GHATA CHENAR TARKARI - CRUSHED SOUR CHEESE CURRY A BENGALI DELICACY BY SOUMYASHREE CHATTERJEE

IMAGE CREDIT: SOUMYASHREE CHATTERJEE

Most strictly non vegetarian families tend to be in a quandary when they are forced to accommodate vegetarian cooking. Paneer comes to such families as manna from heaven. Paneer butter masala, Mutter Paneer, paneer kofta, kadai paneer and a hundred other variations of paneer have solved many a house wife’s problems when trying to cook a major vegetarian dish. Bengali households also tend to favour paneer as a savior for the vegetarian occasions, or when they have to bring in that vegetarian element in their normally fishy spread. However the Bengali household tends to favour the crumbled form of paneer rather than the solidified one that the north prefers. This form is commonly known as chena.

Chena is an essentially component of that which is only second to fish in a Bengali’s life-Rasogolla and sandesh. But then it is also pretty useful to cook that tasty veg dish. Today’s food journey will take us travelling with chena in its purest and simplest form. We will start with milk make the chena and then transform it with one of my mom’s super recipes into something yum.

HEALTHY BENEFITS:

The best part about chena is that it is not only the foundation of so much yum but also is high on health quotient. Vitamin D and calcium are very high in chena. Thus eating chena is a good way to healthy and stronger bones as calcium and vitamin d are important for bone development. It is the same case for teeth and including chena in the diet helps protect tooth enamel and prevent cavities and decay of tooth. It is believed that onset of osteoporosis can also be delayed with a regular chena or paneer diet. Various vitamins B such as B6, B12, riboflavin is also found in abundant quantity in paneer, along with niacin folate and Vitamin k. Chena or paneer Is also a good source for proteins, and a 100 gm portion can yield as much as 18 gms of paneer. In fact for non meat eaters this is an excellent source of protein. It is also rich in conjugated linoleic acid. This fatty acid is believed to help combat cancer and heart diseases. Thus paneer or chena however the form you are having it in is a food that is not just tasty but also very healthy.

But enough of the health of chena, lest get into the sin of the food we will cook with it. Like every cooking the journey here also begins with gathering of ingredients and to cook a portion to serve 4 people we start with the following:

• 1 litre full cream milk
• 1 large lemon
• Potatoes 2 large
• Tomatoes 3 medium
• Cardamom 4- 5
• Cinnamon 3-4 cm stick (broken into pieces)
• Clove 5-6
• Green chilli 2-3
• Dhaniya (coriander) powder 1 tea spoon
• Haldi (Turmeric) powder ½ tea spoon
• Red chilli powder 2 tea spoon
• Green peas 100 gms
• Ghee 2 table spoon
• Garam masala 1 table spoon
• Ginger paste 1 teaspoon heaped
• Cooking oil
• Salt and sugar to taste

PREPARATION:

In today’s cook we will start with curdling the milk into the sour cheese or chena. To do so heat the milk in a vessel till it is about to boil and then add lime juice of the entire lemon to the mix and continue heating on a low flame till the milk curdles and water separates out from the coagulated mass. Now cool the vessel. And strain the water out using a fine muslin cloth. The remaining mass is the chena, and we will be using this in this form only for our cooking today. In the rest of the preparation we cut the tomatoes into thin slices. The potatoes are also peeled and washed before dicing them into small pieces. If we are using fresh peas they are removed from the pods, if frozen then thawed for about 15 to 20 minutes by soaking in warm water till they come to their full size.

Now heat oil in a wok and add the green chillies, cardamom, cinnamon and clove to it. Once the orchestra of spluttering of all this is over, add salt and sugar to taste. Add the sliced tomato to the oil and sauté. Add dhaniya powder, haldi powder and red chilli powder to the mix and continue to sauté till oil starts separating from the mix. Now add a dash of the ghee to the mix, just enough for the sautéed tomato paste to pick up the taste of ghee. Now add the diced potatoes and mix thoroughly. Take the chena and crumble evenly and add to the mix and thoroughly mix till evenly spread and there are no major clumps. Add the green peas to this and mix again. Now add one and half cup of water to it and stir evenly. Now cover and let it cook over a low flame for 10 to 15 minutes. Once we are sure that the potatoes and green peas are thoroughly cooked, add the remaining ghee and garam masala to the mix, stir to spread evenly and then kill the flame. Transfer this to a serving bowl and enjoy it with hot rice or phulkes straight of the flame.

But like any of my cooking I always add a dash of my mother’s secret ingredient, an ingredient to make any recipe rock. Heaps of smiles as I cook and loads of love for the ones I cook for is mixed and stirred in even quantities to make my dish rock. So go ahead add your best smile and spoon in all your love as you cook and see how wonderful the dish turns out to be. Bon appétit.