Bengali Fish Fry

Bengali Fish Fry 

The Bengali fish fry is this crunchy breadcrumb coated delicious snack. Served with the piquant Bengali mustard sauce 'kasundi' and some thinly sliced cucumber and onions this makes for a superb snack.

To be fair the fish used in this recipe plays a major role. So yes, Bhetki aka Barramundi is irreplaceable for the Bengali fish fry.
I prefer my fillets to not be too thin or too thick so usually I purchase a 1kg to 1.5 kg Bhetki and then get about 16 fillets from it.


Serves 4 to 5 people

9 fillets (Bhetki/Tilapia) weighing 370gm  in total
2 tsp thick smooth garlic paste (Garlic paste can be smooth and watery or thick and smooth,  I used a number of garlic cloves to make it thick an smooth)

Juice of  1 Tbsp ginger paste 

Approximately 2 tsp onion paste which must be extremely smooth
2 tsp green chili coriander leaf paste  

Salt as per taste 

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper 

For the dipping batter
1 cup gram flour
Pinch of salt
1 tsp ginger garlic paste
1tsp
Sufficient water to make it to a dripping consistency

3  cups bread crumb

Mustrad oil for frying 

Marinate the fillets for about 1 hour to 2 hours
Make a smooth batter -  If the batter if too thick it does not coat the fish well and the coat keeps coming off from the fish .
Dunk the fillets in the batter and then pat it with  breadcrumb making sure the breadcrumbs coat the fillets without leaving any spots. 

Important tip :-

1. If you use high heat while frying the fish easily becomes blackened on parts which is unwanted. 
2. Make sure you keep changing the oil when there is some residue at the bottom of the wok. In my experience this prevents the fish from crisping up. I do not know why this happens though.

Enjoy this lovely snack with some Bengali mustard base condiment (Kasuni)  onion rings 

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Bengali Scotch Eggs (Dimer Devil)

Bengali Scotch Eggs (Dimer Devil) 

I have this particular fascination with family recipes especially one that has survived 2 generations. When my fellow blogger and friend Pritha told me that she has some family recipes for chops and cutlets handed down by her grandmother to her aunt and mother, I was immediately excited with the prospect of family recipes. I knew that I had to get my hands on these recipes. For me, a recipe is a treasure and a recipe which survives 2 generations or more automatically becomes a part of history and culture and slowly heritage.

Pritha is an extremely dedicated person who sticks to her culinary challenges which she takes up every other month. Not that she doesn't keep preparing lip smacking dishes all round the year but every other month she takes up a challenge of creating  one recipe after a other for a particular time span on a theme she chooses.

I completely stuck to the recipe except for using coriander leaves aka cilantro rather than parsley leaves  .

Here is a little tip for you guys. In the recent past a very experienced lady who is part of the facebook Food group Ranna Bati brought this to light that the term Garam Masala is a very generalized term which makes so sense when it comes to Indian cuisine due to its vast range of cuisines. For instance a Punjabi would use Bay leaves and Black cardamom in his garam masala while a Bengali usually sticks to cinnamon, green cardamom , cloves and for special occasions there is the additional mace and nutmeg and usually we Bengalis do not grind our Garam Masal for most dishes  . Now in many of my previous recipes I myself have used the term 'garam masala' without specifying the spices used.

In this recipe's context since its Bengali when I was making the mince meat filling since I had halved Pritha's recipe I had used 2 green cardamom, 2 cloves , 1/4th inch cinnamon . I dry roasted it and then used a mortar and pestle to make a finely ground powder.

So go check out her recipe here : Dimer Devil

Here is a tip which might help you :

When you fill the cavity of the egg whites with the mince meat and then use a bit of mashed potato to coat the egg make sure the coating of potato is not too much because if you make a very large oval shaped Dimer Devil to be fried when you fry it , chances are that the coating of batter would break on both the sides.

I would suggest serving the dish with the classic 'Kasundi' (Bengali Mustard condiment) and in its absence any mustard condiment is the ideal choice for the condiment.

Khasta Kachori

Khasta Kachori 

 The festivals bring forth the joy of celebrations and celebration is incomplete without gastronomic indulgence. For The Festival of Lights , Diwali, here is some Khasta Kachori a popular snack from North India.

While growing up I have mostly seen my own family hosting luncheons or dinner parties. The truth is even if a guest was invited over for tea they were always made to stay till dinner which is why the idea of snacks was always neglected a little bit in anticipation of the exquisite dishes prepared for the main meals.

It was only during a particular celebration, when my grandmother would make these amazing Samosas for breakfast since for that occasion everybody stayed over from morning till evening.

By the time I grew up I had developed an intense passion for cooking which borders on obsession which in turn makes my grandmother extremely happy since I apparently remind her of her mother who would churn out immaculate delicacies from the kitchen.

Sitting far away from home I dedicate this to my grandmother and can't wait to go back home and make these for her.


Makes about 8 Kachoris :-

1/2 cup Split black gram aka Dhuli Urad Dal
Pinch of asafoetida aka hing
1/2 tsp Cumin seeds
1/4th tsp saunf
1 tsp red chili Powder
Pinch of turmeric powder
Salt as per taste
2 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp sugar
1 heaped tsp dry mango powder
2 tbsp melted clarified butter aka ghee
2 tbsp raisins

For the dough :-

2 cups of all purpose flour (cups used hold 210ml liquid)
3 tbsp non-melted clarified butter aka ghee stored in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup ice cold water
The tiniest pinch of bi-carbonate of soda

Oil for deep frying

Basically making these kachori is one of the most easy things if you understand its characteristics.

Soak the pulse for a good 6 hours and then drain it of all the water and grind it to a paste.

Start with the dough. If you have made pie shell before you would know the concept behind using a lot of fat and ice cold water. This helps in creating the flakiness. Mix the flour and ghee to form a crumb like consistency and add salt and sprinkle water to create a firm dough and wrap it in cling film and put it in the refrigerator to chill for 1 hour.

The final filling minus the raisins 

Now heat 2 tbsp melted ghee and add the asafoetida aka hing, cumin seeds, saunf and then add the pulse and add the chili powder, turmeric, salt , coriander powder , sugar and mango powder and mix really well and sprinkle a bit of water and cook on low heat for 7 minutes to 10 minutes. Make sure it doesn't burn. You'l know its done when it starts leaving the side of the pan, add the raisins and once it cools divide it into 8 parts .

Now divide the dough into 8 equal halves and then make balls out of them and then flatten them a bit with the palm of your hand and roll out a little bit in a way where the center remains a bit thick and place the filling which should be almost the same size as the balls and now roll out the edges and then dip your hands in water and fold the dough to make a pouch and flatten it out so that you create a flattened ball.

Press the flattened balls against your palm  to increase the size but make sure no cracks are formed and once you are done with all 8 of them put them in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.

Now deep fry them on low heat till it turns into a brown colour on both sides. It takes about 8 minutes on each side but do check to ensure that it doesn't burn. You should ideally keep turning them so that it doesn't burn on one side.

Important tips :-

1. The large amount of clarified butter results in flaky crispy delightful kachoris so please do not cut down on the amount 
2. Fry at low temperature to medium temperature controlling it  at all times else you end up with burnt kachoris
3. When you are sealing the Kahoris make sure there are no cracks 

Serve with some sweet and sour Sonth Ki Chutney . Recipe : Sonth Ki Chutney

Nimki (Bengali Namak Pare)

Nimki (Bengali Namak pare) 

Memories can take you in a trance. It makes you do things that you usually do not do. This is actually the first Durga Puja where I am away from my family. To be fair growing up Durga Puja meant 3 things to me, visiting my maternal grandmother on Shasti which is one of the  auspicious days during the Durga Puja , holidaying somewhere and then eating a lot of sweets on Dashami but when I would get tired of the sweets I would run to the 'Bharar Ghor' which means the store-room , take the container which contained crispy, crunchy salty treats and take a handful and keep munching on them.

As far as I can remember there has not been one single day in our family when 'Nimki' was not present in the house. Nimki is a deep fried crunchy flaky crispy snack which is an utter delight to have with your tea or just like that. Its known as Namak Pare in the Northern parts of India but that variant is slightly different.

To be fair lets talk a bit about the lady who was responsible for the year round presence of Nimki at our home. If I were asked to describe my amma 'paternal grandmother' I would say she is intensely independent in all its true sense, extremely strong willed, confident, progressive, former school teacher , traveler and the lady who cannot live without her 'Nimki's . If she would have had her way she would have carried these crispies everywhere be it Europe or Australia or Africa but sadly for her the immigration at various airports have different ideas.

Anyway what has always marvels me is despite being all those things she has this intense interest in the kitchen.  Age might have slowed her down but she refuses to bow down to age and creates a ruckus in the kitchen but then again we can't take the fire away else the candle will stop burning all together.

To be fair the one thing that my grandmother taught me was to take the best of things without prejudice and even though there is no room for prejudice in this case the recipe I followed is my Mimi's (aunt's who never gets one single dish imperfect) and with her tips anyone can make perfect Nimkis such is her ability to teach all which I would share with you. She gets her recipes from her mother which was shared a good 40 years ago.

I decided that this was the day I would make Nimkis which led to a phone call where all I could say was 'I am making Nimkis and I remembered you' to which my grandmother said, 'I will make Nimkis for you when you come back' Well this time I will make her those crispy delight.

I dedicate this to everyone and serving this with all those fabulous sweets on Dashami , Navaratri and any special occasion is sure to win your guests over.

Before we begin one should know that controlling  and temperature and having patience are the key ingredients to this recipe

So here is a recipe which makes enough Nimki for 5 to 6 people

2.5 cups all purpose flour
Pinch of baking soda
Salt as per taste (I needed 1.5 tsp)
Fat pinch of Oion seeds 'Kala jeera'
6 tbsp vegetable oil for the dough
1 tbsp rice flour (the traditional method)  or cornflour
1/2 cup lukewarm  water
1/2 tsp to 1 tsp chili powder
Juice from 1 lemon

Refined Oil for deep frying

Start by making your dough by dumping the dry ingredients along with the spices and salt in a large bowl and mixing them with your clean hands and then make the hole in the center and add the oil and slowly add the water bit by bit working your dough continuously. At first the dough will be a bit sticky but you must keep working it till it becomes a smooth elastic dough. Leave it covered for 15 minutes and now heat the oil (medium flame )  in a deep bottomed pan. Divide the dough and roll it out and then cut it into diamond shaped patterns and deep fry till golden on both the sides.

You must remember that when you put the diamond shaped dough in the oil it must be on medium heat and after  1 minute turn it down to low and fry it on low. It will take you anywhere between 10 minutes to 15 minutes. You know they are almost done when they feel hard to touch with the spatula .

Now you must increase the temperature to medium for 2 minutes and then take them out with a slotted spoon , drain them and then let them cool down before trying them out.Store them in air-tight containers and enjoy with your cup of tea.

Important tips :-

1. The lemon juice and baking soda make the nimkis crispy 
2. Controlling temperature is very very important. If you try frying the nimkis on high heat it will burn them or give it a bitter taste. 
3. Don't be scared to use as many nimkis in the oil as possible because in the beginning they might seem a bit crowded they soon start frying and separating 
4. Testing their done-ness is a bit like testing biscuits where you need them to completely cool down 

This is part of Kolkata Food Blogger's Durga Puja Event 

Batter Fried Fish (Bengali style)

Batter Fried Fish (Bengali style) 

This post is special for a number of reasons. You see sometimes you need a bit of push to do what you love the most. So here is the deal. With Kolkata Food Blogger's 'Durga Puja Bhuri Bhoj  I got  the right kind of inspiration to make this dish. 

The point is that,  you may take the girl away from Calcutta but you can't take the fish away from her. Yes my dear readers I am in a fish heaven. I was initially apprehensive about Bombay aka Mumbai because it was unfamiliar territory for me but once I discovered the local supermarket which might not have the fish that I am familiar with in Calcutta but has a world of delightful fish, there is fresh Sardine and Mackerel and fresh Tuna. Oh I was excited and delighted.

Now the point is these fish gives you the opportunity to make wonderful healthy meals especially suitable for salads, pasta etc . Back home most of the fish we eat is fresh water fish and has tiny bones all over them and it is a delight for Bengalis to eat those fish and take out the bones while eating but they don't give too much of opportunity to be cooked in any other form than the traditional Bengali recipes which has its own charm but then no other fish can take the place of the sweet 'Bhetki' a large fish with a single bone which is mostly used for fillets and it is this same fish which is used for the famous Bengali fish fry (breadcrumb coated deep fried fillets ) or the batter fried fish served on special occasions.

With the famous festival round the corner I was thinking how lovely it would have been to indulge in some batter fried fish but all I had in the house was basa fish which has its own delight but then for me batter fried fish instantly meant the Bhetki fish. While I was preparing myself to indulge in some nostalgia I realized there are a million other Bengalis who are away from home craving batter fried fish. While the taste of bhetki cannot be imitated I have heard about Tialpia being its replacement but to be fair neither did the fish market have tilapia this particular day nor was bhetki available and so I used basa .

So this recipe I dedicate to all those people who have had to make a home away from home.

Wait there is more. I have a creamy lemony homemade dip for the batter fried fish as well.

Before I share a recipe I must tell you about my friend Pritha , a lady with amazing culinary enthusiasm. Check out her delightful recipe for Bengali Fish Croquets (Macher Chop) another delightful Bengali indulgence to be taken with a cup of tea or just like that

Serves 2

For the Batter fried fish

Marination :-

200gm Boneless fillet (While its ideal to use Bhetki you can use any boneless fish fillet)
2 tsp smooth garlic paste
1.5 tsp smooth ginger paste
Half a medium sized onion
2 green chilies
Salt as per taste
2 tsp oil

For the batter :-

3 tbsp all purpose flour
1.5 tbsp gram flour
1 tbsp rice flour
1/2 cup water
1 tbsp hot oil
Pinch of salt

Oil for frying

For the dip

300gm curd which is drained of water by hanging it in a muslin cloth or cheesecloth
3 large cloves of garlic
Juice from half a lemon
Salt as per taste
1/3rd cup Extra Virgin Olive oil
1 tbsp chives

First make your hand curd and while the water from the curd is being drained marinate your fish by making a smooth paste with the garlic paste, ginger paste, onion and green chilies and the oil. Leave it for half an hour. Now you'l see some of the marinate sticking to the bottom of the bowl.

In the meantime make the dip and chill it. Simply blend the garlic with salt , extra virgin olive oil and lemon juice and then whisk in the hung curd and the smooth blend of garlic oil and lemon juice , add finely chopped chives and chill it.

Don't worry simply transfer the marinated  fish to another bowl and 1/4th  cup of water in the same bowl in which you have marinated the fish and mix well. Preserve this water

Now take a large bowl , one where you can easily dip the fish and make the batter by mixing the dry ingredients (Flour , gram flour and rice flour) and then slowly add the water from the bowl in which the fish was marinated to make a smooth batter. Add a pinch of salt and and 1/4th cup water .

Now here is a trick for crispy batter fried fish. Heat the oil for frying and use 1 tbsp of the hot oil in the batter and whisk well. There is also the two time fry method.

Now dip the fish in the batter and deep fry it on low heat for about 2 minutes on either side and keep aside. Just before serving fry the already fried fish on medium heat for about 30 seconds on each side and you'l be delighted with the crispiness. Serve with the dip and enjoy.

Important tips :-

1. You must always fry the batter fried fish in low heat else it will quickly burn on the outside leaving the insides uncooked. 
2. Rice flour added to the batter lends its crispiness. I have used the old fashioned method but in modern times people use cornflour with a pinch of baking soda as well. 
3. The two time fry method helps make the fish extremely crispy. 

This is part of 

Tofu Patty

Tofu Patty 

For those of us who eat eggs breakfast can always be made fast and simple and healthy but then what about those who don't eat eggs? A well there are many an Indian option but most of them are time consuming to make and need a lot of pre-planning.

I came up with the idea for a Tofu patty on a day when I had precious little time on my hands. Usually I try and look up a recipe over the internet for a base but this time I really had no time to do that either. What came to my rescue was Tofu which had been soaked and in water and stored in the refrigerator and an age old Bengali method of making cottage cheese balls. I altered the recipe but followed the method of making the balls and flattened them to make patty.

So here goes the recipe :-

Serves 2

200gm Firm Tofu which has been soaked in water and kept in the refrigerator
1 tbsp finely chopped parsley
Salt as per taste
Freshly ground pepper about 1/2 tsp to 1 tsp
3 tbsp to 4 tbsp cornflour
1 tsp finely minced garlic
2 tsp olive oil

Oil for frying

First drain the tofu and crumble it as finely as you can with clean hands and then add the rest of the ingredients except the cornflour and mix very well and try and make a dough. Slowly add the cornflour and mix it well. Now try and make little balls out of the dough, you will find it crumbling a bit but that's alright just keep pressing to make a patty.

Heat oil on medium heat and gently place the patty. Let it cook on medium to low heat for 2 minutes and flip it over and cook for 2 more minutes. Make sure you do not burn the patty.

Enjoy your breakfast by placing the patty inside wholewheat buns slathered with a hung curd dip for a healthy breakfast. Alternately you can slather butter or mayonnaise and make it an indulgence

Potato Cutlets

Potato Cutlets 

To be fair these Potato cutlets which I made on a particularly lazy Sunday without the internet in-between back to back episodes of Til' Death was mainly for the husband. My husband loves eating in which should be a boon for a cooking enthusiast such as myself but then at times his want to eat at home bites me hard. It was one of those days when I knew was going to be those overly lazy ones so I decided instead of going out for Dosas I would be prepared with ingredients for a quick snack.

In Bengal the easiest snack that I was served as a child was puffed up rice with the beautifully aromatic green mango and chili flavoured mustard oil and lots of fried potatoes. Now as much as I love fried food I am trying to avoid it these days and so I decided for the husband who suddenly becomes a fry obsessed maniac on holidays I would boil potatoes and make something.

I was about to make the Indian potato cutlets 'Aloo Tikki's which is one of my favourite Indian snacks but then I simply cannot imagine Tikkis without the fiery Green chutney hara bhara chutney and sonth ki chutney (a sweet and tangy sauce) and because I was feeling lazy I ditched the idea of Indian potato cutlets and simply made potato cutlets

Serves 2 (In our case my husband gobbled up 1.5 serving :) )

Here is what you need :-

2 big potatoes
Half a large onion finely chopped
2 large cloves of garlic finely chopped
Salt as per taste
1.5 tsp Fresh Thyme leaves
1 tsp Freshly ground pepper
1 tbsp cornflour

Olive oil for shallow frying

Simply mash everything except the oil together and make 4 cutlets and let them rest in the refrigerator for 15 minutes. This helps them harden up a bit and hold shape when frying.

Heat oil and shallow fry on low heat till its golden brown on both sides. Enjoy by itself or team it up with some mustard.

Oven roast Pumpkin

Oven roast Pumpkin 

Lets face it , most of us want to eat all that we want and stay fit and slim but that is probably not going to happen. Well once you decide that your health is important for you making these tiny changes is a walk in the park especially when you have something as delicious and nutritious as Oven roast pumpkin. There is spiciness and a lot of flavours and its crisp and delightful

Serves 1

1 cup of cubed pumpkin around 100gm
1 small onion diced
5 to 6 medium sized garlic cloves (If using the large cloves use 2 and slice them well)
Salt as per taste
1 tbsp olive oil
Sprinkle of cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp cumin powder

Simply preheat oven to 220 C and then toss everything together , separate the layers of onions after dicing and then bake for 40 minutes to 50 minutes turning them once mid-way during baking. Enjoy it guilt-free

Breadcrumb coated Fried fish

Breadcrumb coated Fried fish 

I come from a part of India where a piece of fish is almost compulsory with every principal meal except breakfast. Now to be honest I am not a fishoholic. I know there is no such word in the English dictionary but if selfie can become a word fishoholic is a perfect word to describe people who are obsessed with eating fish but then again I do love certain fish and Bhetki (a local fresh water fish with one single bone which is used for coated fries and curries ) is one of  my absolute favourite fish . Its probably the soft texture , the sweet taste and then of course there are memories attached to this fish.  Special occasion in a Bengali household would definitely mean Bhetki being served one way or the other. Usually India being the land of spices the breadcrumb coated fish fries served in Bengal have quite a sharp taste from the use of onion paste and ginger paste and garlic paste and green chilies but on an afternoon when I was dead tired and my best friend had come over I decided fries I would make but one that didn't need too much of work.

I must mention that I do enjoy the flavours of the ingredients I cook and so when I am cooking fish I do not mind the fishy smell. For me the idea of covering up its own flavours is not compulsory.

At first I had decided on the Classic British Fish n chips but without adequate all purpose flour at home I quickly changed it to breadcrumb coated fish fry since I had baked a sour cream bread a few days ago and when there is bread at home making breadcrumb doesn't take much time.

While many fish connoisseurs from the part of the world where I come from might not be too happy about the use of pork fat I decided on it because I read about beef dripping making Fish n chips tastier and so pork fat it was for my recipe but you can always leave that out. This breadcrumb coated fried fish along with a creamy homemade dip on a lazy Sunday afternoon with your best friend makes some great memories indeed.

So here is the recipe which serves 2 :-

I used two large fillets (say about 100gm per fillet)
I rubbed salt and freshly and finely ground black pepper on both its sides and marinated it for 1 hour

For the coating :-

1.5 cup of breadcrumbs (These cups hold 210ml of water)
1 egg whisked well
Salt and finely ground black pepper
All purpose flour for dredging the fillets , say a handful of it

Pork fat + vegetable oil for frying.

For the dip

2 tbsp sour cream
4 tbsp soft feta
1.5 tsp finely chopped jalapeno soaked in vinegar

Simply marinate the fish in salt and pepper and int he meanwhile make the bread crumb by preheating oven to 180 C and making small squares from your bread slices and baking them for 20 minutes. Turn them once after 10 minutes.

While it gets marinated make the dip by whisking soft feta , sour cream and then add the chopped jalapeno. You might add salt but I didn't need to since the soft feta had enough salt for my taste buds.

Now heat the vegetable oil with pork fat if using it or just the vegetable oil is not using pork fat. Don't let it smoke else your fish fry will turn black on the outside.

Now first dredge the fillets with all purpose flour and then dip it in the whisked egg and coat it well with breadcrumbs and then dip it in the egg again and finally coat well with breadcrumbs and fry on medium heat till its golden brown on both sides. Serve with the creamy dip.

Dahi Bhalla

Dahi Bhalla 

If you truly try and understand your own palate it might just surprise you at times. I am normally someone who likes her food which is bursting with subtle flavours and so I was surprised when I discovered how much I love robust spicy Chaats. Growing up with parents who were very cautious about what I put in my mouth street food was off limits while I was growing up but then came the late teenage years and with pocket money and a city with people from different parts of our lovely country I developed this love affair with Chaats. At first it was the Dahi Bhallas but then I slowly discovered samosa chaat, kachori chaat and all sorts of delicious spicy robust snacks. 

I must admit that the best chaats I have had was in Delhi. Normally ,Bengalis from Calcutta find Delhi's palate as a whole to be way too sharp and spicy but it seemed to be I was supposed to be born in Delhi. For the time I was there I would gorge on all sorts of chaats and the extra spiciness blew my mind away. Back at home on the streets on calcutta we do get awesome chaats but they are not as spicy as those lovely ones from delhi. So I automatically picked up this habit of making my chaats extra spicy and extra delicious. There are dasy when I get chaat cravings and while there can be a host of chaats lets start with a cooling summer chaat , soaked in whisked curd it is a delight for the punishing summer months in India or rather round the year. Normally a variant of this dish is found everywhere in India. In the west they usually sweeten the curd a bit, the Southern ones are more sour but my favourite is the ones from the North with a host of flavours which just make sit top notch. This delicious dish can be made a number of ways. Some people make it with urad pulse alone, some make it with a mixture of split moong pulse and urad pulse and then I have recently had this Dahi vada made by a celebrity chef who used whole moong pulse and it had a beautiful texture. I adapted  Marut Seeka's recipe :-

Makes 6 to 7 servings

For the base of the bhallas you need :-

2 cups of moong pulse
1/2 cup of urad pulse
2 tsp cumin powder
2 tsp coriander powder
1 tsp rock salt

Vegetable oil for frying

For soaking :-

1 kilogram of curd whisked well with 2 tbsp Chaat Masala

For serving :-

3/4th  cup of Khatti Meethi Chutney
3/4th cup of Hara Bhara Chutney
Chaat Masala  as per taste , I usually need a good sprinkle for each serving
Chili powder as per taste I needed a good sprinkle for my own serving since the rest of the family didn't want it that hot
1 cup of bhujia

Soak the pulse for 5 hours to 6 hours and then grind with cumin powder, coriander powder , rock salt and  2 tbsp water, the lesser water you use the better . The batter should be as fluffy as possible.

Now heat the oil and keep a big bowl of water beside the gas stove and make little balls with your wet hand and keep frying them and when they are golden brown transfer them in the bowl of water. Soak the fritters for 10 minutes to 15 minutes int he water and then gently squeeze the water out and soak it in curd which is well whipped and chill it for 1 hour or more. Please check the tips

When serving place dahi vada on a plate and use Khattti meethi chtuney, Hara Bhara Chutney , chaat masala , chili powder and bhujia on top. Adjust the amount of chutney and chaat masala as per taste.

Important tips :-

1. When frying the fritters keep the heat within medium to low because if it is  too hot then the fritters will burn from outside and remain uncooked inside , so once you have heated the oil use low heat throughout the course of frying . It generally takes about 3 to 4  minutes on each side for the golden colour to be achieved. 
2. You must let the fried fritters soak in water for 10 minutes to 15 minutes else they won't absorb any curd and will remain hard. When pressing the fritters to get the water out don't press too hard. They remain ultra soft when they are not pressed too hard to remove water post soaking
3. Let the fritters soak up the curd  for a good 1 hour , in fact I usually l soak them around noon and serve them at around 7 p.m. 
4. When soaking the water soaked fritters where the water has been squeezed out don't crowd the fritters in one bowl for soaking in whipped curd. use two big bowls if necessary. 
5. You must whisk your curd well. Since we are soaking the fritters in curd and wanting the curds to absorb the curd to make them soft the curd need needs to be whisked well. If its  too thick add a tiny bit of water to it. 

French fries

French Fries 

Alright when you have tried all methods available for the one basic Fries and then hit the jackpot you feel a kind of calm which gives you pure joy.

Truth be told the secrets in the fat , yes pork fat which retains the yellow colour makes it perfectly crispy yet soft inside.

Here is what I did :-

4 large potatoes chopped in finger sized sizes
Vegetable Oil
50gm pork fat
Salt as per taste

Bring a large pan of water to boil. Now her is the trick there are different varieties of potatoes across the globe and the time you take depends on where you live so you have to look out and feel things with your hands. You have to boil the potato sticks till its firm yet not soft or completely cooked. I took exactly 4 minutes to reach the stage.

Now heat the oil and chop the fat and melt and then when it turns dark brown take the fat out and fry the poattoes batch by batch on low heat for 5 minutes and then re-fry on medium heat till it turns crispy. take them out and leave on a paper towel but not for too long else they become cold and then mix well with salt and serve

B.Merwans (Grant Road Mumbai)

A Date with History 

 It was a early Sunday for me. Having slept early the previous night I was thrilled to have woken up at 5 a.m. I love waking up early. I feel fresh, my thoughts are clear and watching the night sky slowly waking up leaves me feeling happy. The other half was participating in some 7km Green run and had left by 4 a.m. and so after a glass of my detox concoction I decided I wanted to download some of my official work and while it was getting downloaded I decided on a sneak peak of my wishlist of restaurants in Bombay since I am due to return to Calcutta in less than a week. On an impulse I was going through B.Merwan's reviews and the first one shocked me. It seemed it was due to close in 42 days. B.Merwan Closing its shutters. I was shocked. 

Alright I did not grow up in Bombay but I grew up in another historic city and I have read enough reviews about this classic eatery which turned a century old this very year. With more and more Parsi diners shutting their doors I feel terrible. When I came to Bombay I immediately fell in love with the history that these Parsi Cafes offer. The solid bentwood chairs, the beautiful marble top tables is more romantic to me than candies and roses. 

It was 5:45 a.m. and I decided I had to immediately get my breakfast from this place which is a witness to history itself. 

So a long train journey later I was stunned with my passion. I have been a visitor of this city for over 1.5 years and have never before mustered courage to change trains at the busiest station of Mumbai and yet I effortlessly pranced from one end to the other. Of course the number of people at 6:15 a.m. overwhelmed me. That can only happen in Bombay. Locating this eatery is really a piece of cake. You get down at Grant station and go to the Eastern side. The shop is right opposite to the station. 

At 7 a.m. it seemed there were at least 200 people buying , shoving, pushing trying to make themselves heard at the counter. I entered and found the place in total chaos. All the tables were taken and I stood there happily stunned when a server rushing by asked me to please enter the inner room and eat my breakfast. Even though he was in a  rush the 'politeness' of his words touched me. 

You have to experience this place with all your senses else you can never ever understand its beauty. There is beauty in those peeling yellow walls in the room where I was seated. As I sat down I wondered how many young lovers might have had their sly romantic tryst sitting on the solid polished bentwood chairs or the beautiful white marble top tables. The two massive mirrors on the walls are pieces of beauty you cannot simply take your eyes off. There was a huge family enjoying their breakfast and that left room for 2 to 3 other parties.

Now there will be no menu provided to you so be sure you check the blackboard in the outer hall listing the items. I simply ordered Scrambled eggs, brun maska , tea and caramel custard. Well this is one joint which actually serves 'bhurji' scrambled eggs and not the special Parsi scrambled eggs, 'Akuri'. While I was breathing in every detail of this iconic place my food arrived within 5 minutes of having ordered it.

Now coming to my food the scrambled eggs were made with green chilies and very few onions but it won me over due to its less salt content. You see the salt and pepper shaker is provided so that you might adjust the salt content as per taste. I declined the bread that comes with the scrambled eggs and instead opted for the brun maska meaning hard bun with butter. This bun has a crispy delightful outer coating and soft fluffy bread freshly baked and slathered with butter. The caramel custard was creamy and good but I have had better ones from other Parsi establishments. The tea is not overly sweet even though it has some amount of sweetness. All this at a mere Rs48 is surely the most economic breakfast you can have. Oh I almost forgot that the scrambled eggs was made with 2 eggs.

What amazed me is that when I asked my smiling courteous server where I might pay he showed me the counter and did not even come along with me. The man behind the desk simply asked me , 'Kitna hua ?' 'How much do you owe us?' I can understand why this place has had a faithful army of customers over the years. This kind of trust between the customer and the owner is rare.

The flaky delightful Kharis

I quite obviously wanted to take back a few goodies and asked him where I might get them and he pointed to the sea of men. Now here are a few tips if you brave the crowd to place your orders. Everyone is in a   rush and no-one behind the take-away counter shall entertain you if you want to take your time. I suggest deciding from before be it what you want or the amount you would like. After a lot of  pushing shoving I finally was in front of the counter and quickly ordered 10 mava cakes, Khari biscuits and bread pudding.

Early birds catch the worm here. At 7:45 a.m. their Jam puffs and sweet buns were sold off. I got back home with two massive sized bread puddings enough to be served to 4 people , 500gm of khari biscuits, 10 mawa cakes at Rs190.

With all that rush activity and demand I still cannot believe they are closing their gates.

The soft fresh hot Bread pudding 

Now coming to the goodies, the mava cake has a nice browned exterior with soft moist interiors and though I have had better ones I shall still say that these are excellent in fact the slightly browned exterior gives it a whole new character than the ultra soft ones. The Khari is flaky and delightful as should be. The bread pudding was creamy, moist , sweet with a dominant flavour of vanilla. I say pay your respect to this century old eatery and you shall be a part of history.

These mava cupcakes at Rs10 are addictive and delightful 

Chatpata Mix chat

I believe the little changes in your dietary habit can help you a lot. Now as someone who loves potatoes I advocate the use of potatoes. It is a complete misconception that this nutritious carbohydrate is fattening. It is your method of cooking which usually determines a dish's calorie etc. So deep fry it and you murder it of all its nutritional value but boiled or baked at 77 calorie for 100gm this is one of the healthiest snacks or food items ever.

Now healthy eating means you have to plan extra carefully to appease your taste buds. A wise man once told me that no diet would ever work if your taste buds remain unsatisfied. Having said that a little change helps a lot. For instance if you crave some mushy potato on any given afternoon or anytime that you want to have snacks replace the french fries or aloo tikkis (a famous spicy potato patty dish from Northern India) with some chaats made with boiled potatoes. The recipe I follow is nothing new. I add a little bit of extra virgin olive oil for extra health and to suit my taste. Try it for a quick snack session.

This mix chat takes me back to my school days as well. Those were the days when the street food hawkers would line up in front of every school luring children with lip smacking dishes. While most of my childhood was spent in longing for them since my parents never ever allowed me to have street food with logical fear for my health because tasty they are but lets be honest most of these items aren't that hygienic. Of course the moment I started getting my pocket money it was a different issue altogether. I would gorge on these delectable snacks throughout school, college and university. In those times it felt as if the chatwallahs had some magical potion. I later realized you can make the same stuff at home. The magic was the work of spices. So I hereby present by spicy chatpata meaning lip smacking snack. I have given it a healthy minty twist. You can even have this as a salad for a main course in which case you shall probably need to double or tripe your portion of salad.

Serves 4

You need

2  large potatoes
3 medium sized firm tomatoes
1 large onion
1 cucumber
2 tbsp finely chopped mint leaves
1 tbsp finely chopped coriander leaves
Juice from Half a medium sized Indian lemon
Rock salt as per taste
1 tsp cumin powder
1 tsp coriander powder
2 tsp dried mango powder
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 green chili de-seeded and finely chopped

Boil the potatoes and if you are in a hurry simply drain them and place them in a bowl of ice water. It shall cool down in no time. Peel and cube them in bite sized cubes. Cube the tomatoes, onions , cucumber after peeling it. Mix the vegetables and potato with the extra virgin olive oil , spices , lemon juice , herbs and green chili. Enjoy your lip smacking snack.

P.S. You can always increase the number of chilies used.