Potato Jackfruit (Aloo Kathal) curry with Poori

It is amazing how we take certain things for granted. Growing up, Kathal (pronounced cut-hull) or Jack fruit used to be abundant during the summers. Mom used to make an amazing curry. So coming to the US, I was pretty disappointed that folks here did not even know what a jack fruit was let alone sell it. We had to go without it for a couple of years. To my absolute amazement, I found that they sold the canned variety in some oriental grocery stores. They were good to satisfy our craving for kathal but did not even come close to the taste of the fresh ones. The other day I decided to search for it on the web and found that there actually is a local farmer that has jack fruit trees and he sells the fruit at his store. The catch, his store was about a hundred miles from where I am. This past weekend, hubby and I decided to take the trip. Believe it or not, we drove a hundred miles (two hundred including the return!!) but it was all worth it as we came back with a huge 10 pound jack fruit :D (so much for my carbon footprint but hey 'am not gonna do this everyday... besides he charged me 20 bucks for it so that's a good deterrent for doing it very often)

Now I have 10 pounds of jack fruit that I want to use as I cannot afford to let it go bad. So get ready to see some kathal creations from me. Here is the first in the series. The most common and traditional kathal preparation in our household. It is a traditional kathal and potato curry with spicy onion gravy. The kathal is pan-fried to get a nice caramelization and then simmered in a nice spicy sauce. I just ate some and feel like having some more as I am writing this. It is best paired with pooris . In case you are not aware what a poori is it is a deep fried puffed unleavened bread. They are an absolute treat to eyes and taste buds alike!!

This is my Mom's recipe, so here goes

Read more »

Sattu kachori

 am not sure how many of you know about Sattu or have tasted it. It is a flour made of roasted grams or chana. Mainly popular in Bihar and UP regions of India. It is often considered as a very low budget and nutritious meal full of fiber and protein. It is a favorite and staple at almost all bihari homes. It is something I grew up eating. Litti is synonymous with Bihari cuisine and sattu is the main ingredient. It is used in different preparations such as parathas, kachori, litti, a kind of drink where sattu is mixed with with salt and sugar and lemon and cumin powder (which every bihari farmer starts his day with). Even sattu sweets are made by mixing it with sugar or jaggery and ghee .

For today, I am giving the recipe for sattu kachori, again my mom's recipe. The best thing about these kachoris other than the deep fried crispy outer shell ;- ) is the yummy tickling sattu filling with spicy pickle oil, tangy lemon, lots of onion and garlic, carom and nigella seeds.. yum. She often used to make it for breakfast with some kala chana or aloo ki sabji and it tasted fab. Here in the US I am yet to find sattu in a store (or even online!) so I always bring it from India and freeze it for a longer shelf life. If you are able to find it somewhere, you gotta try it.. it tastes awesome!

Read more »

Kadhi-pakoda

Kadhi, when classically paired with plain rice or chawal is the ultimate comfort food for me.. and I think many of my fellow Indians will agree with me on that :-) it is a kind of (say) chicken soup for the vegetarians, soulfully delicious, comforting and addictive. I often make it whenever I crave for something homey and simple. On a rainy day kadhi with pakodas and chawal is pure bliss.. it reminds me of mom and home!

It is a blend of yogurt with gramflour pakodas.. which is famous all over india with some differences here and there. Punjabi kadhi and gujarati kadhi are more popular, however there is bihai kadhi as well which is less known, but tastes just as awesome. This is my mom's recipe, do try this and let me know how it came out.

Read more »

Jhal muri

Growing up, my summers out of school were mostly spent at my grandparents'. Among many other things that I used to look forward to, the train ride was definitely one of them and the amazing jhal-muri the vendors used to sell on that route. Even today, whenever I think of jhal-muri, I get nostalgic about those train journeys...

Jhal is spicy in bengali and muri is puffed rice, a very famous street food in kolkata and around the area. Spicy and addictive. I personally think it as one of the healthier among all street foods as it is not something fried and also consists of sprouts which we all know is very healthy. Also very easy to make when you have all the ingredients at hand.

This is one of my most favorite snacks. I can just have jhal-muri for lunch! (have done it several times :D)

Here goes my recipe for Jhal-muri.

Read more »