Hanhor Mangxo Komora (Duck meat with Ash Gourd) Traditional Assamese Dish Very Tasty To Eat

Hanhor Mangxo Komora (Duck meat with Ash Gourd)

Serves: 4 persons 

Ingredients:

• Duck meat 750 gms 
• A portion of ash gourd 350 gms
• 2 medium sized red onions
• Dry Red Chillies 
• Cumin Seeds (whole)
• Coriander seeds
• Black Peppercorns ( need this bit more than other garam masala items)
• Bay leaves medium sized 2 nos
• Garlic medium sized 8 - 10 cloves
• Ginger 1 inch
• Green Chilies 3 nos. slit length wise
• Turmeric powder 1 tablespoon
• Salt to taste
• Cooking Oil, preferably mustered oil 4 tablespoon
• Coriander leaves for garnishing

Method Of Cooking:

•  Wash the duck meat and cut it small pieces and strain out and set aside to dry.
•  Cut the ash gourd into small cubes of one by one and half inch size and keep aside.
•  Make a paste of ginger and garlics.
•  Heat a pan without putting any oil and put cumin seeds, coriander seeds, dry red chilies and black pepper corns and stir them till the smell start to come out. Do not burn them.
•  Grind the hot garam masala together to a powder.
•  Grate or grind the onions to make a coarse paste.
•  Heat a wok (kadai) or heavy bottom deep frying pan and put the mustered oil to get warm. Make sure to put as much oil as required to get the grated onions to get fried well without burning.
•  First put the bay leaves into the hot oil and then throw the slit green chilies.
•  Then put the grated onion in the pan and keep frying them on medium high flame till they turn golden brown and oil starts to come out of the paste.
•  Put the duck meat pieces in the kadai and mix them well with the onions and keep frying them for 5 to 7 minutes in medium high flame.
•  Add turmeric powder.
• Add the ginger-garlic paste and mix well. 
• Reduce the flame and keep frying for another 10 minutes.
•  If duck meat had some fat, oil will start to come out by now.
• Now add a little water to the garam masala powder which made earlier and add the paste to the meat and mix them well.
• Add a tea spoon of sugar to caramelize if you want.
• Cover the pan with a lid and leave it for sometime so that the aroma of the spices is reserved.
• Now put the ash gourd pieces in the pan and mix with the meat and masala and fry for 2-3 minutes in high heat.
• Add some hot water so that meat does not get burnt and stick to the pan.
• Do not put much water; just add as much as to marginally cover the meat.
• Add salt to taste.
• Reduce the flame and put the lid back on the pan and leave it for 15 minutes or so till the pieces of ash gourd starts to melt.
• Keep checking and stirring so that it does not stick to the base of the pan.
• Gradually the fat of the duck meat would be released and the resultant product would be a oily gravy.
• Check if need more gravy. If want, pour some water, but this dish would be more enjoyable with less gravy.
• Garnish with fresh coriander leaves.
• Serve with hot steamed plain raice (bhat), arahar daal and lemon (kaaji nemu).