LUCHI-CHHOLAR DAAL-SHADA ALUR TORKARI: PUJO SPECIAL

Pujo is here.And with it magic in the air. Even the grey Midwestern sky is all golden and bright for the past few days.As I type away, Saptami Pujo begins in my homeland. I sip my black coffeee, with  my baby babbling in her crib to the  heady dose of Dhak playing on the music system, my city, Kolkata, engulfs itself in the biggest party of the year. Its sheer frenzy which spreads across the state of West Bengal, and to everywhere Durga Puja is celebrated. Its not surprising that every major country in the world, will have some sort of Durga Puja celebrations. As its said, you can take a Bengali out of Bengal, but you cannot take Bengal out of the Bengali.

For the uninitiated, Durga Puja is the biggest festival of the Hindu Bengalis. A five day long affair, which marks the arrival of Goddess Durga along with her four children, to her maternal home on Earth, from her abode in the Himalayas. A celebration of the triumph of good over evil. Pandals housing idols of Ma Durga are created all across. Milling crowds, with sleepless eyes, and unmatched energy levels take to the streets,visiting pandal after pandal. 

If you are one, who is not much of a crowd person, then fear not. The food fest is sure to floor you. The five days of the Pujas have their iconic menus, which are made in most homes.What sets the drool factor, are the make-shift street food stalls which come up. Phuchka tops the list for me always. 

Faraway from my homeland, I get ready to celebrate Durga Puja over the weekend. Here in the US, we do not have the luxury of a 5 day affair. A weekend closest to the actual Pujas is selected, and Bengalis immerse themselves in a similar frenzy. The Dhunuchi Naach is replaced by a dance with incense sticks. But its the same spirit which prevails. Offering Anjali in the morning, to queueing up for Bhog, and indulging good ole Adda,as Ma Durga watches over all of us. Did I mention the new clothes !! Deciding what we will wear on each of the days, is a celebration in itself. Planning goes on months in advance. The right clothes, the right accessories and striking a somewhat co-ordination with your partner. Now with baby in tow, this Puja is extra special for us. Cannot Thank Maa Durga enough for the wonderful gift she has given us. 

While we wait for the weekend, we decided to indulge in some Pujo special delicacies: LUCHI-Shada Alur Torkari -Chholar Daal. Pillowy soft deep fried bread served with a somewhat runny-somewhat dry potato dish flavored with nigella seeds and Chana Daal with shredded coconut. This is a combo which is the usual fare for the first couple of days of the Pujo. Dunking the luchi in the thick Chholar daal, is a decadent experience which defies verbal expression. 

So if you want to have a taste of Pujo special food on your plate, lets get cooking. 

LUCHI: 

serves: 4

Recipe: Pujo Special Luchi

CHHOLAR DAAL: 

Ingredients: 

Chana daal: 1 cup

Whole Garam Masala: Cloves, Cinnamon, Green Cardamom

Bay Leaves

Ghee

Salt

Sugar

Shredded Coconut: 1/4 cup( I use dthe frozen variety, but feel free to use fresh)

Ginger Paste: 1 tbsp
Shukno Lanka: Dried Red Chilies: A few

Procedure: 

Boil the Chana Daal, with one and half cup water in the pressure cooker, till it gives off two whistles. 

In a deep pan, add in ghee. Once it melts, throw in the whole garam masala ,shukno lanka and bay leaves and let it splutter.

Add in the boiled daal , season with salt and sugar and add in the ginger paste.

Add some water, if all the water has dried up.Mix well and let it all come to a boil.

Lower heat and add in the shredded coconut and let it thicken. 

Serve with Luchi or white steamed rice.

SHADA ALUR TORKARI: 

Ingredients: 
Potatoes: 2 medium sized
Nigella seeds: 1/2 tsp
Salt
Sugar
Green Chilies
Mustard oil

Procedure: 
Dice the potatoes to 1/2 inch cubes. Wash them well. Par boil them,drain and keep aside.

In a pan, add in the mustard oil, and once its hot, add in the green chilies and nigella seeds.

Once they splutter, add in the half boiled potatoes. Season with salt and a pinch of sugar. Add in  1/4 cup of water, and cover and cook. Keep stirring infrequently.

With the back of the cooking spoon, break a few of the potatoes. Check for seasonings. Dry out the cooking liquid.

Serve with Luchi, chapati or parathas.

Bon Appetit !!!

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LUCHI r MANGSHO :

Luchi r Mangsho: Many a conversations can start when this duo is simply mentioned.And when this becomes a meal, any Bong soul will be on food heaven. Iconic would be a better term when describing this culinary combo. Luchi are small fried Indian bread, which swell up, once they hit the oil. Its a common saying that the culinary worth of the chef is often judged, as to how many of the luchis made by them are soft and fluffy. In that category, I guess, I would be scoring a mediocre score,as not all my luchis swell up the way I want them to. I get a 50 percent success rate,when it comes to Luchis fluffing up in the oil, and I am never too happy about it. When many of my blogger friends assured me, that they have all been there, and some still have a similar success rate, I felt courageous, and decided on Luchi being a part of all the feasting we were doing for the Labor Day Weekend. Hubby decided to take care of the combo: He whipped up a Kosha Mangsho, loaded with flavors.

I am considered as a Luchi snob by all those who know me. And I am proud of it. I want my Luchi to be white, soft and fluffy. Sorry MIL, your Ata luchis do not work for me.If you use Ata, to make Luchi, then that is not Luchi, that becomes the Non-Bengali Puri.When I have Luchi or I make some, its always Maida which works for me. I will eat less, but when I eat, I will give calorie count a miss. I can surely work out a bit more the next few days, to shed all that Maida flab, but I cannot compromise with my Luchi.  I am in Luchi heaven when Mom or my childhood governess Koiya, (She is now a part of the family and spends her days at my parent's house: I love her to bits) makes them. One can never compare the Luchis they make, to anyone making them anywhere. Every Luchi seems like a work of art, now that I think about it. Its simply perfect. Whether paired with some sugar, or a runny potato curry with nigella seeds or even curried goat meat, Luchi from Mom or Koiya's kitchen is simply like first love. A taste which you can never forget and which you can never replicate or replace. Nostalgia !

Coming back to the latest Luchi episode. Labor Day weekend was supposed to be a potluck dinner, but then it turned out to be a dinner, where everyone decided to help in the prep work somehow, rather than making separate dishes themselves. A potluck with a difference. As long as the menu was not changed, it did not matter to me. Last minute phone calls to Ma and Koiya in Kolkata, and loads of help from my blogger friends, and Luchi was done. Deb had cooked the most decadent Kosha Mangsho(Goat Meat Curry). We could not wait to dig in. The Long weekend ended on the tastiest possible note. All our Bong souls were smiling the most beaming smiles.

LUCHI r MANGSHO: 

MANGSHO: Debashish re-created his Golbarir Mangsho to be paired with the Luchi. It was lip smacking !

LUCHI: 
Recipe courtesy: BongMom
serves 4 

Ingredients: 
Maida/All purpose flour: 2cups
Canola Oil(for shortening): 1 1/2 tbsp
Luke warm water
Salt
Canola Oil: for frying the Luchi

Procedure: 

In a large mixing bowl, add in the flour, the salt, and the canola oil(shortening) and mix well, till the oil is well incorporated.

Add in the water and make a dough. Knead the dough for some time, till its smooth to the touch.

Make some balls of the dough, slightly smaller than a ping pong ball, and keep them aside. Smaller Luchis are always tastier.

Oil the rolling pin and the rolling board and roll out the luchis from the small dough balls and kee them on a few plates. Make sure that you do not keep the rolled out luchis one on top of another or else they will stick to each other.

Heat the Canola Oil in a deep pan. If the oil is not hot, then then Luchi will not fluff up. Add in the Luchis one at a time, and fry them. Turn them once, but don't let them get brown in the Oil. Remove from Oil, to a plate lined with paper towels.

Serve hot with Kosha Mangsho(or anything that you love to pair your luchi with.)

Bon appetit !!

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