:::বিলাহী-মাছৰ টেঙাঁ (Tangy-sour Fish Curry):::

Time for another easy-peasy recipe :-)

Tangy-sour Fish Curry is a very very staple dish in Assamese household. If you are from Assam (a very beautiful state in India), you know what I am talking about! Or if you ever had an Assamese roommate, I am pretty sure that you have seen and tasted this delectable curry! This is one of the recipe that truly symbolizes Assamese cuisine! We love our tenga (tangy flavor) and we love our maas (fish); this is just the perfect marriage between them. Another bonus point: it's extremely easy and quick, my kind of recipe ;-)

Let's discuss the recipe! If you happen to read my last blogpost on "জিকা-মাছৰ জোল (Fish Curry with Ridge Gourd)", this essentially involves the same steps. Same ingredients including the spices but because of the tangy nature of tomato this falls under the "tenga(sour) curry” section. We prepare same kind of fish curries with Outenga(Elephant Apple) and Nemu(Lime) as well. It’s a very regular preparation for us, but this kind of sour curries are all the more appreciated during the hot and humid summer months in Assam! You can definitely make it without the fish, but I can guarantee you, with fish it just tastes divine! :-) I have tried other signature Assamese dishes with saltwater fishes that are more readily at my disposal; I have to say there is something more that can be only achieved when freshwater fish (like Rohu etc.) is used. But I have tried this tomato curry with Tilapia, Catfish and Salmon and I see the same result no matter what type of fish I use! Also, like almost all Assamese cuisine, potato is important to this curry. Some of the other recipes I shared here can be made and relished without adding the potato, but I feel this curry NEEDS potato :-)

Also, like I have previously said, I am a trial and error kind of cook, which entails that I do not follow strict measurement for recipes! I do better when I estimate :-)

Ingredients: Tomato (More tomato means more tangy :-)), Fish, Red chili, Bay leaves, Pas furon (five spices mix), Oil, Salt, Onion, Garlic, Ginger, Cumin powder, Turmeric powder, Potato, Coriander (optional), Green chili (optional) 

• Marinate fish pieces with salt and turmeric for few minutes. Fry in your choice of oil or alternatively oven-bake.
• I like to chop up the tomatoes lengthwise. The reason being -is  I love the tomato skin left away from the melted flesh in the curry after being cooked. I think it makes the gravy very textured! :-) You will also need to chop up onions, make a paste of ginger and garlic as well.
• It's a good idea to pre-boil the potatoes. It saves the actual cooking time. Alternatively, I add the potato pieces a few minutes before the tomato as it needs more time to cook.
• Heat oil in a pan; any oil will do. Because I make it so often, I mostly use extra virgin olive oil. But it tastes best with mustard oil. 
• Once the oil is well heated, add dry red chilies, bay leaves, pas furon and chopped onions. 
• Add potatoes at this time if you haven't boiled it already.
• Add the chopped tomatoes, it will start melting within 10 minutes. Unlike some other recipes I have shared here, this does not need that much stirring.
• After few minutes add the ginger-garlic paste, green chili and salt. Stir for 2-3 minutes and add the turmeric as well as the cumin powder.
• Keep stirring and once everything seems all blended out and cooked, add water and bring it to boil. 
• Add the fish pieces; boil for some more minutes so that the flavor from fish blends in with the gravy.
• Add coriander at this point. That’s it :-) :-) And it best served with rice.

I like this curry to be tangy; hence at times if it is not sour enough I add juice from half a lemon to increase the sourness. This recipe has been my “foolproof curry” from a long time, I always prepare this when I have friends over; it needs slightest attention so you can devote your time to more complex recipes. I also have very fond memories of cooking and enjoying this curry with my roommates from Tamil Nadu during the crazy busy days of “grad school”. They seem to really enjoy it :-) For me, it will always remain the perfect item to cook for days when I don't have much time or don't want to spend a lot of time in kitchen but still crave for some comfort food!!!

If you are an ardent follower of Assamese cuisine like me I am very sure that this curry makes a regular appearance in your kitchen too! If you are not from Assam and you love experimenting recipe from different cuisine, I sincerely think this will be an ideal recipe to try. It's super easy (Oh, I already said that :-) many times) and ingredients are so easily available. I know you will surely enjoy this curry!! :-)

Love,

~Arrru

আমৰ টেঙাঁ (spicy-tangy smashed raw Mango) and some memories!!

This time I am writing about a food that makes me immensely nostalgic. It reminds me of lazy summer afternoons many many years ago and thirsty ourselves (i.e. me and my sister) returning home from busy tiring days at school. On a few lucky days, while approaching home, we will see few aunts, our pals and some favourite elder sisters from the neighbourhood gathered in our balcony! Our little hearts will jump in joy because this casual get-together indicates that mom will spare us from the mandatory "afternoon nap" for those days!! Those afternoons were full of laughter, insignificant discussions on a varied range of topics and of course, a little bit of gossip!! I don't know about you, but when I was a kid, I loved to hang out with seniors and listen to their tittle-tattle. It made me feel all grown up :) Anyway, the binding agent of those gatherings was one very typical Assamese spicy and tangy treat. Because, it is sour in taste, we generally call it tenga (in Assamese language, tenga means sour). Sometimes, we call it pitika also! Honestly speaking, I am having a hard time finding the perfect synonym in English to describe this mouth-watering delicacy. These tenga treats may be the Assamese way of fighting the summer heat, although we do love it during winter too :) These pitikas and tengas are made with one main tangy and raw fruit such as Aam (Mango), Rabab Tenga (Pummelo), Jolfai (Indian Olive), Kordoi (Star Fruit), Bogori (Winter Fruit), Kathal (Jack Fruit, baby ones), Amlokhi (Indian Gooseberry), Teteli (Tamarind) mixed with some hot green chillies and salt. Some times we even mix two or more above mentioned fruits. The zesty succulent flavour that comes out of squashing the fruit with other ingredients induces a juicy-tangy kick to your palate! Heavenly!! :) :) 

And you hardly require 15 minutes to prepare this. That's the best part. All you need is to mix and squeeze everything together. When I saw raw mangoes in my local grocery store last week, I could not resist the temptation. One fine day thereafter, when there was plenty of sun outside, I made it and gorged on it with utter happiness and sheer joy. It was, not in any way, same as those fun-filled hang outs in our varandah back home! If only, I could bring back those days! Nonetheless, I enjoyed my aam-pitika. It reminded me of the beautiful days of childhood when life was way more simple and carefree!!

Ingredients: Raw mango, Salt, Mustard Oil, Cilantro (Coriander) Leaves, green Chillies.

Traditionally, we add everything with the mango, cut into smaller pieces in a traditional khundana (grinder) and grind everything together. I believe you can use a mixer too! But in the absence of a traditional grinder, this is how I made it.

• Remove the seed of the mango. 
• Cut into small pieces and grate them.
• Smash a few green chillies into the grated mango to get the spiciness.
• Add salt according to taste and a few drops of mustard oil. Mustard oil is important, I believe its very complimentary to the fiery sour taste of the mango.
• Add chopped cilantro and mix everything together. Using your hands in place of a spoon will give a better result.
• Savour it :) :) :)

So yeah, raw sour-sweetness of mango, hotness of fresh green chillies brought together by the salt, mustard oil and appetizing/refreshing smell of cilantro! Can you tell how much I love this :) :) Oh, just a little heads up, because it so sour, it tends to be little acidic in nature! I always make sure that I have proper meal before indulging on this delicacy. Better be careful than popping on pills for acid indigestion, right? ;)

This kind of sour-tasting mid-afternoon food is very common in Assam. My mom is a very firm believer in traditional healthy Assamese way of cooking. So am I! Assamese cuisine is filled with so many exotic and flavourful fruits and vegetables, we use very little oil and spice and most of the recipes are extremely easy to cook. We have an amazing range of basic flavours that range from familiar sweet, salty, sour tastes to some peculiar taste like khar (alkali) and keha (sour astringent sweet flavour)! This range of basic taste might be a reason why we, Assamese people, like food from different parts of the globe. I love trying out new cuisine from all around the world; I devour fried chicken with equal delight as Sushi but Assamese cuisine is and will always remain my number one favourite. I absolutely L.O.V.E it and will continue to work on promoting it in whichever small way I can!!

If you were brought up in an Assamese household, you definitely have experienced some version of this 'tenga' sometime in your life. But yeah, this particular item is definitely a different kind of food, specially for my non-Assamese readers. If you are completely new to the idea, try it...its a nice little way of including some vit-c in your diet :) :)

Love,
~Aru