Mouthwatering Dish – 1

I have been a mother for fifty years and during this period my house has been visited by thousands of people, mostly friends of my children and their families. As any mother I love to cook for my sons and according to them I am the best cook in the world; a sentiment all children nurture for their mother. To indulge and satiate the culinary buds of such a diverse range of people, visiting me from nearly all over the world, I had to literally think and cook on my feet. I had to delve deep into the traditional recipes of my birthplace (which I had learnt from my mom and grandmom) and the ones I had learnt while growing up and when none sufficed then I invented my own recipes. After all I was cooking for my children and their friends so I left no stones unturned to make sure that they were not only well fed but kept returning for more. Hundreds of them down the line have been asking me to compile a book of my recipes, which I finally completed in 2011. My son is right now editing and proofing the book and hopefully it would be internationally published in a year or so. Since the book would take a while to reach the market, I thought of sharing some of my special recipes here so that you can start tasting the dishes that I have been cooking in my kitchen. The first one below is a traditional prawn’s preparation that I learnt from my mom (since I couldn't make it right now, the picture will be put up later).

Chingri Bhate (Prawns cooked inside rice) –

Ingredients:

Prawns – 500 gm                                             Turmeric – a pinch

Coconut – 1 (grated)                                        Salt to taste

Green chilli – 3                                                Sugar – 1 tsp

Mustard Seed – 1 tbsp                                    Mustard oil – 40 ml

Banana leaf – 12 inch long

Rice – as required for the members

Method

1. Shell, clean and wash prawns. 2. Grind coconut, green chillies, mustard seeds to fine paste. 3. Clean the banana leaf and wipe it with a wet cloth. Hold the leaf on the flame for few minutes till the color of the leaf changes. Keep aside. 4. In a bowl marinate prawns with ground spices, sugar, turmeric, salt and mustard oil for fifteen minutes. 5. Keep the marinated prawns in the center of the banana leaf and cover it by folding all the sides and bind the leaf with white thread. 6. Prepare rice, when done remove from flame. And then remove half the rice. Place the stuffed banana leaf on the surface of the remaining rice and cover it with the previously removed rice ensuring that the leaf is covered with hot rice from all sides. Keep a lid on the rice. 7. After 40 minutes remove the banana leaf, open it and serve it on a serving bowl with plain steamed rice.