Classic new year recipes

Classic new year recipes

Vishu and Poila Baishakh, new year's day for two communities, falls on Sunday. What better way to celebrate than to bring out age-old recipes... Tuck in to the classic combo of Radhaballavi and Aloor dum, and the season's best 'Mango Puliserry'

Radhaballavi and Aloor dum

By Maumita Paul

Two Bengali classic dishes that are a must for any celebration in Bengal - the dal-stuffed puris, called Radhaballavis, accompanied by Aloor dum, the delicious potato curry flavoured with ginger, cumin and
coriander.

For Radhaballavi

Ingredients

• Urad dal (you can use Bengal gram or chana dal as well), soaked overnight, 1 cup
• Plain flour, 2 cups
• Green chillies, 2 to 3
• Asafoetida, 1/4 tsp
• Shahi jeera, 1 tsp
• Ginger paste, 2 tsps
• Turmeric powder, 1/4 tsp
• Vegetable oil for deep frying
• Salt and sugar to taste

For Aloor Dom

• Baby potatoes, 400 g
• Cumin seeds, 2 tsps
• Hing/asafetida, 1/4 tsp
• Whole dry red chillies, 2 to 3
• Ginger paste, 2 tsps
• Turmeric powder, 1 tsp
• Coriander powder, 2 tsps
• Mustard oil, 1 tbsp
• Coriander leaves
• chopped, 1/2 cup
• Salt and sugar to taste

Instructions

For Radhaballavi

• Wash and clean urad dal, make a coarse paste of the urad dal and green chillies with very little water. Heat 1 tbsp oil in fry pan,
• temper with asafoetida and shah jeera and let them sizzle for a while. Add the ginger paste, saute for a while.
• Now add the ground dal paste, turmeric powder, salt and sugar.
• Keep stirring over medium heat, taking utmost care that the dal paste does not stick to the bottom of the pan.
• Once the dal takes on a light golden colour and becomes almost dry, allow it to cool. Keep aside.
• Knead the flour with a little salt, 2 tablespoons of cooking oil and a little water to form a soft dough.
• Keep the dough covered for half an hour or so with a moist cloth.
• Make small balls of the dough, flatten each one in the palm of your hand to form a cup, fill with a spoonful of the dal stuffing and reshape into a ball. Again flatten each dough ball filled with the dal stuffing and roll out into a circle, taking care that the stuffing does not break through the dough.
• Heat oil in a kadai. Fry the radhaballavis till golden brown. Serve hot with aloor dom.

For Aloor dum

• Boil the baby potatoes till almost cooked, peel the skin and shallow fry. Keep aside.
• Heat the remaining oil, throw hing, cumin seeds and broken red chillies, once they start spluttering, add the ginger paste, turmeric
• powder, coriander powder, salt and cook over a moderate flame till oil starts to release from the masala.
• Add the fried potatoes, cook over a low flame for 10 odd minutes.
• Add 1/2 a cup of warm water, adjust seasonings and cook till the gravy thickens, a further 7-10 minutes.
• Finish with the chopped coriander and serve hot with Radhaballavi.

Maumita Paul, food blogger with 'Experiences of a Gastronomad'.

Mango Pulissery

By Reshmi Prakash

It's the season of mangoes and what better way to ring in Vishu than with the king of fruits itself. Enjoy finger-licking 'Mango Pulissery' with rice as part of your Vishu sadhya.

Ingredients

• Ripe mango, 3
• Grated coconut, 1 cup
• Curd, 1 cup
• Turmeric powder, 1 pinch
• Shallot, 6 nos
• Green chilli, 3 nos
• Cumin seeds, 1/2 tsp
• Mustard seeds, 1/2 tsp
• Fenugreek seeds, 1/2 tsp
• Dry red chillies, 2 no
• Curry leaves, 1 spring
• Coconut oil, 2 tbsp
• Salt to taste

Method

• Peel the mangoes.
• Slice shallot and slit green chillies lengthwise.
• Grind grated coconut and cumin seeds in to fine seeds.
• Beat the curd to make it smooth and keep it aside.
• Cook the mangoes in a covered vessel by adding turmeric powder, green chillies, salt and enough water to cover the mangoes (about 10 minutes in a medium flame).
• When it is done, open the lid and add the ground paste and mix it well.
• Simmer it by stirring occasionally. Do not let it boil. Add the beaten curd and mix it well. Remove the vessel from the flame and keep it aside.
• Heat a tablespoon of coconut oil in a cooking pan and put mustard and fenugreek seeds in it.
• When it splutters, add broken chillies and saute for a few minutes. Put shallot and curry leaves. Saute the whole mix till it turns golden brown. Add this to the prepared mix that was set aside earlier.
• Transfer it to a serving dish.