Koraishuti-r Kochuri / Green Peas Kachodi / Deep Fried Indian Flat Breads with Green Peas Stuffing

A recipe that I hold very close to my heart. Winters are incomplete without multiple Koraishuti-r (Green Peas) Kochuri (Peas Kachori) sessions in a Bengali home. I am a person who can finish Kilos of Raw Green Peas without a single Burp! - Sorry, that was gross, but I hardly have a choice, I need to express my love for Green Peas. The only condition is, I need fresh ones, I completely detest frozen Green Peas, hence once we are done with Winter, I am done with one of the precious pieces of my Heart :’(

Maa (My Mother) makes this Kochuri’s with much aplomb at home but I they turn out finger-licking good, each time! One weekend, on one of the usual phone calls back home, she told me she was making these beauties for Lunch. Once done with the call, I told ‘A’ about the same and instantaneously we decided to make the same for Lunch here as well, though Lunch was served at around 4 PM that day as, as it is these take a long time to get ready + I was making them for the first time.

Note: Go slow on the number of Kochuri’s / Kachori’s you have at one time as they are heavy on the tummy and have high Oil content as well :P Though we hardly did, but as a food blogger, I should pass on that extra bit of wisdom to my readers!

For the Filling:

Green Peas – 500 gms

Green Chilies – 2, broken from between

Cumin Seeds – 1 tsp

Red Chili Powder – 1 tsp (I added a pinch of Chili Flakes as well)

Salt to taste

Sugar to balance

Sattoo (Click to get to the wiki Page) – 2 tbsp (Optional)

Boil the Green Peas along with the Green Chilies, drain

Put the drained Peas & Green Chilies into a blender, add Cumin Seeds, Red Chili Powder, Salt to taste and Sugar to balance and blend into a fine paste

Add Sattoo  and use your hands to blend into a fine mixture

Sattoo/Sattu

Make small balls out of this mix (like shown in the picture) and set aside, the filling is ready now

For the Dough:

All Purpose Flour / Maida – 2 cups

Cooking Oil – 1 tsp

Salt to taste

Sugar to balance

Water to knead

Other Ingredients:

Cooking Oil

Before adding Water, using your fingers mix the tsp of Cooking Oil into the All Purpose Flour (I am assuming you have mixed Sugar and Salt already), add water little by little and form a smooth dough like in the picture, cover and set aside for about 30 minutes

After 30 minutes, Make small portions of it and keep aside like shown in the picture

Heat Cooking Oil in a small Indian Wok

Take a portion of the dough, roll it out like in the picture using a little bit of all purpose flour for dusting, the less the better as the more flour you use for dusting, the more Oil it will soak while deep frying

 Add one portion of the filling on the flat bread

Take  it on your palm and fold in the sides of the flat bread, refer to the picture

This time dip one corner of this into the hot Oil, and roll it out slowly making as few punctures as you can

Once done put it into the hot Oil

Increase the heat and see it puff up, turn using a spatula and cook the other side

Take off the Wok and store in an Insulted container, to preserve the freshness when you serve them

We ate with Jaggery, many eat with simple curries. But the less flavorful the condiment, the better as that will bring out the flavors in the Kachori’s more

  

Chicken / Mutton Pulao

With an ever demanding Corporate life, it is extremely difficult to balance Home and Work at the same time. I juggle all the while and try to be the person I want myself to be, a super woman! :P Cooking has been a passion discovered a few years back and since that it has been one of my best companions. Leaving apart the fact that I love to cook and serve for my near and dear ones, it is more of a stress buster to me, I am the girl who gets all worked up about a Friday night Dinner with Hubby dearest, I am the girl who goes through her recipe piles to dish out something extraordinary every weekend; Yes, I am the girl next door.

Both of us have been great admirers of One-Pot Meals, my definition of that would be, Rice and Meat cooked together with spices thrown in which can be eaten by itself. Importantly a dish, which will be a meal by itself, exquisite and no side dishes needed, to save time of course. One of the most fascinating examples being Biryani, of various kinds.

The Mutton Pulao from last Sunday

I made this same recipe with Mutton last Sunday and yesterday I made the same with Chicken, both came out really well. The difference being with Mutton, I pressure cooked it for 10 whistles. With Chicken, I did it for 2.

(Note : Here in the western part of India, due to the minerals present in the Water, it takes longer for me to pressure cook / boil anything, adjust accordingly.) 

Remember : We will cook it in the Microwave Oven for 20 minutes more, so we only need the Meat to be half done in the Pressure Cooker.

Ingredients:

Chicken / Mutton – 700 gms

Garlic – 1 pod, made into thick paste

Curd – 4 tbsp

Salt to taste

Add all the above ingredients into a Pressure Cooker, add two cups of water and Pressure Cook for 2 whistles in case of Chicken and 10 in case of Mutton. Preserve the stock.

Basmati Rice – 2 Cups – Soak in some water

Clarified Butter / Ghee – 2 tbsp – use cooking Oil if you want to

Bay Leaves – 3

Green Cardamom – 6

Black Cardamoms – 2

Cinnamon – 2” stick

Cloves – 6

Whole Black Peppercorns – 10 -15 (to taste)

Mace – a few strands

Star Anise - 2

Onions – 3 medium sliced

Ginger – size of one big thumb, grated, extract the juice out by pressing between your palms. We will use the Ginger juice.

Red Chili Powder – 1.5 tsp, reduce if kids / people do not have a high heat quotient are eating. As I do not use any Green Chili Paste in this, hence I add the Red Chili Powder a tad more.

Biryani Masala – 2 tbsp

Coconut Milk – 2 Cups (I used Maggi Coconut Milk Powder to make Coconut Milk, use the type you can get your hands on)

Salt to taste

Sugar to balance

A big Microwave Safe bowl

Some Cling Film

Method:

In a big vessel, pour the ghee in and add the Bay Leaves, Black and Green Cardamoms, Cinnamon, Cloves, Whole Black Peppercorns, Star Anise and Mace and let them crackle

Add the Onions and fry till translucent

Add the Ginger juice

Add the pieces of Meat, do not pour it in with the stock, we will need to use the stock later

Add the Red Chili Powder and Biryani Masala and mix thoroughly

Add Sugar and Salt to taste

Drain the Basmati Rice and add the same and keep frying for about 5 minutes, after 5 minutes, turn off the stove

In a big Microwave safe bowl, pour the contents in

If you have added 2 cups of Rice, then add exactly double the quantity of liquid. As I added 2 Cups of Rice, I added 4 cups of liquid, 2 cups of the Meat Stock and 2 Cups of Coconut Water

Cover with a Cling Film, tighten the ends. Make few punctures on the Cling Film for the heat to escape

Put it in into the Oven, I keep it under the Microwave mode “high” for 20 minutes, all Ovens are different hence you have to take your call here

This is how the Rice looks after you take off the Film

Once it is done, bring it out (it will be very hot, use gloves) & give it 5 minutes to settle down

Take off the film and it is ready to be served :D

Shrimp Pilaf / Prawn Pulao

It has been a while that I updated a recipe on my blog. It is not that I have not been cooking, I have; it is just that sometimes 24 hours seems too short to do all you wish to. The other day a friend ‘E’, who had previously shared her precious Bread Pudding recipe with me came to work and got some Prawn Pilaf, I ate and instantly liked it, it was mild with no strong flavors and just right for my taste. I had to make it the following weekend, considering the food freak I am.

I made it and it was an instant hit at my place. I made the same Pilaf with Chicken a few days later, I did not click any pictures though, but Chicken Pilaf can be made with this same recipe as well, only the Chicken is not pre-fried.

No stories today though, it is 21.12.2012, the day the world was supposed to end. It has not yet and it is already mid day where I am. In New Zealand, Australia and some other countries it is evening, so I guess the end has been postponed. I read this at a little girls (the reason I call her a little girl is because the last time I saw her, she was indeed little) wall on FB the other day ‘Given the rate at which we are regressing as a human race, I sincerely do hope the Mayans were right’ – so true – after the recent events in our National Capital, I feel ashamed to call myself an independent citizen or the fact that we live in a democracy. But this is too big an issue to be placed or discussed here. I leave you with my recipe with a very heavy heart & a prayer that the budding young girl can sustain the scars to her body and soul and recover. Thank you.  

Here is what you will need to make the Shrimp / Prawn Pilaf:

Shrimps / Prawns – about 300 gms – deveined and washed

Basmati Rice – washed – 2 cups

Cooking Oil – 2 tbsps

Bay Leaf – 2

Green Cardamoms – 4

Black Cardamoms – 2

Cinnamon – 1” stick

Cloves – 4

Whole Black Pepper – 7-8

Ginger paste – 1 tbsp

Garlic paste – 2 tbsp

Green Chili Paste – 1tbsp (we like it hot, decrease if you want it mild)

Onions – 2 medium – thinly sliced

Peas – half cup (optional, it was in season hence I added)

Tomatoes – 1 medium – chopped

Biryani Masala Powder – 1tbsp (optional)

Turmeric Powder – 1tsp

Salt to taste

Sugar to balance

Luke Warm Water – 4 cups + a little more if needed

Clarified Butter / Ghee – to drizzle on top

Preparation:

Heat 2 tbsp of Cooking Oil in a vessel and shallow fry the deveined and cleaned Shrimps and set aside. The Oil will be fully flavored from the just fried Shrimps. Use the same Oil.

Add a little more Oil if needed, about 1 tsp, heat. Add the Bay Leaves, Cinnamon, Green and Black Cardamoms, Peppercorns and Cloves and let them sizzle for 30 seconds.

Add the sliced Onions and fry them for 5 minutes in the same oil.

Add the Ginger-Garlic-Green Chili Paste and keep frying.

Add the Peas, stir.

Add the Tomatoes.

Add the Sugar, Salt, Turmeric Powder and Biryani Masala Powder, mix. Keep frying for some time.

Add the washed Basmati Rice, I did not soak the Rice at all. Mix thoroughly.

I add exactly double the quantity of Luke Warm Water to cook my Rice, if you use more or less, you will be the best judge. I slow cook this for the flavors to incorporate into each other. I cooked this at the lowest flame of my burner.

When the Rice was almost done, I added the Shrimps and mixed it one last time.

Switch off the Stove when you feel the Rice is done, if the top layer is a little underdone, do not worry, give it one good mix very gently, cover and let it sit for 10 minutes before you eat. The top layer which was a little underdone, will get done by then. Drizzle 1tsp of molten Clarified Butter for extra flavors, I did not.

Serve hot.