Monday 17 August 2015

Potoler Dolma - Stuffed Parwal

There is a famous saying among Bengalis, "Baro Mashe Tero Parbon" which translates to 12 months 13 festivals. We are fun loving people so we need something all the while. Rath Yatra has its own significance it is the first step of our Goddess' journey to her parent's house where she is carried on a wooden Palanquin. The next in line is the Biswakarma Puja. The shopping has already started in most parts of India especially West Bengal. I think Shopping comes as the 14th festival for us. And we Bengalis earn to eat so all our festivals mean belly's delight. So I take this opportunity to share the first recipe of the festival season with a dish highly savoured by people in BENGAL -  "Potoler Dolma"




Servings: Count on no of Potols / parwals as you wish. May be 2 per serving.

Ingredients:

Parwal : 8-10(as you need)
Rohu or any kind of carp(Sea bass will also go) : 2-3 pieces
Potato : 1(medium)
Onion : 1(chopped)
Ginger-garlic paste: 2 tbsp.
Tomato : 1(medium)
Green Chilli : 1 or 2(chopped finely)
Bay leaf : 1 
Garam masala : [Cinnamon stick : 1(1/2"),Cardamom : 2-3 pods, Cloves : 3 pods]
Turmeric powder: 2 tsp.
Coriander powder: 1 tsp. 
Red chilli powder : 1-2 tsp.(optional)
Salt to taste
Oil: 2 tbsp.
Fresh coriander leaves for garnishing

Method:

For stuffing –

For this recipe, take fish fillets. Cook the fish in boiled water with a tsp. of salt or pressure cook them for 3-4 minutes. Take them out, when cool, mash the fish pieces after separating the fish bones and skins. Don't throw the excess fish cooked water. Keep it.
Cut potatoes in small chunks. Chop onion and tomato.
Heat oil in a pan; fry the potato pieces with a pinch of salt. Keep aside. In the same oil, add bay leaf and all the whole spices under Garam masala.
When they start to crackle, add chopped onions. When onions turn brown, add ginger-garlic paste, stir for a minute, and then add tomatoes, green chillies, turmeric, chilli and coriander powder. Add 2 tblsp. water in it and fry the masala well.
Add fried potato pieces, mashed up fish and fish cooked water. Stir fry for another 2-3 minutes. Add little more water, about 1/3 cup. Season with salt and cover with a lid. 
When potatoes are cooked and water dries up completely, give it a good stir and remove from heat. Garnish with fresh coriander leaves.

For gravy:

Ingredients

Bay leaf : 1
Whole Garam masala : 1 cinnamon stick, 4 cardamoms, 4 cloves 
Onion : 2(medium, thinly sliced)
Ginger : 1" piece
Green chilli : 1 
Tomato : 1(big) or 2(small)
Turmeric powder: 2 tsp.
Red chilli powder: 2 tsp.
Cumin powder: 1 tsp.
Coriander Powder: 1 tsp.
Garam masala powder : 1 tsp.( grounded powder of cardamom, cinnamon & cloves)
Salt to taste
Oil : 2 tbsp.(for gravy) + 1 tbsp ( for frying the parwal/pointed gourds)

Method:

Wash and clean the parwals. First scrape the whole skin of the parwals with a knife. cut one tip a little, right from the edge and the other tip little big, so that we can enter back of a spoon to scoop out the seeds from inside. Rub with a pinch of salt and keep aside for 5-10 minutes.
In the meantime, you can prepare the filling. Recipe is given above.
Heat 1 tbsp. oil in a pan, fry the parwals or Potols until lightly brown from all sides, keep aside. When parwals are cooled, stuff each one with the prepared filling. Carefully fill the parwals using your finger and try not to break them. Keep aside.
To prepare the gravy, in the same pan, add little more oil for the gravy, when hot add bay leaf first, then cardamom, cinnamon & cloves together, when aroma comes out, add sliced onions and sauté them until they change colour, then ginger-green chilli paste and again sauté for 1 minute, then add chopped tomatoes and sauté until tomatoes turn soft. Then add turmeric, chilli and cumin-coriander powder and 2 tblsp. water and mix well with onion-tomatoes. Stir well until oil separates. 
Now add stuffed parwal/Potols in the gravy and add 1 cup water. Season with salt and let it cook covered for 7-8 minutes or gravy has thickened and parwals are cooked. Lastly add powdered Garam masala powder, mix well in the gravy and remove from fire. 
Potoler Dolma or Stuffed parwal is ready to serve. Enjoy this with plain rice or light Pulao.

If you like my recipe, do leave a comment here or press the ‘like’ button. 

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