Kolphool Paro Manghor Jalukia Or Pigeon Meat With Banana Flower
Cooking Time: 20 - 30 minutes
Serves: 4 people
Ingredients:
- 500 gms of pigeon meat (make the pieces small, cut with the bones)
- 1 fresh whole banana flower
- 1 medium sized potato
- 6 cloves of garlic
- 1 inch of ginger
- 2 red chilies
- 1 tablespoon of whole black peppercorns
- 1 teaspoon of turmeric powder
- 1/2 teaspoon of cumin powder
- Salt to taste
- 2 Bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon full of the mixture of whole cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, mustard seed, ajwain seeds and black cumin seeds in equal quantities
- Cooking oil ( mustered oil, its better)
Cooking Time: 20 - 30 minutes
- Peeling out the layers of banana flower.
- Remove first 2-3 layers.
- Find a ring of smaller white colored slender projections.
- These are the actual flower part of the entire big piece of the banana flower.
- The outer layers basically designed to protect them.
- Cut of the top and bottom portions out of the white part.
- Wash the entire white part which have before cutting.
- Then chop into fine pieces.
- Add some salt into the chopped pieces and using hand, mash them.
- Some water will come out from the mashed pieces.
- The mashed output would turn to a darker shade.
- Drain out the water and keep the mashed banana flower aside.
- This step is important so that the basic taste of the banana flower is removed.
- Make a paste of ginger and garlic.
- Cut the potato into 8 wedges of equal size and fry them till they are half cooked and set aside.
- Heat a wok (kadai) and put some cooking oil.
- Once the oil is hot and vapor starts coming out, reduce the flame a bit and crackle the mixture of cumin seeds, fenugreek seeds, mustard seeds and black cumin seeds.
- Add the dry red chills and the bay leaves.
- Add the ginger garlic paste and fry them for 2 minutes in medium low flame.
- Once the smell of garlic starts coming, add the pigeon meat and the mashed banana flower portions.
- Mix the entire mixture well.
- Add turmeric powder and the cumin powder.
- Keep stirring and fry them on medium high flame for 5-7 minutes.
- Now reduce the flame to minimum and cover the kadai with a lid.
- Let it simmer for say 15 minutes.
- Keep checking periodically to ensure the meat does not stick to the vessel.
- Generally the banana flowers will release some water and the meat gets cooked in that water.
- Add some water if the meat might be burnt.
- After cooking for fifteen minute, uncover the pan but do not increase the heat.
- Put the potato wedges and salt to the curry and mix them well.
- Cook the curry till the water evaporates and the banana flower mash is reduced to very fine size.
- Check if the meat has become tender.
- Do not add more water now but make sure the curry does not become too dry.
- Coarsely grind the black peppercorns and add them to the curry and keep stirring for say 5 more minutes.
- If the meat has become tender of satisfaction turn off the heat and curry is ready.