RAG Demo

Tag: Vegetarian

  • Chhena Poda

    Chhena poda, literally 'burnt cheese', comes from Nayagarh district in Odisha, where a confectioner is said to have left sweetened chhena in a cooling wood-fired oven overnight in the 1940s. The result became the state's signature sweet and is also offered to Lord Jagannath. Traditional sweet shops still bake it in sal leaves over wood fire.

    It tastes like a rustic Indian cheesecake. The outside is deep brown, caramelised and slightly chewy, while the inside stays soft, moist and spongy with the milky sweetness of fresh chhena and the warmth of cardamom. A little semolina holds it together. It is served in wedges, warm or at room temperature, and keeps well for a couple of days.

    At a glance

    RegionOdisha
    CuisineOdia
    DietVegetarian
    CourseDessert
    Prep time40 minutes
    Cook time50 minutes
    Total time90 minutes
    Serves6
    Spice levelMild
    DifficultyMedium
    Gluten-freeNo
    Key ingredientschhena / sugar / semolina / cardamom

    Ingredients

    • Chhena from 1.5 litres full-cream milk (about 300 g), drained
    • 1/2 cup sugar
    • 2 tbsp fine semolina (sooji)
    • 1/2 tsp green cardamom powder
    • 1 tbsp ghee plus extra for greasing
    • 1 tbsp chopped cashews
    • 1 tbsp raisins
    • Banana or sal leaves for lining (optional)

    Method

    1. Make chhena by curdling boiled milk with lemon juice, straining it through muslin, rinsing and hanging it for 1 hour so it is well drained.
    2. Crumble the chhena into a bowl and knead with the heel of your palm for 3-4 minutes until fairly smooth.
    3. Add sugar, semolina, cardamom powder and ghee and knead again for 2 minutes. Fold in cashews and raisins. Leave the mixture to rest for 20 minutes so the semolina absorbs moisture.
    4. Preheat the oven to 180 C. Grease a 15 cm round cake tin and line it with banana leaf if using, greased with ghee.
    5. Spread the mixture evenly in the tin and smooth the top.
    6. Bake for 45-50 minutes until the top and sides are deep golden brown and a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean.
    7. Cool in the tin for 30 minutes, then unmould and cut into wedges.

    Tips

    • Without an oven, bake it in a heavy kadhai on a stand with salt underneath, covered, on low heat for about 1 hour.
    • Sprinkle 1 tbsp sugar over the top before baking for a darker caramel crust.
    • Chhena that is too wet makes a soggy centre; squeeze it well before kneading.

    Serve with

    Warm or at room temperature, on its own or after an Odia thali.

  • Sattu Paratha

    Sattu, flour made from roasted chickpeas, is the protein staple of Bihar and eastern Uttar Pradesh. Farmers and labourers carry it to the fields mixed with water and salt, and in homes it becomes litti, sharbat and these stuffed parathas. Cheap, filling and shelf-stable, it is one of the oldest convenience foods in India.

    The filling is dry, savoury and sharp: sattu mixed with raw onion, garlic, green chilli, ajwain, kalonji, lemon and mustard oil, often with a spoon of masala from the mango pickle jar. Once rolled inside a wheat dough and cooked on a tawa with ghee, it gives a nutty, smoky paratha that keeps you going until lunch.

    At a glance

    RegionBihar
    CuisineBihari
    DietVegetarian
    CourseBreakfast
    Prep time25 minutes
    Cook time25 minutes
    Total time50 minutes
    Serves4
    Spice levelMedium
    DifficultyMedium
    Gluten-freeNo
    Key ingredientssattu / whole wheat flour / onion / mustard oil

    Ingredients

    For the dough

    • 2 cups whole wheat flour (atta)
    • 1/2 tsp salt
    • 1 tsp oil
    • About 3/4 cup water

    For the filling

    • 1 cup sattu (roasted gram flour)
    • 1 small onion, very finely chopped
    • 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
    • 1 inch ginger, grated
    • 2 green chillies, finely chopped
    • 2 tbsp chopped coriander
    • 1/2 tsp ajwain
    • 1/2 tsp kalonji
    • 1 tbsp mustard oil
    • 1 tbsp lemon juice
    • 1 tbsp mango pickle masala (optional)
    • Salt to taste
    • 2-3 tbsp water if needed

    For cooking

    • Ghee or oil, as needed

    Method

    1. Knead the atta with salt, oil and water into a soft, smooth dough. Cover and rest for 20 minutes.
    2. Mix all the filling ingredients in a bowl. Squeeze with your hand – the filling should hold together when pressed but crumble when poked. Sprinkle 1-2 tbsp water if it is too dry.
    3. Divide the dough into 8 balls and the filling into 8 portions.
    4. Roll a ball into a 10 cm disc, place a portion of filling in the centre, bring the edges together and pinch to seal. Flatten gently.
    5. Dust with flour and roll carefully into an 18 cm paratha, applying light, even pressure so the filling does not break through.
    6. Cook on a hot tawa over medium heat for 1 minute until small bubbles appear, flip and cook another minute.
    7. Spread ghee on both sides and cook, pressing with a spatula, until both sides have golden-brown spots, about 1 minute per side. Repeat with the rest.

    Tips

    • Chop the onion very finely; large pieces tear the paratha while rolling.
    • If the filling is too dry the paratha tastes powdery, too wet and it leaks – aim for damp sand.
    • Wrap cooked parathas in a cloth to keep them soft if packing for travel.

    Serve with

    Curd, mango pickle and aloo chokha or a hot cup of tea.

  • Thekua

    Thekua is inseparable from Chhath Puja, the Bihari festival in which devotees offer prayers to the setting and rising sun from riverbanks and ponds. Families make huge batches in the days before, and the cookies go into the bamboo soop baskets as the main offering. Afterwards they are shared with neighbours and posted to relatives across the country.

    The dough is plain atta bound with melted jaggery and ghee, flavoured with fennel seeds, cardamom and grated dried coconut. Each piece is pressed onto a carved wooden sancha so it carries a pattern, then fried slowly until deep brown. Good thekua is hard and crunchy outside, lightly crumbly inside, and keeps for weeks in an airtight tin.

    At a glance

    RegionBihar
    CuisineBihari
    DietVegetarian
    CourseSnack
    Prep time20 minutes
    Cook time30 minutes
    Total time50 minutes
    Serves8
    Spice levelMild
    DifficultyEasy
    Gluten-freeNo
    Key ingredientswhole wheat flour / jaggery / ghee / coconut

    Ingredients

    • 2 cups whole wheat flour (about 250 g)
    • 3/4 cup grated jaggery (about 150 g)
    • 1/2 cup water
    • 4 tbsp ghee, melted
    • 3 tbsp desiccated or grated dry coconut
    • 1 tsp fennel seeds
    • 1/2 tsp green cardamom powder
    • 1 tbsp chopped dry fruits (optional)
    • Ghee or oil for deep frying

    Method

    1. Warm the jaggery with 1/2 cup water on low heat, stirring, just until it melts completely. Do not boil it into a syrup. Strain and let it cool until lukewarm.
    2. In a bowl mix the atta, coconut, fennel, cardamom and dry fruits. Add the melted ghee and rub it into the flour with your fingertips until it holds together when pressed in a fist.
    3. Add the jaggery water a little at a time and knead into a stiff, tight dough – stiffer than chapati dough. Cover and rest for 15 minutes.
    4. Pinch off lime-sized balls, flatten each slightly, and press firmly onto a greased thekua mould or the back of a fork to make a pattern. The pieces should be about 5 mm thick.
    5. Heat ghee or oil in a kadhai on medium heat. Test with a pinch of dough; it should rise slowly with small bubbles, not sizzle violently.
    6. Fry 5-6 thekuas at a time on medium-low heat for 7-8 minutes, turning once, until they are deep reddish-brown on both sides.
    7. Drain on a rack and let them cool completely – they crisp up as they cool. Store in an airtight container.

    Tips

    • Fry slowly; on high heat the outside darkens while the centre stays raw and soft.
    • A soft dough makes thekua spread and lose its pattern – keep it stiff.
    • For a lighter version, bake at 180 C for 20-25 minutes, though the texture will be more like a biscuit.

    Serve with

    With tea, or as prasad after Chhath Puja.

  • Pakhala Bhata

    Pakhala bhata is cooked rice soaked in water, sometimes left overnight to ferment lightly, and it is the food Odisha turns to in the blistering summer. The state even celebrates Pakhala Dibasa on 20 March. Farm workers ate it for centuries because it keeps the body hydrated and cool, and it is offered at the Jagannath temple too.

    There are several styles: jeera pakhala with roasted cumin, dahi pakhala with curd and a tempering, and basi pakhala that has fermented overnight and turned pleasantly sour. The rice itself is bland, so it is eaten with strongly flavoured sides – fried fish, badi chura (crushed lentil dumplings with onion and mustard oil), aloo bharta and saga bhaja.

    At a glance

    RegionOdisha
    CuisineOdia
    DietVegetarian
    CourseRice
    Prep time10 minutes
    Cook time5 minutes
    Total time15 minutes
    Serves3
    Spice levelMild
    DifficultyEasy
    Gluten-freeYes
    Key ingredientscooked rice / curd / curry leaves / ginger

    Ingredients

    For the rice

    • 2 cups cooked rice, cooled
    • 3 cups water, at room temperature or chilled
    • 1/2 cup plain curd, whisked
    • 1 tsp grated ginger
    • 1 green chilli, finely chopped
    • 1 tsp salt
    • 1 tbsp chopped coriander
    • A few mint leaves (optional)

    For the tempering

    • 1 tsp mustard oil
    • 1/2 tsp mustard seeds
    • 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
    • 1 dry red chilli
    • 8-10 curry leaves

    Method

    1. For basi pakhala, put the cooked rice in a clay or steel pot, cover with water and leave overnight at room temperature. For instant pakhala, simply soak the cooled rice in water for 1-2 hours.
    2. Gently break up any lumps of rice with your fingers so the grains float loosely in the water.
    3. Whisk the curd with salt, ginger and green chilli and stir it into the rice and water.
    4. Heat the mustard oil in a small pan until it smokes, then lower the heat. Add mustard seeds and let them pop, then cumin, red chilli and curry leaves. Fry for 10 seconds.
    5. Pour the tempering over the rice and stir. Add coriander and torn mint leaves.
    6. Rest for 10 minutes so the flavours mingle, then serve in bowls with plenty of the water.

    Tips

    • Overnight fermentation in hot weather can go too sour; in peak summer 6-8 hours is enough.
    • Use a starchy local rice rather than basmati – the grains soften and give the water body.
    • Serve with a squeeze of lime and raw onion if you skip the curd.

    Serve with

    Fried fish or badi chura, aloo bharta and a slice of raw onion.

  • Dalma

    Dalma is the everyday dal-and-vegetable stew of Odisha and a fixture of the Jagannath temple's mahaprasad, where it is cooked without onion, garlic, tomato or chillies. In homes it is eaten almost daily with rice and is considered wholesome enough to be a full meal on its own. Odia restaurants now serve it as the anchor of a thali.

    Toor dal, or sometimes chana dal, is boiled with chunks of vegetables until both are soft but the vegetables still hold their shape. The dal is mildly sweet from pumpkin and raw papaya, earthy from raw banana and yam. The defining touch is a dry-roasted powder of cumin and dried red chillies sprinkled at the end, and a panch phoron tempering in ghee.

    At a glance

    RegionOdisha
    CuisineOdia
    DietVegetarian
    CourseMain course
    Prep time20 minutes
    Cook time30 minutes
    Total time50 minutes
    Serves4
    Spice levelMild
    DifficultyEasy
    Gluten-freeYes
    Key ingredientstoor dal / pumpkin / raw papaya / raw banana / brinjal

    Ingredients

    For the dal

    • 3/4 cup toor dal, rinsed and soaked 30 minutes
    • 1 cup pumpkin, cut into 3 cm cubes
    • 1 cup raw papaya, cut into cubes
    • 1 raw banana, peeled and cut into cubes
    • 1 small brinjal, cubed
    • 1/2 cup elephant foot yam (optional), cubed
    • 1 inch ginger, grated
    • 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
    • 3 cups water
    • Salt to taste

    For the tempering and finish

    • 2 tbsp ghee
    • 1 tsp panch phoron
    • 2 dry red chillies
    • 2 bay leaves
    • 2 tbsp grated coconut
    • 1 tsp cumin seeds and 2 dry red chillies, dry-roasted and ground (bhaja masala)

    Method

    1. Pressure cook the soaked toor dal with turmeric and 2 cups water for 2 whistles on medium heat. Let the pressure release naturally.
    2. If using yam, boil it separately for 5 minutes in salted water and drain; this reduces its itchiness.
    3. Open the cooker, add the pumpkin, papaya, raw banana, brinjal, yam, ginger, salt and 1 cup water.
    4. Simmer uncovered on medium heat for 12-15 minutes, stirring now and then, until the vegetables are tender and the pumpkin starts to break into the dal.
    5. In a small pan heat the ghee. Add panch phoron, dry red chillies and bay leaves and let them crackle for 15-20 seconds.
    6. Pour the tempering over the dal. Stir in the grated coconut and half the roasted cumin-chilli powder and simmer for 2 minutes.
    7. Serve hot, sprinkled with the rest of the roasted powder and a little more ghee.

    Tips

    • Do not cook the vegetables in the cooker with the dal – they turn to mush; simmering them in the open pot keeps the texture.
    • For the temple-style version, skip the red chillies in the tempering and use only ginger and ghee.
    • Dalma thickens as it stands; loosen with hot water when reheating.

    Serve with

    Steamed rice with a fry such as aloo bhaja or saga bhaja.

  • Luchi with Cholar Dal

    Luchi with cholar dal is the breakfast of Bengali festivals: Durga Puja mornings, Saraswati Puja, weddings and lazy Sundays. Luchi differs from a north Indian puri in being made with maida instead of wheat flour, and it should puff up into a pale, almost white ball rather than turning golden.

    Cholar dal is chana dal cooked until soft yet whole, then tempered in ghee with whole spices, bay leaves and slivers of fried coconut. A little sugar and a handful of raisins make it gently sweet, which is the Bengali style. Torn luchi scooping up thick, fragrant dal, perhaps with alur dom on the side, is a combination most Bengalis grow up waiting for.

    At a glance

    RegionWest Bengal
    CuisineBengali
    DietVegetarian
    CourseBreakfast
    Prep time30 minutes
    Cook time45 minutes
    Total time75 minutes
    Serves4
    Spice levelMild
    DifficultyMedium
    Gluten-freeNo
    Key ingredientsmaida / chana dal / coconut / ghee

    Ingredients

    For the cholar dal

    • 1 cup chana dal, soaked for 2 hours
    • 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
    • 3 cups water
    • 2 tbsp ghee
    • 1/4 cup fresh coconut, cut into small cubes
    • 1 tsp cumin seeds
    • 2 dry red chillies
    • 2 bay leaves
    • 3 green cardamoms
    • 3 cloves
    • 1 inch cinnamon
    • 1 tsp grated ginger
    • 1 tbsp raisins
    • 1 1/2 tsp sugar
    • 1/2 tsp garam masala
    • Salt to taste

    For the luchi

    • 2 cups maida (about 250 g)
    • 2 tbsp ghee or oil
    • 1/2 tsp salt
    • 1/2 cup water, approximately
    • Oil for deep frying

    Method

    1. Pressure cook the soaked chana dal with turmeric, salt and 3 cups water for 2 whistles on medium heat. The dal should be soft but each grain should hold its shape.
    2. Heat the ghee in a pan and fry the coconut cubes on medium heat for 2-3 minutes until golden. Remove and keep aside.
    3. In the same ghee add cumin, dry red chillies, bay leaves, cardamom, cloves and cinnamon. Once they crackle, add the ginger and fry for 30 seconds.
    4. Pour in the cooked dal, add sugar, raisins and the fried coconut. Simmer on low heat for 8-10 minutes until thick enough to coat a spoon. Finish with garam masala.
    5. For the luchi, rub the ghee into the maida and salt until it looks like breadcrumbs. Add water a little at a time and knead to a smooth, firm dough. Cover and rest 20 minutes.
    6. Divide into 16 small balls. Smear each with a drop of oil and roll into a 10 cm circle of even thickness; do not dust with flour, which burns in the oil.
    7. Heat oil in a kadhai until a small piece of dough rises immediately. Slide in one luchi, press it gently with a slotted spoon, and it should puff within seconds. Flip after 10 seconds and remove while still pale. Fry all and serve hot with the dal.

    Tips

    • Uneven rolling stops luchis puffing – roll from the centre outwards with light pressure, turning the disc as you go.
    • Do not overcook the chana dal; mushy dal loses the texture that makes cholar dal special.
    • Keep the oil hot but not smoking; luchis should stay white, not brown.

    Serve with

    Alur dom or begun bhaja on the side, followed by a sandesh.

  • Sandesh

    Sandesh is the most refined of the Bengali chhena sweets and comes in dozens of styles, from the soft 'naram pak' to the firmer 'kora pak', and from plain cardamom to nolen gur, mango or chocolate versions. Kolkata institutions such as Bhim Chandra Nag and Balaram Mullick built their names on it, and carved wooden moulds shaped like shells, fish and flowers are part of its charm.

    Unlike rasgulla, sandesh is not cooked in syrup. Fresh chhena is kneaded with sugar and cooked very briefly in a pan until it forms a smooth dough that leaves the sides. Too little cooking and it will not set, too much and it turns grainy. The homemade naram pak version below is soft, melts in the mouth and tastes clearly of fresh milk.

    At a glance

    RegionWest Bengal
    CuisineBengali
    DietVegetarian
    CourseDessert
    Prep time40 minutes
    Cook time10 minutes
    Total time50 minutes
    Serves6
    Spice levelMild
    DifficultyMedium
    Gluten-freeYes
    Key ingredientsmilk / sugar / cardamom

    Ingredients

    • 1 litre full-cream cow milk
    • 2 tbsp lemon juice mixed with 2 tbsp water
    • 1/4 cup powdered sugar (about 50 g)
    • 1/4 tsp green cardamom powder
    • A few strands of saffron soaked in 1 tsp warm milk (optional)
    • 8-10 pistachios, slivered

    Method

    1. Boil the milk, turn off the heat, and after a minute add the diluted lemon juice slowly while stirring until the milk curdles completely into chhena and greenish whey.
    2. Strain through muslin, rinse with cold water, and squeeze gently. Hang for 20-30 minutes until most of the water has drained but the chhena is still soft.
    3. Knead the chhena on a plate with the heel of your palm for 5 minutes until smooth. Add the powdered sugar and knead for another 2 minutes.
    4. Transfer to a non-stick pan on the lowest heat. Cook, stirring constantly with a spatula, for 5-7 minutes. The mixture will loosen first as the sugar melts, then dry out.
    5. Stop as soon as it starts to come together as a soft mass and leaves the sides of the pan. Do not let it brown.
    6. Transfer to a plate, add cardamom powder and saffron, and knead lightly once it is cool enough to handle, about 2 minutes, until smooth.
    7. Divide into 12 portions and shape into discs, or press into sandesh moulds. Top with slivered pistachio and chill for 30 minutes before serving.

    Tips

    • Overcooking is the most common mistake – take the pan off the heat while the mixture still looks a little moist; it firms up as it cools.
    • For nolen gurer sandesh, replace the sugar with an equal weight of grated nolen gur and cook a minute longer.
    • Keep sandesh refrigerated and eat within two days; it is best on the day it is made.

    Serve with

    On its own with tea, or as part of a mishti platter after lunch.

  • Mishti Doi

    Mishti doi, literally sweet curd, is set in unglazed clay pots that absorb excess moisture and give the curd its dense, almost fudgy texture. Bengal's sweet-shop culture made it a fixture at weddings, annaprashan ceremonies and Sunday lunches, and the versions from Nabadwip in Nadia district and from Bogra in present-day Bangladesh are especially famous.

    The milk is reduced until thick, and sugar or nolen gur (date palm jaggery) is caramelised before it goes in, which gives the curd its pale brown colour and deep, toffee-like sweetness. It should be thick enough to cut with a spoon, sweet with only a gentle tang at the end. In winter many families make it with nolen gur instead of sugar.

    At a glance

    RegionWest Bengal
    CuisineBengali
    DietVegetarian
    CourseDessert
    Prep time10 minutes
    Cook time35 minutes
    Total time45 minutes
    Serves6
    Spice levelMild
    DifficultyMedium
    Gluten-freeYes
    Key ingredientsmilk / sugar / curd

    Ingredients

    • 1 litre full-fat milk
    • 1/2 cup sugar (or 100 g nolen gur in winter)
    • 2 tbsp water
    • 3 tbsp thick plain curd, at room temperature, as starter
    • Earthen pots or a clay handi

    Method

    1. Boil the milk in a heavy-bottomed pan and simmer on medium-low heat for 20-25 minutes, stirring and scraping the sides, until it reduces to about two-thirds.
    2. Meanwhile, put 1/4 cup of the sugar with 2 tbsp water in a small pan on medium heat. Do not stir; swirl the pan until the sugar melts and turns a deep amber, about 4-5 minutes.
    3. Lower the heat and carefully pour a ladle of the hot milk into the caramel – it will splutter. Stir until the caramel dissolves, then pour this back into the reduced milk with the remaining sugar. Stir until fully dissolved.
    4. Let the milk cool until it feels comfortably warm when you dip a finger in, around 40-45 C.
    5. Whisk the starter curd smooth in a bowl, add a ladle of the warm milk, mix, then stir it into the rest of the milk.
    6. Pour into earthen pots, cover with a plate, and leave in a warm, undisturbed place (an off oven with the light on works) for 7-8 hours until set firm.
    7. Once set, refrigerate for at least 3 hours. It will firm up further and taste less tangy when chilled.

    Tips

    • Soak new clay pots in water for an hour and dry them before use, or they will smell of raw clay.
    • If using nolen gur, add it only after the milk has cooled slightly, or the jaggery can curdle the milk.
    • A deeper caramel gives more colour and a slightly bitter edge; stop at amber if you prefer it mellow.

    Serve with

    Chilled, straight from the clay pot, after a festive meal.

  • Rasgulla

    Rasgulla is the sweet most associated with Bengal, and Kolkata confectioner Nobin Chandra Das is credited with creating the spongy version in 1868 in Bagbazar. Odisha has its own older tradition of rasagola linked to the Jagannath temple in Puri, and both states received GI tags for their versions. The Bengali style is whiter, springier and soaked in a thin syrup.

    A good rasgulla squeezes like a sponge and springs back, releasing syrup with every bite. The whole secret lies in the chhena: it must be made from full-cream cow milk, drained but still moist, and kneaded until perfectly smooth so the balls do not crack in the boiling syrup. They are served chilled or at room temperature, often in an earthen bhaar.

    At a glance

    RegionWest Bengal
    CuisineBengali
    DietVegetarian
    CourseDessert
    Prep time40 minutes
    Cook time25 minutes
    Total time65 minutes
    Serves6
    Spice levelMild
    DifficultyHard
    Gluten-freeYes
    Key ingredientsmilk / sugar / lemon juice

    Ingredients

    For the chhena

    • 1 litre full-cream cow milk
    • 2 tbsp lemon juice mixed with 2 tbsp water
    • 2 cups ice-cold water

    For the syrup

    • 1 cup sugar
    • 4 cups water
    • 2 green cardamoms, lightly crushed (optional)
    • 1 tsp rose water (optional)

    Method

    1. Bring the milk to a boil in a heavy pan. Turn off the heat, wait 1 minute, then add the diluted lemon juice a spoon at a time, stirring gently, until the milk splits into white curds and clear greenish whey.
    2. Immediately add the ice-cold water to stop the curds cooking further. Pour through a muslin cloth, rinse under running water to remove the lemon taste, and squeeze lightly.
    3. Hang the chhena for 30-40 minutes so it is drained but still moist; it should hold together when pressed but not drip water.
    4. Transfer to a plate and knead with the heel of your palm for 8-10 minutes until completely smooth and your palm feels slightly greasy. Divide into 12-14 small balls, rolling each between your palms until there are no cracks.
    5. In a wide pressure cooker or deep pan, boil the sugar and water with the cardamom on high heat until the sugar dissolves and the syrup is rolling.
    6. Drop the balls into the boiling syrup. Cover and cook on high heat for 15 minutes in an open pan, or for 1 whistle and 5 minutes on low in a pressure cooker. The balls will double in size.
    7. Turn off the heat. If using an open pan, sprinkle a few spoons of cold water over the syrup after the first 5 minutes of boiling to keep it thin. Let the rasgullas cool in the syrup, add rose water, and chill for at least 4 hours.

    Tips

    • If the balls crack in the syrup, the chhena was either too dry or not kneaded enough; if they dissolve, it was too wet.
    • The syrup must stay thin and at a rolling boil the entire time – thick syrup gives hard, chewy rasgullas.
    • Use cow milk; buffalo milk chhena is fattier and makes denser, less spongy balls.

    Serve with

    Chilled, two to a bowl with a little syrup, at the end of a meal.

  • Shukto

    Shukto is the opening course of a traditional Bengali lunch, served with the first mouthfuls of rice to stimulate the appetite and, by old belief, cleanse the palate. It shows up at weddings, at shraddha meals and on summer afternoons, when its bitterness is thought to cool the body. Every family has its own mix of vegetables and its own balance of bitter and sweet.

    The taste is subtle rather than harsh. Bitter gourd sets the tone, while raw banana, sweet potato, drumsticks, brinjal and broad beans add softness and sweetness. The sauce is thickened with a little mustard and poppy seed paste and finished with milk and ghee, and the tempering of radhuni or panch phoron gives it a distinct aroma. Bori, sun-dried lentil dumplings, add crunch.

    At a glance

    RegionWest Bengal
    CuisineBengali
    DietVegetarian
    CourseSide dish
    Prep time25 minutes
    Cook time30 minutes
    Total time55 minutes
    Serves4
    Spice levelMild
    DifficultyMedium
    Gluten-freeYes
    Key ingredientsbitter gourd / raw banana / sweet potato / drumstick / milk

    Ingredients

    Vegetables

    • 1 small bitter gourd, thinly sliced into rounds
    • 1 raw banana, peeled and cut into batons
    • 1 small sweet potato, cut into batons
    • 1 drumstick, cut into 7 cm pieces
    • 1 small brinjal, cut into batons
    • 8-10 broad beans (sheem), stringed
    • 1/2 cup bori (dried lentil dumplings)

    For the paste and sauce

    • 1 tbsp yellow mustard seeds
    • 1 tbsp poppy seeds
    • 1 inch ginger
    • 3 tbsp mustard oil
    • 1 tbsp ghee
    • 1 tsp panch phoron or 1/2 tsp radhuni
    • 2 bay leaves
    • 1/2 cup milk
    • 1 tsp sugar
    • 1 cup water
    • Salt to taste

    Method

    1. Soak the mustard and poppy seeds in warm water for 20 minutes, then grind with the ginger and a pinch of salt into a smooth paste.
    2. Heat the mustard oil in a kadhai until smoking, then lower to medium. Fry the bori for 1-2 minutes until golden and remove. In the same oil fry the bitter gourd slices for 3-4 minutes until lightly browned; remove and keep aside.
    3. Add the ghee to the pan, then the panch phoron and bay leaves. Let them crackle for 15 seconds.
    4. Add the raw banana, sweet potato, drumstick, brinjal and beans. Stir-fry on medium heat for 5 minutes until the edges lightly colour.
    5. Add salt and 1 cup water. Cover and cook on low-medium heat for 10-12 minutes until the vegetables are tender but still hold their shape.
    6. Stir in the mustard-poppy paste, sugar and the fried bitter gourd and bori. Simmer for 3 minutes on low heat.
    7. Pour in the milk and stir gently. Simmer for another 2-3 minutes until the sauce is creamy and lightly thickened, then finish with a spoon of ghee.

    Tips

    • Fry the bitter gourd separately and add it at the end so its bitterness stays in check and does not overwhelm the stew.
    • Stir gently with a flat spatula; the vegetables should stay in distinct pieces, not turn mushy.
    • Radhuni (wild celery seed) gives the most authentic aroma; if unavailable, a pinch of ajwain can stand in.

    Serve with

    The first course of rice at a Bengali lunch, followed by dal and fish.