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A Taste of Diversity: Dell’s Culinary Cookbook Featuring Pallabi Chowdhury
Pallabi C. | Senior Analyst, Talent Acquisition | Bangalore
Originally Published: November 14th, 2023
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Introduction
I'm Pallabi, a member of the Talent Acquisition team in Bangalore. In my family, everyone possesses excellent culinary talents and considers cooking therapeutic, while I, on the other hand, am the odd one out who doesn't particularly relish cooking. Nevertheless, my genetics compensate for my lack of enthusiasm for the culinary arts, as I can whip up a decent meal whenever I do spend time in the kitchen.
The Story Behind the Dish
For Bengalis like us, Diwali is a special time dedicated to the worship of Goddess Kali. She is an incarnation of Goddess Durga and known as the Divine Protector associated with Change, Power and Creation. When I was a child, I eagerly awaited our Puja Vacations, which began with the onset of Durga Puja and extended for a month. Each year, we celebrated Kali Puja at my aunt's house, which also served as a family reunion with all my cousins. We felt quite mature when we were allowed to observe a day-long fast, and after offering “Pushpanjali” to the Goddess late in the night, we would break the fast by relishing these delicious dishes together. These offerings were also presented to Maa Kali known as "Bhog Prasad" in Bengali.
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The Dish: Bhog er Khichuri (Bengali version of “Khichdi”)
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Ingredients
- 200 gms Gobindobhog rice
- 200 gms Moong Dal
- 15 gms of Vegetable Oil
- 15 gms Ghee
- 200 gms Potato
- 200 gms Cauliflower
- 80 gms Peas
- 3-4 pcs Bay Leaves
- 40 gms Ginger Paste
- 5 gms Turmeric Powder
- 5 gms Cumin Powder
- 2 gms Cumin Seeds
- 25 gms Salt
- 50 gms Sugar
- 1 tsp Bhaja Masala (Dry roasted and grinded powder of cumin seeds, coriander seeds, fennel seeds and cardamom)
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Instructions
- Rinse gobindobhog rice thoroughly, strain and leave it to air-dry.
- Cut potatoes in 5-cm chunks, cauliflower into 5-cm florets. Shell and blanch the peas.
- Set a wok (kadai) on medium heat and add the moong dal to it. Dry roast the dal for about 6 minutes stirring continuously. Rinse the dal and strain.
- Add vegetable oil to the kadai and fry the potatoes and cauliflower till they turn golden brown.
- In a small bowl, mix the ginger paste, turmeric powder, and cumin powder with 50 g water. Keep it ready.
- Take a big pan and add ghee to it, keeping the flame medium. Temper the ghee with dried red chillies, bay leaves, and cumin seeds.
- Add the ginger-turmeric-cumin paste to the pan. Fry the spices on medium heat till their raw smell is gone and oil starts oozing from the mixture.
- Next, add the gobindobhog rice, and roasted moong dal. Stir them into the spices and cook for about 2 minutes.
- Add hot water to the pan along with salt. Cover the pan and allow its contents to boil for about 5 minutes. The heat should be set at low from this point onwards.
- Once the water is bubbling, add the fried potatoes and cauliflower. Cover and cook for about 15 minutes. Stir occasionally, scraping the bottom thoroughly.
- After 15 minutes, add the sugar, and blanched peas. Stir everything in and cook for 3 to 4 more minutes.
Garnish with Ghee and Bhaja Masala. Turn off the heat, cover the pan and let the Khichuri rest for 2 mins before serving. |
For Labra (Bengali Mix Veg)
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Ingredients
- 4 pcs Bay Leaves
- 2 tsp Panch Phoron (panch phoron is a bengali spice blend that consists of fenugreek seed, nigella seed, cumin seed, black mustard seed and fennel seed in equal parts)
- 4-5 Dried Red Chillies
- 2 tsp of Cumin Seeds
- 50 gms Ginger Paste
- 5 gms Turmeric Powder
- 5 gms Coriander Powder
- 5 gms Cumin Powder
- 25 gms Salt
- 55 gms Sugar
- 250 gms Mustard Oil
- 150 gms Potato
- 150 gms Sweet Potato
- 250 gms Brinjal
- 100 gms Carrot
- 150 gms Cauliflower
- 5-6 stems of Malabar Spinach
- 500 gms Pumpkin
- 150 gms Radish
- 20 gms whole Green Chillies
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Instructions
- Heat a large Kadai (or thick bottomed wok). Add mustard oil. Heat well until it smokes and turns pale yellow.
- Temper with Panch Foron, Bay Leaves, Dried Red Chillies. Add Ginger Paste and stir fry.
- Add the Potato, Sweet Potato, Pumpkin, Cauliflower, Radish first as they will take more time to cook. Keep stirring while frying them for about 8-10 mins.
- Then add the Brinjal and the stems of the Malabar Spinach. Continue to fry the vegetables.
- Add Turmeric Powder, Cumin Powder, Coriander Powder, Sugar and Salt at this point. Add some hot water to the Kadai and let the vegetables cook in it in medium heat.
- Cook covered for 10 minutes. Stir every three minutes. Mix thoroughly taking care not to break the vegetables at this stage. Add the slit whole green chillies.
- Turn off the heat, cover tightly with a lid and rest for 10 minutes before serving with khichuri, begun bhaja, alu bhaja, kumro bhaja, chutney and payesh.
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For Narkel’er Naru (A sweet snack made with Coconut and Jaggery)
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Ingredients
- 500 gms of grated coconut
- 300 gms of jaggery (palm jaggery or sugarcane jaggery)
- 1 tbs of cardamom powder
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Instructions
- Take a wok and add the grated coconut and the jaggery to it. Mix well with your hands.
- Turn on the heat and stir frequently on a medium-low flame. Add the cardamom powder to the mixture. Continue stirring till the mixture darkens. This should take 15-20 mins.
- Once the mixture is ready, transfer it to a plate and start making balls of around 12gms when it is warm. Don’t wait for the mixture to cool down since the balls won’t shape properly.
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For Khoi Murki (A sweet snack made with Popped Rice and Jaggery)
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Ingredients
- 250 gms of Khoi or popped rice
- 150 gms of Jaggery (palm jaggery or sugarcane jaggery)
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Instructions
- Take a wok and add jaggery to it. Turn on the heat and stir continuously on a medium-high flame. Continue stirring till bubbles appear on top and the jaggery becomes sticky.
- Turn the flame to low and continue stirring for a couple of minutes. Add the popped rice to the jaggery and mix it well with a stainless-steel spatula.
- Once the mixture is done, turn off the heat and transfer to a plate.
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For Chire’er Moa (A sweet snack made with Puffed Rice and Jaggery)
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Ingredients
- 250 gms of Chire or puffed rice
- 150 gms of Jaggery
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Instructions
- Take a wok and dry roast the Chire (puffed rice) for 5 mins stirring frequently in a medium-low flame.
- Take another wok and add jaggery to it. Turn on the heat and stir continuously on a medium-high flame. Continue stirring till bubbles appear on top and the jaggery becomes sticky.
- Add the fried Chire and mix it well in a low flame for 5-7mins.
- Once the mixture is ready, transfer it to a plate and make balls of around 25gms while the mixture is warm.
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