Couscous Khichdi- Couscous cooked in Bengali style
Between packing ‘n’ number of bags /boxes/suitcases and shifting home, I did manage to do some cooking for Eid. I made Kosha Mangsho (spicy Bengali Mutton Preparation) and chicken meatball Pulao. However, as of now, I am too tired to write the recipes, watermark the photos and upload them. Instead, I am posting the recipe for couscous Khichdi that I made some time back. By the way, if you use rice instead of couscous, then this khichdi will be called ‘patla khichuri’ as mentioned in my earlier post on khichuri ( Bhoger Khichuri version 1) and also the rice version of this one will be Bhoger Khichuri version 2. I will post the recipe for rice version later. For now, it is couscous. After all these festivals and gluttony, I think our tummy deserves a bit of rest.
Ingredients:
50gm couscous
50gm mung or masoor Dal (yellow or red lentil)
1-carrot, diced
1-potato, diced
½-cup peas
6/7-floret of broccoli (you can use cauliflower to have more authentic Bengali taste)
6/7-dices of sweet pumpkin
1-teaspoon of Panch Phoron
2-dry red chili
2-Bay leaves
1-teaspoon turmeric
1-teaspoon cumin seed powder
1-teaspoon of ginger paste/powder
2-green chili
Salt to taste
1-tablespoon oil
Method:
1. Wash the lentils and keep aside
2. Heat oil in a deep bottom pan
3. Add bay leaves, red chili and panch phoron (mix of five seeds, very essential to Bengali cooking)
4. When the seeds start to sputter and you can smell the fried red chili, add hot water. ( Have your extractor fan on or be ready to sneeze for a while J)
5. Add lentil in the hot water
6. Add salt. Add the potatoes and carrots so that they get boiled along with the lentil
7. Method if using couscous: let the lentils be 1/2 cooked. Add turmeric, cumin and ginger and cook
8. Then add other vegetables
9. Cook the lentil and vegetable until well done
10. When everything is cooked, just add couscous to the pan and green chili and cover for 10 minutes. And it is ready. If you want it runny, add little more hot water and cover for another couple of minuets
11. Serve with raita, fried aubergine/potato/ pointed gourd etc. I eat with omelet and mango achar
12. Method if using rice: wash the rice and keep aside
13. Let the lentil be 1/2 cooked. Add cumin, turmeric and ginger and cook
14. Add rest of the vegetable. You can also fry the broccoli or cauliflower or even all the vegetable before adding for better taste. However, I did not fry.
15. Add the rice and cook together until rice is well cooked as well as vegetables and mixed well with lentil
16. Add green chili and cook for another 5 mins for the smell of green chili
17. The consistency varies but usually this khichuri is not very dry
18. Serve as suggested above
this is an awesome idea. you are really innovative in your cooking and I realy like your blog
We have just started eating couscous in place of rice. Lovely looking recipe, thanks, look forward to trying.