Let the seeds crackle.
Add the daal and gourd ,1/4 cup water. Put a lid, cover and cook till soft.
In a Pressure Cooker, put the roasted lentil with the chopped  gourd and pressure cook till soft. It should
 not be too mushy. Two whistles should be enough.
Heat the oil and ghee together in a wok. Add the cumin seeds and let it crackle. Add the soft gourd and daal. Add the Green Chilly, Salt and Sugar as per your taste.
Dry up the preparation and put the flame off.
Ghee goes in next and sprinkle the roasted and powdered Paanch Phoron on top.
The dish is ready to be served.
Serve with hot Rice.