Thursday, May 5, 2011

Stir-fry vegetables with Panch Phoran - A Bengali delicacy

I was blog-hopping the other day when I came across Bong Mom's Cookbook a lovely blog specializing in bengali cuisine. I very much loved her writing and the dishes and the way she presented those and was delighted to see so many authentic and delicious traditional recipes. I was totally new to bengali cuisine and wanted to try some dishes, so decided to start with a stir-fry dish with panch phoran - an amazing five spice blend.


Ingredients:
Pumpkin - cubed - 2 cups
Potato - cubed - 1/2 cup
Radish - cubed - 1/2 cup (You may use any vegetables of your choice)
Spinach - 2 handfuls - chopped
Garlic - 1 clove - minced fine
Dry red chilli - 3 - broken
Cumin - 3/4 tsp - roast and make as fine powder
Panch phoran mix - 1 tsp
Oil - 1 tsp
Salt - to taste
Panch phoran mix:
Equal amounts of Fenugreek seeds, Mustard seeds, Fennel Seeds, Cumin Seeds, Nigella seeds.


Method:
Heat oil in a pan and add the panch phoran mix and saute until the cumin seeds pop. Add the broken red chillies and minced garlic. Add the potatoes and radish and mix. Cover and cook for 3 to 4 mins, stirring once in between. Add the cubed pumpkin, mix well and cook with the lid on for 5 mins until the pumpkin is soft. No need to add any water since the vegetables cook in their own moisture. Add the chopped spinach with the ground cumin and salt. Mix well and saute until the spinach wilts. Serve hot with rice or roti.


I am sending this to Flavors of Bengal event by Nayna, guest hosted by Priya of Mharo Rajasthan.

Also sending this to Vegetable/Fruit a Month - Spinach event by Priya of Mharo Rajasthan  guest hosted by Reshmi of Rasoi and to CWS-Mustard seeds event by Priya, guest hosted by Kiran of Sumadhura.

36 comments:

  1. flavoured bowl.love ur pictures.too good.

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  2. Panch phoran is on of my most fav spice blend- love the flavor!
    US Masala

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  3. Lovely blend & All the veggies in your bowl is my fav..

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  4. I have never used panch phoran .. got to try it out. Nice recipe.

    Vardhini
    VardhinisKitchen

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  5. Krithi, loved ur clicks, bengali cuisine is totally new to me when it comes to sabzi's..Not sweets though ;)

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  6. yummm and the clicks look fab krithi !

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  7. nice combo...panch phoran spice will be also good with spinach...

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  8. Panch Phoran gives a wonderful flavour and aroma to the dish..looks absolutely awesome.

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  9. Panchphoran gives a distinct flavour to the dish, stir fried veggies looks very tempting and yummy..

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  10. Panch phoron brings out the best taste in simple stir fries, vegetable. Nice dish to enjoy with steamed rice

    Deepa
    Hamaree Rasoi

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  11. Looks so tempting and different...Thanks for sharing...

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  12. i have never cooked with pach phoran, stir fry looks so inviting!

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  13. This is truly a delectable side dish...Great recipe...

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  14. Using pumpkin in stir fry is new to me....love that spice mix.....delectable recipe....

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  15. New to me. Will try it out.Bookmarked. Thanks.

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  16. very simple yet flavourful recipe. nice bright clicks

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  17. Wonder ful flavor......yummy with rice.

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  18. I have never cooked with Panch phoran but ur dish looks so yum and is tempting me a lot...

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  19. This recipe looks so good. I am wondering, since I do not eat potatoes, would sweet potatoes or yams work with this recipe? Please let me know!
    Until then... all the best to you and all you love, Leah

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  20. Thanks everyone for your lovely comments...
    @leah - you may very well use sweet potatoes or yams. It would be great..

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  21. Great combo,loved the blend of spices

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  22. Lovely blend & All the veggies in your bowl are my fav...:)

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  23. Krithi, nice try with Bengali flavor. Looks really good.

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  24. Great combo of veggies..healthy one dear!!

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  25. Hi Kritika,

    Thanks for all the lovely comments on my space. This curry looks so simple and delightful. As for the variety of cheese, I am not very sure of that. I just used the locally available cheese cubes. You can use Amul cheese. Let me know if you have any more queries :)

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  26. Yummy stir fry.Love panch phoran.

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  27. So flavorful & looks really delicious!!!
    Prathima Rao
    Prats Corner

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