MUDHI MANSA - Puffed Rice with Goat Meat Curry

Mudhi  Mansa or puffed Rice with Mutton Curry and Baripada in Mayurbhanj district in Odisha are synonymous with each other. This famous delicacy is served as a main course where goat meat curry or Mansa tarkari is mixed with puffed Rice or Mudhi along with some other side items.  It is a belief with the people of Mayurbhanj that if you consume Mudhi after a meal, it will help in digesting the food you eat. No marriage seems complete in Mayurbhanj if you do not offer the Barajatris or Baratis, Mudhi Mansa. The popularity of Mudhi Mansa among  most of the Odia people speaks the volume about the delectable taste of the dish. It is rightly said , if you have visited Baripada and not tasted the Mudhi Mansa, you have not tasted anything.

In coastal parts of Odisha where I am born and brought up, Mudhi or  Puffed rice is generally considered as an ingredient for the evening snacks where it is mainly eaten with mixture . Whereas in Mayurbhanj, it is eaten during lunch and dinner also. It is such an integral part of their life that, Mudhi can be enjoyed with anything and everything.  You name it and they eat it. Mudhi mansa, mudhi aloodum, mudhi tarkari, mudhi machha,singada aloochop mudhi, dahi mudhi, mixture mudhi and even Baigan Poda with Mudhi and list is endless. Try it once and you will fall in love with its taste.

Recipe: Odia

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cooking Time: 20 to 25 minutes

Serves:4

Ingredients for the Mansa tarkari: 

• 500 gms Goat Meat with extra fat
• 2 large onions
• 2 medium potatoes cut into halves
• 1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
• 1 tbsp turmeric powder
• 1 tbsp red chilli powder
• 1 bay leaf
•  2-3 cloves
• 2 to 3 green cardamom
• 1 inch cinnamon
• 2 tbsp mustar oil (for the typical taste)
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp garam masala( grind 4 to 5 green cardamom and 1 inch cinnamon stick)
• Salt to taste

Let's learn How to make the Odia Mansa Tarkari:

• Marinate the mutton with 1 tsp mustard oil, turmeric powder and red chilli powder for 1 hour minimum.

• Chop the onions and tomatoes and keep aside. Peel the potatoes and cut into halves and keep aside.

• Heat Mustard oil in a Pressure cooker to a piping hot mode so that it would remove any strong odours from the oil .Shallow fry the potatoes and set them aside. 

• In the same oil, add the sugar and let it caramelize. Then add the whole spices (cloves, cinnamon, cardamon and bay leaf).

• Add the chopped onions and fry till it turns golden brown in clour. Then add your ginger garlic paste and fry till the raw smell of the paste goes away.

• Now add chopped tomatoes and cook till the oil separates from the spice mixture and then add coriander powder, chilli powder and a little water. Tomatoes are not usually added in the recipes in Odia Mutton curry but it is a personal preference , so I add, you can skip if you do not like.

• Now add the marinated mutton and coat it evenly with the spices. Keep frying the mutton for a few more minutes on a medium heat. You will notice the fat melting and adding to the richness to the masala. keep sauting on low flame till you see the masalas leaving the sides of the pot.Add potatoes now.

• Pour 2 cups of boiling water and cover the lid and allow it to cook on medium flame till you have the first whistle of the pressure cooker. Now lower the flame and cook for another 10 to 15 minutes. This would help the mutton fat to gradually melt and add to the richness and flavour of the dish.

• Let the pressure cooker release all the steams naturally and then open the lid and sprinkle the garam masala over it. 

• Your delicious Odia mutton curry is ready. There will be a thin layer of oil over the mutton curry, which indicates a good mutton curry.

Ingredients to make Mudhi Mansa:

• 1 cup Mudhi
• 1 onion finely chopped
• 1 green chilli finely chopped
• 2 to 3 tbsp chopped cucumber
• 1 tbsp chopped tomatoes
• Fresh sprig of coriander leaves, finely chopped
• A pinch of Odia jira lanka gunda (roasted cumin seeds and red chillies grind together )

Let's assemble the dish:

• Mix all the ingredients together and finally add a some mutton curry with a few chunks of meat. Your Mudhi Mansa is ready to be savoured.

This Mudhi Mansa, an exclusive odia delicacy Which remains a niche in its own state made from the  leftover gravy from the mutton curry mixed with onions, green chillies and fresh coriander along with the puffed rice , needs to be brought to the  limelight for the world to know. Hence,this delicacy is going to be part of the #44th Foodie Monday Blog Hop theme of #Indianspices.

Kanji- How to make odia/oriya Dahi Kanji recipe

 Kanji is an authentic Odia dish that is quite popular in Southern part of Odisha which is  basically a soupy based dish with a unique sour taste. Normally Kanji is cooked during winter months when all the vegetables are abundantly available, but now  a days it is made throughout the year. Use of lots of vegetables along with the Curd makes this  a healthy dish by nature.

Usually three types of kanjis are made in Odisha as told by my mother: pariba kanji( Kanji made with vegetables) , saga kanji( kanji made with leafy vegetables) and Sukhua kanji( Kanji made with dry fish). Kanjis are made with either Dahi as the base or Torani( water from the water rice or Pakhala) or Peja( the water from the cooked rice). In villages in older days when refrigerator was not there , the women folk of the villages used to keep little Torani with Peja in a container and keep adding the same everyday upto 7 to 8 days till the liquids gets fermented. After which they used to add salt, turmeric and sufficient water to the fermented liquid and cook with vegetables or dry fish to arrive at this spicy tangy soupy like dish.

For this #Foodie Monday Blog Hop , the theme is #MothersDaySpecial and I have a hard time choosing a recipe to post as whatever I know about odia cuisine, it is from my mother only and she does not eat any other food than odia food. When I try to think what is my mother's favourite recipe, I realize all these years it is our choice which she took care of but never told what is her choice of food she wants to eat. For her we are her world and our choice has become her choice. So preparing a recipe with her favorite vegetable i.e drumstick comes to my mind. I have seen her making a lot of dishes with drumstick and recently I have made drumstick pickle for her also. I have decided to make Kanji which is a very rustic flavourful soupy things with drumsticks and its leaves for Mother's day keeping my mother's choice for simple and traditional food in mind.

It is said ,If you have a drumstick plant on your garden ,you seems to have a doctor at home.  Drumstick increases appetite, help to reduce headache and diarrhea, purifies blood and excretes  toxins out of the body.  Drumstick leaves posses the  power of reducing the sugar level in the blood and it might be the reason for which  Sugar patients are recommended to take drumstick leaves to make the level of sugar normal in the blood. 

Cuisine: Odia

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cooking Time:20 minutes

Serves:4

Ingredients:-

• 1 cup,  curd

• 3 tbsp gram flour

• 1 tsp turmeric powder

• Salt as per taste

• 3 cups water

• A pinch of Hing

• 2 tsp Garlic-Green chilli paste

• ½ tsp fennel powder

Vegetables Needed:  

• 2 nos of  drumsticks

• 1/2 cup drumsticks leaves 

For Tempering: 

• 2-3 tsp Mustard oil

• 1 tsp mustard seeds

• 1/2 tsp fennel seeds

• 2 Dry Red chillies

•  Few Curry Leaves

Let's learn how to make this recipe:

• Combine together curd, water, gram flour(besan) and ½ tsp turmeric powder(haldi). Whisk well or blend it in a blender to a pulse to make a smooth lump free mixture.  Keep it aside.

• Wash and cut the drumstick into 3 inch long and pluck out the leaves from the stems of the drumsticks leaves.

• In a heavy bottom pan, heat oil. Add hing (asafoetida) and add drum sticks and it's leaves and sauté for 2 to 3 mins.

• Add  green garlic paste chili paste, fennel powder. Saute very well.

• Cover and cook for 2 to 3 mins.Reduce the heat to low.  Add the blended curd mixture stirring continuously to avoid curdling.

• Add salt and allow it to boil. Keep stirring.Once it starts boiling, cover and simmer for 15 to 20 mins or till the drumsticks are well cooked.

• Adjust the consistency and seasoning of the kanji as per your requirement and Cook for another 3 to 4 mins.

• Heat oil in small pan. Add mustard, allow it to crackle.Add fennel seeds and curry leaves, fry for few seconds.Add broken red chilies, fry for another few seconds.Pour this tempering immediately over the prepared kanji and cover .
  
  
• Serve this yummy and sour Kanji with any rice dish.

This is going to be part of our #39th Foodie Monday Blog hop theme of #Mothersdayspecial 

Badi Chura

One best thing about Bhubaneswar is that you get plenty of cool breeze in the evening, such a pleasant respite from the humid heat. With the summer on with full swing and the scorching sun, this recipe will do wonders to help you rejuvenate and beat the heat.Pakhala with badi chura is the ultimate desire for all during summer months in Odisha. Pakhala is the one we would have most often during summer.Also if you want to have a peaceful sleep after the day’s work, then you should go for this.Not to forget the onions and green chilly which add a zing to this recipe.  

Pakhala is eaten in Odisha since time immemorial.A peculiar habit of Odia people are they think of food all the time. A typical meal constitutes of Rice, Dali, a gravy dish, a dry dish, a sour-sweet chutney, some crispy side dish and a proper dessert.One among the crispy side dish is Badi Chura. The dish is crunchy, crispy, savory that makes the lunch menu complete. Badi is a sun dried lentil dumpling which comes with many variations.

Badi Chura is made by grinding badi with green chili, onion and garlic. It is basically a side dish. If you want to get its real flavour, then you must try this with Pakhala. Anyone and everyone can make this badi chura. It is a constant fixture in Odia meals, especially with pakhala. Badi is dried lentils and is usually made in fall and stored away for the year. It comes in handy as a quick side dish when you have to put a meal together in a jiffy. 

Badi Chura

Ingredients:

• 15-20 Urad Dal Badis
• 6-7 flakes of Garlic
• 3to 4 baby Onions
• 2 Green Chillies
• 2-3 tsp of Mustard Oil
• Salt to Taste

Let's Learn how to make this Badi Chura:

• Heat a pan. Roast the Badis.
• Coarsely grind Garlic, Onion, Chillies, and Badis.
• Add salt and Mustard Oil to the above mixture.
• Your dish is ready. Serve it with Pakhala.

If you want to see what a typical non veg pakhala thali looks like  do check it here. So entice your taste buds with some amazing, mouthwatering combo of Pakhala and badi Chura this summer.

Buta Dali Aloo Kakharu Tarkari – Chana dal with potato and pumpkin curry

Buta Dali Aloo Kakharu Tarkari – Chana dal cooked with potato and pumpkin is a a very sought after dish in every odia household. This daal is liked by all for it’s amazing taste of spicy lentils blended with sweetness of pumpkin. It is a nutritious and a wholesome dish which goes very well with rice or poori. This daal is prepared with Buta dali or Chana daal or Bengal gram as popularly known as along with bay leaf, potato, pumpkin , ginger and coconut mostly on festive occasions and does not include onion or garlic in it. This simple no onion garlic aromatic daal is easy to make and taste absolutely divine.

This tarkari made out of Bengal gram is quite different from the other lentils prepared in rest of the country. Buta dali or Bengal gram is a little hard compared to other daals which when cooked holds it’s shape better than other lentils.The use of potato and pumpkin in this daal along with the richness of coconut makes the daal creamy and luscious and makes your dining a never to forget affair of odia traditional cuisine.

Now if you want to cook this simple, extremely tasty, authentic odia dish on a week day or specially for Sunday lunch for your family and friends, donot wait too much, go ahead and check this recipe below. This daal goes extremely well with Pooris  or rice and serve with a sweet kheer as side dish.I have literally grown up eating this daal prepared every alternative day as we have a tradition of not eating non veg food during 4 days a week. Every time I prepare this daal, it reminds me of home and of childhood.

Cuisine: Odia

Prep time: 30 minutes

Cooking time: 10 minutes

serves:4

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Buta daal (channa daal)
• 1 cup pumpkin  diced
• 1 large potato diced
• 1-inch ginger grated
• 1 tomato chopped
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
•  2 to 3 dry red chillies
• 1 tsp Roasted cumin and dry red  chilli powder(3 teaspoons cumin seeds
  8-10 dried red chillies)
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1 tsp ghee
• 2 tbsp grated coconut
• 1 tsp sugar
• Chopped coriander and coconut  to garnish
• Salt to taste

Let's Learn how to make this recipe:

• Dry roast the cumin seeds and red chilies for the cumin chili powder  till you get the aroma. Care should be taken not to over roast and burn the seeds.Grind it and store it in an airtight container.

• Wash and cut the potatoes in cubes along with the pumpkin and keep aside.

• Soak the Buta dali for 30 minutes.Wash Buta Dali and bring to a boil along with potato, pumpkin, salt and turmeric in a pressure cooker up to one whistle. Do not overcook the daal.

• Heat ghee in a pan. Add cumin seeds , dry red chiilies and bay leaf .When they start to splutter, add grated ginger and stir for a minute.  Add chopped tomatoes and cook till done.

• Add the boiled dal to the above masala, grated coconut  and simmer for few minutes. Garnish it with cumin and chilli powder and chopped coriander leaves and chopped coconut .

•  Serve it with Puri or Rice. The consistency of the dish is a personal preference. So add water accordingly and enjoy.

Sattu ka Panna - Celebrating Maha Bisubha Sankranti

Pana Sankranti or Maha Bishubha Sankranti is celebrated as the Odia New Year.This day marks the beginning of the New Year in the traditional Odia calendar.Pana Sankranti, like all other new year festivals, is the celebration of the end of the old year and the beginning of new. People pray to God at the beginning of the year so that the new year brings joy and happiness to everyone's life. Farmers pray for a better harvest and good rain. Hence Pana Sankranti is a grand celebration in Odisha and people participate in the celebrations with great enthusiasm.This day is also known as Jala Visuva Sankranti which is the first day of the Baisakha month.

 

There is an interesting story of Maha Bishubha Sankranti associated with Bhishma in the Mahabharata .‘Bhishma after being defeated by Arjuna in the Mahabharata war was lying on a bed of arrows (Shara Sajya). Pandavas and Kauravas had assembled near him and he asked for some water. Then Arjun aimed an arrow in the ground and from the crevice created by the arrow appeared Holy River Ganga to thirst the quench of Bhishma. Out of contentment and compassion Bhishma said that those people who would offer cold water to thirsty people on this day would not only be free from all sins, but also the departed souls of their ancestors as well as the Gods in heaven would be pleased. In remembrance of this day people in Odisha distribute water and a popular drink called Pana on this day.

 

In Odisha, Bisubha Sankranti or Pana Sankranti festival is observed with great sanctity in various forms. On this day Chhatua (Sattu), Pana (sweet water), umbrellas ( Chhata), fans(made out of palm-leaves or bamboo-strips known as Barada patra Binchana) and Paduka (wooden slippers or Kathau) are offered to Brahmins and the poor people. All these are the remedies for the scorching Sun. 

Water as the vital source of life becomes more symbolical in another ritual of the festival.Above the Tulasi plant- which is a must in every Hindu household of Odisha, a shed is prepared with branches of green leaves and a small pitcher filled with water is suspended with a rope hanger. Beneath it a small piece of straw which is fixed to a hole in the pitcher through which water is drained drop by drop on the Tulasi plant. This is called ‘Basudhara’ (the stream of the earth). Here, Tulasi plant symbolizes the human life and it is to be saved from the scorching sun by resting in the shed and taking enough water.

This act symbolically represents that water being the most important constituent for sustaining life in the earth, should be provided to all in the month of summers.A special drink called Pana, prepared from the mixture of Bael fruit and yoghurt is offered to the Tulsi plant on this day. Besides this a pana made with a mixed chatua or sattu is prepared and offered to the deity on this day.

Sattu ka Panna is an energizing drink that not only quenches our thirst but also protects us from the intense summer heat. Sattu was originally known as Sat-Anaj (seven cereals, millets and pulses). All across the states of Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh and Odisha,  Sattu is eaten daily in various forms.There are two versions of sattu drink – meetha (sweet) and namkeen (savory). Sattu a ghol is a salted version where black salt, black pepper, roasted cumin powder, lemon juice and mint leaves are used.In Odisha we mostly use the sweeter version of this drink named as Sattu Panna . 

Cuisine: Odia 

Prep time:10 minutes

Serves:4

Ingredients:

• 1 cup Chatua or sattu
• 1/4 cup grated coconut
• 2 nos of ripe banana mashed
• 1/2 cup jaggery
• 1/4 cup yogurt
• 1/4 cup chena
• 1 tsp grated ginger
• 1/4 cup chopped mango
• a pinch of black pepper powder
• a pinch of salt
• Ice Cubes
• Mango slices for garnishing
• chilled water as needed

Let's Learn How to make Sattu Panna:

• Take equal quantity of wheat, green gram, Rice, Peanuts, Chana dal and dry roast them on slow heat till brown separately and keep aside to cool.Once cool, grind them along with 3 to 4 green cardamoms to a fine powder and store in an airtight jar to be used later. Or else you can buy Sattu powder available in the market and do this recipe.

• Now in a mixing bowl, add chena, mashed banana, grated coconut, jaggery,grated ginger, chopped mangoes, salt, pepper powder and mix well. 

• Add the chatua powder or Sattu to it and mix well. At this point it will be too dry. Add 2 glass of chilled water and make it a little runny.Taste the sugar level, if needed add more jaggery.

• Keep this Sattu panna  in the refrigerator till serving. While serving put ice cubes on tall glasses and pour this drink over it.

• Garnish with grated coconut and raw mango slices and serve chilled.

Chuin -Aloo –Baigan-Badhi- Tarkari( Drumstick-Potato -Brinjal in mustard sauce)

The cuisine of Odisha has a distinctive rusticity in it which has not withered with the passage of time. A typical main course consists of rice along with dali( daal), bhajja( Bhajji),tarkari( curry), bharta (mashed vegetables), ambila/sakara (sweet and sour preparation) and Mitha(dessert) that always makes it the most sought after food in any odia household. But unfortunately odia cuisine has not got it’s due share in the limelight as compared to it’s neighboring counterparts. There are plenty of such odia delicacies which needs to be brought forward for the entire world to see. Mustard oil, besara (mustard seeds pounded with garlic), panch phutana (panch phoron) are the three important ingredients in odia cuisine. 

Tarkari is a generic term mostly used in odia homes for vegetables and meat in gravy. The gravy may be thick or thin ,spicy or bland as per the dish cooked. The thinness of the jhola(gravy) makes the dish light on the palate and demands expertise to raise it to a level distinct from water.This is a humble effort on my part to bring to you certain flavorful classic odia dishes in a series of post which will make you understand the rich heritage of odia cuisine. Besara is a typical form of odia cooking which is prepared with mustard paste as the primary ingredient. Chuin -Aloo –Baigan-Badhi- Tarkari is a classic example of this type of cooking.

Drumstick is called sajana chuin in odia, saijan in hindi, murungakkai in tamil, soanjhna in punjabi. There are many way to cook this drumstick and it is a common vegetable which is available in almost throughout the year. Drumsticks are rich in vitamins like B, C, K, manganese and protein and is very good for our heart and skin. It also helps to purify our blood and lowers blood sugar label.

Cuisine: Odia

Recipe Source: Own

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cooking time:20 minutes

Serves:4

Ingredients:

• 2 nos Drumsticks
• 1 large potato
• 1 medium tomato
• 1 Brinjal
• 5 to 6 nos garlic pods
• 1 tbsp mustard seeds
• 2 to 3 green chillies
• ½ tsp turmeric powder
• 8 to 10 Badi( Sun dried chunks of batter prepared from black grams)
• 2 nos dried red chilli
• 2 to 3 tsp of mustard oil
• 1 tsp pancha phutana
• salt to taste.

 

Let's learn how to make this curry:

• Peel off the outer layer of drumstick (chhuin) and cut it into 2 inch pieces. Cut the potato and brinjal in wedges. Cut the tomato into long strips .

• Soak the mustard seeds for 30 minutes and then grind the mustard seeds along with garlic pods and green chillies into a fine paste. Keep aside.

• In a pan, add 2 cups water, salt, turmeric and the ground mustard paste and bring to a boil. Add  sliced potatoes first as it takes maximum time to cook and simmer.

• Once the potatoes are half cooked ,add the sliced brinjal and drumstick.Keep a watch on the drumstick so as not to overcook the drumsticks . in the last add the tomatoes. Take out from heart and keep aside.

• In another container, heat oil. Add panch phutan, dry red chilli and as soon as the panch phutan stops crackling, add the boiled vegetables and bring to boil.Take out from heat and before serving add the fried Badi and coriander leaves.

• Serve hot along with steamed rice.