Kasundi or Mango-Mustard Sauce

INGREDIENTS : 

• Yellow mustard -1cup
• Black mustard -1 cup
• Finely chopped raw mango – 1 cup
• Finely chopped ginger-1tbsp
• Finely chopped green chilli – 1 tbsp
• Powdered sugar – 3 tbsp
• Oil – 3tbsp
• Cumin seeds  - 2tsp
• Asafoetida- 2tsp 
• Salt – as per taste 
• Coriander powder – 2tbsp
• Red chilli powder -1tbsp
• Turmeric  powder – 1tbsp

METHOD  : 

In a blender, add yellow mustard, black mustard, coriander powder, red chilli powder, turmeric powder, finely chopped raw mango, ginger and green chilli. Now add powder sugar. Add water as required. Now make a paste and keep it aside.

Now pour oil in pan and put it on an oven to heat. Once the oil is heated, add cumin seeds.When cumin seeds start to crackle,add asafoetida and the paste kept aside earlier. Add water as required, mix well and let it cool in a bowl. Your kasundi mustard sauce is ready to serve.

IMPORTANT TIPS : 

Sugar is used in this recipe for fermentation. Salt used for taste. But do not add salt while you are making the paste. Let the kasundi mature for 10 days and then only add salt according to taste and mix well. If you add salt before that, the salt will not let the sugar to do fermentation activity. 
I have used mustard oil as it goes well with Kasundi. But, if you want less pungent smell, can use any other edible oil.

Doi illish or Curd Hilsa

Doi Illish or curd Hilsa has very similar looks to that off mustard (or sarshe) hilsa, but taste-wise it is completely different.

Ingredients:

• Hilsa fish – 4 pcs 

• Curd – ½ cup 

• Poppy seed – 2 tbsp paste 

• Mustard paste – 3 tbsp

• Turmeric powder – ½ tsp 

• Green chillies – 4 

• Salt – as per taste 

• Sugar – ½ tsp

• Kalanji seeds – ½ tsp 

Method:

1. Clean the hilsa pieces and pat dry them .Season them with salt and turmeric powder.

2. Now heat mustard oil in a wok, and slowly put the fish pieces one by one and fry them lightly. Remove the fish pieces after they are fried and keep the oil aside 

3. In a bowl, mix curd, poppy seed and the mustard paste. Add turmeric powder. Add some fresh oil to the wok and temper with the Kalanji seeds and let them splutter.

4. Turn the heat to low and add the mixture of curd, poppy seeds and mustard paste and green chillies. As the oil starts separating, add the fish, salt and cup of water. Cover and cook for some time. 

5. Garnish with a few drops of fresh mustard oil and green chillies, serve with hot steam rice.  

Chicken Roast

Ingredients:

• Chicken – 1kg 
• Garlic paste – 4 tbsp 
• Ginger paste – 4 tbsp 
• Onion paste – 2 tbsp
• Tandoori masala – 2 tsp 
• Garam masala – 2tsp 
• Chilli powder -2 tsp or as per taste 
• Lemon – 6 tbsp 
• Curd – ½ cup 
• White oil – 6 tsp 
• Kashmiri mirch for colour and flavour
• Salt to taste

Method :

Marination
Cover the chicken well with salt, oil, curd, ginger garlic paste, onion paste, lemon juice, red chilli powder, garam masala, tandoori masala and kashmiri mirch for colour and flavour.
Use a knife to make slits on the chicken pieces which will help the marination cover the meat well on the inside as well.
Marinate at least for 12 hours but in case of a hurry, marinate for minimum 30 - 40 minutes. The longer chicken is marinated, tastier and juicy and juicy  it would be.

Roast/Grill
You can grill the chicken in an oven or roast it in a barbeque. 

If  you are using an oven, preheat at 200 deg Celsius.  You can put a piece of aluminium foil on the wire rack to save yourself from cleaning after wards. Make some perforations in the foil for gravy to seep through. Place a tray half-filled with water below the wire tray. This water helps in keeping the moisture in the chicken while it is baked and grilled. The surface of the chicken will not get hard. 

Put the chicken on the wire tray covered by perforated aluminium foil and. Bake it at 250 deg for about 45 mins. Turn over the chicken  ,  not more than 2 to 3  times.  Use a silicon brush to  oil the upper parts of the chicken , every time the chicken is turned over.  Put the oven to grill mode for 10 mins and turn both sides.

The chicken will turn red and you can check  if it is cooked using a fork.  Adjust the time accordingly.

For garnishing, one can use  lettuce leaves, onion wedges, baked potato etc. I have used baked cherry tomatoes and asparagus .

Serve hot after sprinkling some lemon juice, and garlic bread.


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