Oyster Curry (Sagoti ) - कालवाची सागोती

Known in Konkani as kalva and in english as oysters this  is a very delicate and  tasty shell fish.
They are usually found attached to the big rocks .
When the rocks are broken inside lies the delicate oysters which can be used in various ways.
They sometimes have a stone like shiny hard thing which has to be removed before cooking.

Today I am posting the recipe of Kalva Sagoti which is a very famous konkani/ malwani dish.
You get this dish in any restaurant famous for fish and seafod in Mumbai.
It is very easy to make and worth all the efforts as the final dish is mouth watering .
It does takes little more time than usual fish dishes.

Ingredients :

1 cups..............Kalva (oysters)
1/2 cup..............potatoes cubed
1 cup................fresh grated coconut
2 ......................Onions
1 1/2 tsp..............coriander seeds
1/2 tsp.................pepper corns
3 to 4................cloves
1/2 inch ................dalchin
4 to 5 .................garlic flakes
5 to 6.................dry red chillies
3 to 4...............dry kokam pieces
salt
coconut oil

Method :


Wash and clean the kalva by removing any hard stone like part which is sometimes present.
Cut one onion finely and slice the other onion roughly.


Heat  little coconut oil , add coriander seeds, cloves , dalchin, pepper let them splutter.

Then add garlic and onion and fry on a medium flame  till onions are brown.

Add grated coconut and again fry till coconut is light brown.

Don't let the onion and coconut burn that will make it loose its flavour.

Add dry chillies and fry for 2 minutes.

Cool the above mixture and grind it to smooth paste.Add turmeric.

Heat coconut oil again in the same kadhai add the chopped onions and fry till light brown.

Add potatoes and half cook them.

Add the kalvas and little water and immediately add the ground masala.

Add salt and kokam and cook for 5 to 10 minutes.

Kalvas are soft and don't need to be cooked for long.

Kashmiri Pulav

A traditional kashmiri meal is incomplete without this famous pulav made with lots of fruits n dry fruits  .....

Ingredients :

2 cups ....................... long grain rice ( preferably basmati variety )
1 ...............................onion ( remove the skin and slice thinly )
1 ..............................apple ( deseeded and cut into medium sized cubes)
1 / 2 cup ................grapes
1/2 cup..................fresh green peas
1 cup.....................paneer ( cut into cubes)
6/7 .....................dried apricots ( soaked in hot water )
10/12 ................cashewnuts
10/ 12 ................almonds
2 tbsp..................raisins
1 pinch ................saffron ( soak in 1 bowl warm milk )
4 ........................cloves
2 ........................cinnamon pieces
2 /3....................bay leaves
4 / 5 ..................dry red kashmiri chillies
2 / 3 .................green cardamoms
2................... black masala cardamoms
5 / 6 ...............pepper seeds
5 / 6 tbsp.........ghee
4 cups ............hot water
salt

Method :

Wash the rice thoroughly and drain out the water.

Spread the drained rice on a plate and keep aside.

Deseed the soaked apricots and chop into medium pieces.

In a non stick vessel heat ghee and saute the sliced onion till golden brown and crisp.

Remove and keep aside.

Now add all nuts and raisins and fry till golden and keep aside.

Now in the same ghee add all sabut masala and chillies and stir for 2 minutes .

Add cubed apples, grapes and green peas and stir for 5 minutes.

Now add rice and saute for 5 minutes.

Finally add salt and hot water , cover with a lid and let the rice cook on slow flame.

All the water gets absorbed after about 10 / 15 minutes .

Now make holes in rice with a spoon and pour saffron milk and cover the holes again with rice.

Put the lid and let the rice cook for five more minutes.

Serve this pulav hot with kashmiri chicken or mutton gravy.