Aloo, fulkopi – Borir Jhol – Potato, cauliflower and sun dried lentil dumplings broth

Time has become a matter of luxury for me 😦 Keeping my own deadlines has become a challenging task. Keeping fingers crossed for the future 😉

This post is in continuation of the previous post of Shorshe Tengra .

A simple broth, which can be vegetarian or non- vegetarian. Can be made with season’s vegetables. The sun dried lentil dumplings aka Bori, enhances not only the taste but also a rich source of protein in a vegetarian diet.

What is a Bori ? That question takes me back to my childhood. I can literally hear mom and her group of girlfriends, chatting, singing, giggling, sitting in the sun, placing small dumplings made of lentil paste on a piece of soft clean dhoti (muslin cloth, white in color).

Bori making used to be a group work. Can be group of friends or neighbors or family. Kilos of pulses or lentils of different kinds such Red lentils (Masoor dal), Black gram (Urad dal), Green gram (Mung dal) usually the de-husked variety, were soaked overnight.

Will be thoroughly washed next day, grounded with minimal or no water to a grainy paste and then the paste will be hand -beaten for hours till it turns into a soft, but grainy batter. This used to be tremendously laborious task. So mom and her friends used to take turn in beating the paste.

Next level of of work will be placing the tiny dumplings on dhoti which requires patience of a saint. 😀 All the ladies together will sing songs to cheer themselves while working.

An important fact about Bori making, the women should bathe and wear freshly laundered clothes. Also none of them should be in between their menstrual cycle. Because a woman is supposed to rest as much as she can during those days. Interesting, na ? 😉

Now- a -days, life has got too hectic in urban areas for women to carry forward such traditional activities. It has been relegated to rural areas and we urbanites buy from the stores.

So, presenting here, Aloo fulkopi -borir jhol, though i did use a small portion of aubergine too 😉

INGREDIENTS

1 cup – diced potato

1 cup – cauliflower florets

1/2 cup – diced aubergine (optional)

8-10 nos – boris /lentil dumplings

1-2 nos – green chillies slit from the centre

1/2 tsp – ginger paste

1 tsp – cumin powder

1/4 tsp – tumeric powder

1/4 tsp – red chilli powder

2 cup – water

1 tbsp – oil

pinch of nigella seeds

sprig of fresh coriander to garnish (optional)

salt to taste

METHOD

Rinse the vegetables and keep aside.

Heat oil in a pan and fry the boris/dumplings. Drain on a kitchen paper.

Temper the remaining oil with nigella seeds, ginger paste and toss in the vegetables. Saute for vegetables for a couple of minutes. Add the green chillies and all the spices and saute further for a few minutes.

Add water and season with salt. Lower the heat and cover and cook till vegetables are tender but not soft. Toss in the fried boris/dumplings and cook for a 2-3 minutes more.

Garnish with freshly chopped coriander and take it off fire.

Serve hot with plain boiled rice.

 

Happy cooking !!

Cheers !! 😀

 

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