Quick Moti Pulao (Pearl Pilaf)-Restaurant Secret Recipe for Durga Puja/Navratri

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“Aaj dhaner Khete roudro chhaya-e lukochuri khela re bhai – lukochuri khela”  – (The fun game of hide-n-seek in the sun & shade of the paddy field…)

These beautiful lines(part of a song) by Tagore reminds me of my childhood. We were three sisters – me & two of maternal cousins who I spent the initial 10 years of my life with. It was enriching & full of activity. Now that I see my little niece who can barely hold her herself together demanding an ipad, I can’t help but wonder if how the days have changed. For us luxury was either a trip to the zoo or a Bengali spread at lunch with Pulao, beguni (Eggplant fritters), pathar mansho (Mutton gravy), something sweet my mami’s tomato chutney. I know that makes me sound like hundred and two years old but how simple & charming were those days! Gone!

Before I fly off to my memories, let’s get on with the recipe of the day, Pulao. I am sorry if I come out as an Indian Classic dish maniac to you but I can’t just help but try these evergreen recipes. But this time I took a step ahead & whipped up something my family hardly makes – Moti pulao (Pearl pulao).

Weird name?? Well, the word moti which means pearl in hindi comes from the pearl-like cottage cheese/paneer balls. They are either stuffed or plain flavoured. They look good, yes. But they also taste delicious with the saffron sweet-ish rice!

What irked me the most for years is how the pulao made at home in the comfort of my kitchen never seemed to be the same as those we are served in fancy restaurants. I have tried endless versions of similar kind of pulaos & 70% of the websites online  are all good but alas not the restaurant-like. Note that by no means do I want to say the homemade ones are any bad but….well! you know what I mean, don’t ya?

So after a good number of try & massive help from my maa, here’s a restaurant trade secret just for you. It certainly was an ‘eureka’ moment for us in the kitchen!!

Here’s the recipe of the day for you. Go crazy!

10 Tasty Chicken Recipes you must try!

I am gonna keep the introduction as short as possible today. why? Because I am excited as hell!

It’s my first round-up post with list of delicious 10 style chicken recipes. This is a simple yet interesting mix – from tender chicken in tangy rice to kebabs to Bengali stew! If you are a chicken lover, you will adore this. wink

If not, this is my earnest try to make you fall for it. Amen.

(CLICK ON EACH RECIPE TITLE TO OPEN THE COMPLETE BLOG POST)

1. MY MOTHER’S ONE POT CHICKEN PULAO (TRADITIONAL INDIAN PULAO/PULAV RECIPE)

Why is it special you ask?
☆ Its an one-pot meal – so no extra cleaning & slogging in kitchen!.
Not only can it be made in a Branded One-Pot meal maker, Rice cooker, Pressure cooker, Handi…it can also be made in a wok/kadai or Pan.
☆ Its quick. yes!
☆ It’s delicious. Period.
☆ It’s extremely filling. Even if you dont make a side dish or get your salads ready..your tummy will be a happy tummy!
☆ It’s got basic ingredients that’s easily available.
☆ versatility is a word I adore. This is versatile..Not only in terms of how its served but how it can be made ~ Swapping an ingredient or two, adding 3 more, minus 1 here or there is all common But you can even alter the sequence of a step of making or two. It wont matter much!
☆ Don’t think these one-pot meals are for work days..this can be just as Posh and apt for those fancy dinner parties. All you need is a decent plating skill!
(Shh..If I can plate, so can you! trust me!)
How about taking a look now….

One pot chicken pulao

 Ingredient list :

♡ Chicken (With bones), 500gm
♡ Basmati rice (soaked for at least half an hour), 2- 2.5 cups
♡ onions (finely sliced), 1 big & 1 small
♡ Tomatoes (chopped small), 1 big or 2 small pieces
♡ Curd or yogurt, 1/4 cup or 3 big tablespoon
♡ ginger garlic paste- 1 big tablespoon
♡ Green chilies (chopped fine), 1 or to taste
♡ Salt, to taste
♡ Red chili powder/Kashmiri chilli powder, 2 teaspoon or to taste
♡ coriander powder, 1- 1.5 teaspoon
♡ Garam Masala powder, 3/4th teaspoon
♡ Whole garam masala
(Cinnamon- 1″ stick,
Green Cardamom – 1 or 2,
Cloves – 1 or 2,
Nutmeg, a small piece)
♡ 1/4 cup oil + 1/4 cup ghee
♡water, as required
♡ chopped green & red chilies for garnishing (optional)

2. Chicken Kebabs (made in the oven)

Another Indian/Turkish classic that people drool over. The best part about this is it’s made in an oven rather than the tandoor/mud oven.

All you need are :

• Chicken breast – 1 lb, cut into chunky bite sized pieces
• Almonds, blanched and skinned – 1/2 Cup (I used store bought slivered almonds)
• Greek Yogurt/Hung Curd – 1/2 Cup
• Ginger – 1 inch, peeled
• Garlic – 3 to 4 fat cloves
• Harissa Powder – 1 tsp (can be substituted with red chili powder)
• Black pepper, freshly cracked – 1 tsp + 1/2 tsp to season the chicken pieces
• Cardamom powder – 1/2 tsp
• Few squeezes of lemon juice
• Oil – 1 tbsp
• Salt to taste

That’s it! When are you trying this then? (Click on the title to go to recipe site)

3. Shorshe Murgi: Indian Chicken Curry With Mustard Paste 

If you are a bengali, you must be drooling – Mustard & bengalis have a bond! If you aint, trust me and add some mustard in your palate now! The usual mustard fish is ditched by the chef at Hamaree Rasoi here for chicken.

Share your Recipe with Piece of Cerebrum

Am sure you have noticed a new tab on the menu  of my blog (which has a new theme now btw!). What the hell is it about you ask?!?! Here’s me with an answer.

Whether you are a food blogger, homemaker or workaholic mom, dad or a student, I am sure you have a part in you that enjoys experimenting in the kitchen & obtain great pleasure by feeding your loved ones. Why waste the skill, then?

Let us all get a sneak-peek into your culinary world. Share your Recipe or Food Photography with Piece of Cerebrum & it’s readers & we will let the word out in the blogosphere!

Toddy palm/Tadgola/Taal Payesh – Raksha Bandhan/Janmasthami Special

Growing up in a Bengali household, summer months meant a lot of quintessential things – be it mangoes or certain vegetables that became part of our staple diet; but what has always been a conspicuous part of the festivals of summer is the Toddy palm which we bengalis dearly call Taal. My family adores sweet dishes & so I keep making one or the other time to time.For those who doesn’t know about it, I will quote the Wikipedia here on Toddy palm.

  “ Borassus flabellife commonly known as doub palm, palmyra palm, tala palm, toddy palm or wine palm, is native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, including Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia,Indonesia and the Philippines. It is reportedly naturalized in Pakistan, Socotra, and parts of China.”

There are so many recipes on this – be it kheer or payesh (aka payesham) or bora (fritters). Considering there are so many festivals on our way – Rakhi Purnima/Raksha bandhan , Independence day or Krishna Janmasthami..I though why not show you a recipe that I have borrowed from Baby aunty through my beloved Sky & Gulu. Cheers!

Toddy palm/Tadgola/Taal payesh

• Time: “20-40minures”
• Difficulty: “easy”
• Print

Ingredients:

• Toddy palm/Tadgola/Taal – 2 cups
• Nestle Milkmade – 1 cup or to taste + 2 tablespoon (to drizzle on top)
• Khoya/Mawa/milk solid – 75 grams (Keep aside a little for garnish)
• Elaichi/ Green Cardamom powder, ¼ teaspoon
• Fresh coconut, grated, 2 tablespoon

Golbarir Kosha Mangsho-the classic bengali mutton gravy recipe (Most viewed recipe)

UPDATE : “Thank you so very much for liking this recipe.Even though this site has not been updated for months now, this post gets hundreds of views regularly and that makes me so happy.

Do take a look around and see if you like other nonveg or veg recipes.If you have any doubt or query,feel free to drop me an email.

If you try the recipe, tag me or send me a photo on facebook.“

Golbarir mangsho…

Sounds mouthful isn’t it?

If you have been to Kolkata and haven’t tried that yet, be grieved.

If you live here and haven’t tried it.Wake yourself up & rush to Shyambazar  ASAP to feed your soul.

Here is a sneak peak of how the tiny old and most loved eatery looks like & also the loved kosha mangsho(which in bengali means saute’ed meat. Any meat really, but here it’s mutton)

Golbarir kosha mangsho – No it’s not for the faint hearts! (Google image)

This place is so humble- it’s small and kinda dingy but it’s older than I am & it serves you meaty goodness. It’s heaven for meat lovers. The gravy they serve there is mostly had with plain rice or roti & is dark in colour. Why you ask?

It’s cooked in a thick iron wok since years. It’s all words of mouth that we hear about how secretive and selective their chefs are about their meat or how they marinade overnight. You will damn well find a hoard of other recipes online claiming it’s authentic Golbarir Kosha mangsho recipe but I hardly think so! They guard it with their lungs & heart! This is just an attempt and after a few trials I am happy with how it tastes. Almost like the gem itself! You can always decide for yourself.

Golbarir Kosha Mangsho (Saute’ed mutton dish) -The Bengali classic

 

This dish is ideally made in an iron wok/kadai but it’s fine if you don’t own one 🙂

Golbarir Kosha Mangsho - Classic Bengali mutton recipe

• Time: 1-1.5 hour
• Difficulty: medium
• Print

Ingredients you will need :

• Mutton- 1 kg (medium sized pieces with bone)
• Onion- 2 medium sized (grated)
• Cumin powder- 1  Tablespoon

Virgin Watermelon Mojito – summer special!

Today I bring one of my favourite summer recipe. It’s the popular Cuban watermelon mojito without any white rum. It’s very simple and easy to make with just a few ingredients. The best part being, it can be stored for almost a week in the freezer.

“Mo-ji-to” is actually pronounced “Mo-hi-to” ! Nice twang, isn’t it?

So, let’s get started.

Things you will need :

• Watermelon juice, 4 cups

(I recommend making it at home rather than buying packed ones.

To make watermelon juice, blend chunks of watermelon and strain it to remove all the fibers and seeds.)

Peanut butter double chocolate bites –Fast, Easy, No bake dessert (Summer Special)

Hello again! It’s so nice to be back with another kid friendly recipe for all you dear readers. I have been away from all the yumminess & blogging for a while now but now that I have got a slight chance at it..here I am with a super summer dessert recipe.

Why is this recipe something you & your kid will love in the season of sun?

Well, good news for you. This is a no-bake recipe which is so apt for the coming summers when gas-top & oven kills. Kills hard!

Secondly, this is a fun do for your kids. This has steps in which you can involve your little ones. No fire, no super hot stuff, minimalistic ingredients list – you can barely find an excuse to keep them away from your kitchen.

The list of ingredients is not very big on the pocket & mostly includes items you already have in your kitchen cupboard.

Ingredients : to make 20-25 small pieces

• Butter (preferably white unsalted cooking butter, but you may use regular ones too) – 4+half dollops/tablespoon
• Digestive biscuits (preferably thick ones) –200g
• Peanut butter (crunchy or creamy) –4 big tablespoon
• Brown sugar /castor sugar – 3-4 big tablespoon (or to taste)
• Dark or milk chocolate – I used about 4 34gms dairy milk for the first coat & some drinking chocolate/chocolate sprinkles as topping. Feel free to either skip or adjust the topping.
• Milk – 3 tablespoon
• Tray/baking tin (preferable square) – to make 20-25 bite size pieces.
• vanilla extract – 1.5 teaspoon
• Aluminum foil of any quality/baking sheet – a little bigger than the tray

You will also need the following –