Khoilja Bhuna/Liver Bhuna

Khoilja/liver bhuna is one of my husband's and son's favourite curries. My son can just eat it on it's own with no accompaniment, and for that reason i cook it quite a lot.

Some people don't approach cooking liver because of the smell, but if you leave it boiling on it's own in enough water so that even after half an hour of boiling, the liver is still covered, it is not so scary. I would use a pot that is double the size of the liver, or if you don't mind, then you could cut the liver into smaller pieces before boiling, or ask your butcher to do it for you!

To make the curry, you will need:

750g - 1kg beef liver (you can use mutton/lamb liver too)
3 tbsp oil
1 tsp cumin seeds
1/2 tsp fennel seeds
1 star anise
2 small cinnamon sticks
3 small bay leaves
3 cardamoms
4 cloves
4 peppercorns
7 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 inch piece ginger, minced
2 onions, finely sliced
1/4 yellow capsicum, chopped finely
1/4 green capsicum, chopped finely
1 tbsp chopped coriander
Salt to taste
2 tbsp chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp Bolsts curry powder
1/2 tbsp hot madras curry powder
1 tbsp red chilli powder
1 tbsp turmeric powder
1/2 tbsp coriander powder
3/4 tbsp cumin powder
3/4 tbsp garam masala powder
1/2 tbsp paprika
Green chillies to garnish
Chopped coriander to garnish

In a large saucepan, put in your liver and cover with boiling water. Put on a medium heat for about 30 minutes, turning over once in the middle.

Heat another saucepan, and put in your oil. To the oil add your whole spices - cumin seeds, fennel seeds, star anise, cinnamin sticks, bay leaves, cardamoms, cloves and peppercorns. When the oil is infused, add your garlic and ginger. Once browned, add the onions, capsicums, coriander and salt, and fry them until golden and soft.

When the onions have browned, add chopped tomatoes and stir well. Leave this to cook and soften further for 15 minutes until oil has seperated, on a low - medium heat. During this process, add water if sticking to saucepan.

When oil has seperated, add in your dry spices - both curry powders, red chilli, turmeric, coriander, cumin, garam masala and paprika powders. Mix well and add a little water to stop spices burning. Let this cook on low heat for about 5 - 10 minutes, adding a little water at a time.

While this is cooking, remove your khoilja/liver and put under running cold water to remove scum and water. Leave water running for a few minutes. Once the khoilja/liver is cool to touch, cut into cubes (size of cubes is your preference).

By this time, your sauce should be ready. Add the cubes and stir until well coated. Cover and cook for about 5 minutes, then add enough boiling water to cover the khoilja/liver and simmer on a low heat for about 10 minutes until sauce is your preferred consistency. Garnish with chillies and coriander!

And there you have it! Khoilja/liver bhuna is very tasty with plain basmati rice, or if you're in the mood, roti fita (rice flour chapattis).

Hope you enjoy!

Yaz ♥

Cheat's Hutki Shira/Bengali Fish and Veg Soup

Hutki shira is a Bangladeshi dish made from dried, salted fish and vegetables, and it is very saucy which is why i compare it to a soup or a chowder. Due to Bangladesh having an abundance of fish, this dish can truly be classed as a Bangladeshi speciality.

As it has a strong, fishy smell, it is slightly like marmite, some people hate it or some love it. Of course, i adore it and so i thought to include it in my blog.

Now hutki or shutki as it is known in Shuddho Bangla, can be daunting for first timers to use in cooking, so i have thought to do this recipe in cheat form - using a short cut. Available in many Bangladeshi food stores are ready made hutki chutney jars, which are eaten as is with rice. However, i tried it once as a replacement to fresh hutki in hutki shira when i had none at home, and now use it when i have a hutki craving and have none available.

Now obviously, this will not be as fishy or as tasty as when using fresh hutki, but it fills that craving, in my humble opinion.

This is my recipe, and for it you will need:

1 tbsp oil
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 large onion, blended
4 green chillies
Salt to taste
1 tsp turmeric powder
1 tsp red chilli powder
1 large sweet potato, cubed
2 medium potatoes, cubed
1/2 cup jackfruit seeds /khatolor bisi
1/2 cup kochur loti/lota
1 bag peeled and cooked prawns
1 bunch spinach, cut into large pieces including stalks
1/2 jar Naz Deshi Naga Shutki Chatney
Green chillies to garnish

In a large saucepan, pour in oil, then add garlic and brown. Add in your blended onions, chillies, salt, turmeric and chilli powder and cook on a low flame for about 5 minutes.

To this add your veg that will take longest to cook, in this case sweet potato, potatoes, jackfruit seeds and kochur loti. Cover and cook for about 10 - 15 minutes, adding water if sticking to bottom.

After 15 minutes, add your prawns and spinach, your shutki chatney and stir. Check for salt, adding more if needed. Pour enough boiling water in to cover the veg and prawns, plus a little more. Stir well again. Cover and cook on a low heat for about 20 minutes. Take off heat and garnish with the chillies.

And there you are! Cheat's hutki shira, just fishy enough to give you your hit. You can substitute my veggies for any you like, you can add more veg, or include fish if you want. Add the fish in at the point i've put prawns in. My mum adds tinned sardines, which taste absolutely sublime. Eat it with rice but if you're on an Atkin's diet, just take out your potatoes and eat it as a soup. Such a versatile dish.

Hope you enjoy!

Yaz ♥

Qabuli Pulao (my interpretation)

A friend of mine was always visiting an Afghani establishment purely for Qabuli pulao. She went so often, i had to do some research as to what it was. It sounded appealing, and different to what i normally cook so after going through a few recipes, i took a hodge podge of them, and experimented with this recipe. It turned out beautiful!

Now i can't say with certainty that it is reminicent of an authentic qabuli pulao, but it tasted magic!

Disclaimer: I used a lot of ghee in my recipe, and i think for a dish u might cook twice a year, if that, i think you can loosen the fat strings for a moment or two!

You will need:

1/2 cup oil
4 cloves
4 peppercorns
2 small cinnamon sticks
1/2 tsp garlic paste
1/2 tsp ginger paste
2 onions, finely sliced
2 tomatoes, chopped
1/2 kg meat/chicken (i used mutton chops)
1/2 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp cumin powder
1/2 tsp coriander powder
1/2 tsp garam masala powder
Salt to taste
3 tbsp ghee
2 tbsp grated carrots
2 tbsp julienned carrots
2 tbsp raisins
2 tbsp cashews
3 cups basmati rice
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar

In a large saucepan, heat oil, then add cloves, peppercorns and cinnamon sticks. Once oil is infused add in your garlic and ginger paste and brown.

Once browned add your onions and brown them on a low - medium heat, covered for about 7-10 minutes. Once onions are soft, add in your tomatoes and cook for about 5 minutes. Using a potato masher, mush this (you can use a hand blender if you wish).

To the onion and tomato mixture, add your chops, the turmeric, cumin, coriander and garam masala powders and salt to taste. Mix well, add 3 cups of water, cover and cook for 45 minutes to an hour, until chops are cooked.

While the chops are cooking, in a shallow frying pan, put in about 2 tbsp of ghee. Fry the grated carrots, julienned carrots, raisins and cashews seperately and place on a plate to use later.

In another saucepan, put the basmati rice on to cook in water with 1 tsp salt. The rice only needs to be half cooked, so an exact amount of water is not needed. To test how rice is half cooked is to take a grain of rice in hand and when broken with nail, it will break into 2-3 pieces. Drain rice and leave to one side.

Check if chops are cooked. Once cooked, add the rice, all of the grated carrots, half of the raisins, half the cashews and mix well. Take the shallow frying pan again, add the remaining ghee with 1 tbsp and caramelise. Once lightly caramelised (watch this carefully as sugar can burn very quickly), pour onto rice and mix very well again.

Cover the saucepan with foil, then put lid on and fold over foil on sides so steam cannot escape. Put on low heat and cook until rice fully cooked. Remove foil and garnish with remaining raisins, cashews and all the julienned carrots.

And that is it! It is a complex dish to cook, with lots of elements, but if you cook it on special occasions, i think a bit of effort goes a long way! This is a beautiful dish eaten alone as it has your meat and rice, but i will be attempting a few more exotic dishes to be eaten alongside this dish. Keep your eyes peeled (not literally!)

Enjoy!!

Yaz ♥

Chicken Jalfrezi (homestyle version)

If I had to, I could live on restaurant food, one dish being the Chicken Jalfrezi. A rich, spicy dish made with an abundance of onions and capsicums, it is probably up there as one of the most popular dishes sold in Indian restaurants and takeaways.

Now obviously in our homes we do not all have the space, or financial capabilities for a tandoor, so frying or grilling chicken is the best way to achieve a great texture. I like frying chicken as this is the quickest way for a time-limited household such as mine.

To make a home style jalfrezi, you will need:

1 whole chicken cut into 10 big pieces
1 tsp turmeric powder
1/2 tsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp salt

Mix all above together and keep aside.

3 tbsp oil
1 tbsp ghee (optional)
1 pinch cumin seeds
1 pinch fennel seeds
4 cloves
4 peppercorns
3 small bay leaves
1 large cinnamon stick
3 cardamoms
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 inch ginger, minced
2 small onions, finely chopped
Salt to taste
3/4 tbsp turmeric powder
1 tbsp Bolsts Hot curry powder
1/2 tbsp chilli powder (adjust according to taste)
1/2 tbsp cumin powder
1/2 tbsp coriander powder
1 tsp paprika
2 tbsp chopped tomatoes
1 green capsicum, cut into big chunks
1 yellow capsicum, cut into big chunks
3 onions, cut into big chunks

Coriander to garnish

Green chillies to garnish

In a non stick fry pan, pour in enough oil to lightly cover bottom of pan. Put in all your chicken pieces and fry on low - medium heat until golden brown on both sides (check and turn over when golden brown). This takes about 20-25 mins.

While chicken is frying, in a wok or kadhai, pour in your oil (and ghee if using). Add in your whole spices (cumin seeds, fennel seeds, cloves, peppercorns, bay leaves, cinnamon stick and cardamoms) and fry lightly. Add your garlic and ginger and fry until light brown. Put in your finely chopped onions, stir well and cover for about 5 mins keeping an eye on it so it doesn't burn.

Once light brown, add salt and cook for about 3 more minutes adding water if needed. Add your powdered spices, with a little bit more water so the spices do not burn. Cook on a very low heat for about 5 minutes until oil seperates. Keep adding a little water if onions and spices stick to pan.

Then add your chopped tomatoes, and cook for a little while stirring in between until oil seperates again. At this point your chicken pieces should be done, but do not take the oil off the cooker. Keep chicken aside until your tomatoes are cooked, then add the chicken to the onions and stir carefully coating the chicken pieces in the sauce. Cover and allow to cook.

In the other pan where you fried the chicken, add your capsicum and onions and cook on medium to high heat. They should be lightly charred and cooked, but still with a bite to them.
Add this to the chicken and stir gently as not to break the chicken. Pour in water as required e.g if you like jalfrezi dry, add less water and if you like it slightly saucy, add more water. It should not be very saucy. Cover and cook on medium heat for 5-7 minutes, then turn off heat and garnish with coriander and chillies.

And that is it. I love the fragrance that permeates the house when this is cooking. Serve in a balti dish for that restaurant feel with naan, chapati or boiled rice. Yum!

I hope you enjoy!

Yaz ♥