#Title

Amazing dishes to celebrate durga puja
CHOLAR POLAO
Ingredients
For yakhni —
1 tbsp gram dal (cholar dal)
1 piece ginger (semi crushed)
1 tsp black pepper
½ tsp clove
1 tsp whole cumin
1 piece black cardamom
2 bay leaves
1 piece cinnamon
1 tsp fennel seeds
2 whole red chillies (wrapped in a soft cloth)
For polao —
1½ cup basmati rice (washed and strained; set aside for 1 hr)
1 cup gram dal (cholar dal; soaked in water for 2 hrs)
2 pieces whole green cardamom
1 black cardamom
1 cinnamon stick
1 tej pata
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp coriander powder
2 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp chilli powder
1 tsp whole jeera
5-6 green chillies
1 tsp garam masala powder
Sugar, as per taste
Salt, as per taste
1 tbsp ghee
Mustard oil, as required
Method
For yakhni —
Heat all ingredients with 6 cups of water. When water reduces to 2½ cups, switch off the gas.
For polao —
In a frying pan, add mustard oil and a little ghee. Now add bay leaves, cardamoms, cinnamon and whole cumin. When it starts to splutter, add rice and dal. Add salt, cumin powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder, chilli powder and stir. When aroma is released, add yakhni water (after straining).
Add yakhni water and plain water, a total of 5 cups, as the quantity of rice and gram dal is 2½ cup. You need to use just double the water.
Now boil for a while. Add chillies and sugar. Seal the lid with flour dough. Reduce the heat to minimum. And let simmer for 15 minutes on ‘dum.’ Sprinkle garam masala powder and ghee. Close the lid and keep aside for 5 min. It’s now ready to serve.
STUFFED TELAPIA MASALA
Ingredients
10 pieces tilapia fish (slit carefully from shoulder to lower part for stuffing)
1 small bowl mustard paste
2 tbsp red chilli paste
1 medium bowl chopped onions
2 tbsp ginger paste
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chilli powder
10 pcs eggplant (cut into long size)
2 tsp raw turmeric paste
2 tbsp flour
3-4 tbsp tomato paste
Salt, to taste
Mustard oil, as required
Method
Marinate the fish with turmeric powder and salt. In a bowl, mix chopped onions, chilli paste, mustard paste, salt, ginger paste, turmeric paste. Use your hand for good mixing.
Now rub this mixture into the fish. Mix flour with water for batter. Coat this with fish and deep fry the pieces. Keep aside. Fry the eggplant and shift to a bowl. Now put oil in frying pan, add chopped onions (2 tablespoons), ginger paste (1 teaspoon) turmeric powder (1 teaspoon), red chilli powder, and tomato paste.
Fry them in oil. Add water. When the water starts to boil, add eggplant and fish. Let boil for a few minutes and switch off the gas. There will be very little gravy in the curry. Serve with steamed rice.
RABRI CHOSHI
Ingredients
3 litres milk
Choshi ( you can get it in the market, but if you want to make it at home, boil water in a frying pan; pour rice powder into the boiling water. Sir continuously. Switch off the gas. Knead well and make a semi soft dough. From the dough, make choshi into basmati rice shape )
Nolen gur, as per taste
3-4 tsp sugar
1 bay leaf
Method
Boil milk and thicken it. After that you will find malai is forming on top. Collect the malai with a spatula and place it on the side of the frying pan to condense. Repeat this process so that you can collect more rabri.
Now using your hand, collect the malai and keep it in a bowl. To the rest of the milk, add bay leaf, put in the choshi, and boil and add sugar. When choshi becomes soft, switch off the gas.
Add the nolen gur to the choshi, switch on the gas, and stir for a while. Now stop cooking and add the rabri. Cool it and serve.
You can cut up large pieces of rabri into smaller ones to give it a better taste.
Photo Courtesy: Panchali Dutta