Langkawi- a hidden paradise

Langkawi is cluster of 99- 104 islands on Malaysia’s west coast. This is a great destination for beach lovers and the ones who wants to relax in nature’s lap. The very essence of Langkawi is its blue sea-water and paddy fields with some hilly region.

Our 4 days visit was a much relief from busy Kuala Lumpur life.

Although there are many things to see and do as per activity wise, for active people there is snorkelling, sea-sports etc. but we were more into spending time on beaches. The island is blessed to have three conservation areas Machincang Cambrian Geoforests park, Kilim Karst Geoforest park and Dayang Bunting Marble Geoforest park (which is island of Pregnant Maiden lake).One can take ferry transport from Penang, Kuala Kedah or by domestic flight from Kuala Lumpur.The touristy population is confided into southern part and the north-east is more secluded with little tourist. We based our selves in Kuah Town.

The views from our apartment balcony were breath-taking- each morning and every evening there was a different view to greet us.

Most popular beach is Chenang beach or Pantai Cenang.This white-sand beach is the most frequently visited place. 

The main road which lead to the beach is lined by street-side hawkers selling beach activities things and also clothes and accessories. Do visit them when you are in this area and buy couple of things from them. 

Although, I would say avoid the shopping malls, but if you are into chocolates and alcohol then you can try out duty-free shopping malls as well.

Langkawi cable car takes visitors up to the peak of Gunung Mat Chingchang. The entry is through Oriental village that includes various fast-food joints, fish spa and a 3-dimensional art museum known as Art in Paradise. We went for a quick fish spa session which was tickling and entertaining as well.

It’s better to have your own vehicle to roam around in the island. But we hired local taxi-drivers on two days and it was well worth it.Day 1 Hakkim- drove us around in the island, very cultured and experienced driver. He took us to Eagle square

and also to
Tanjug Rhu beach

 and Black sand beach

and dropped us at Cable car site in the afternoon.

We were mesmerized by the top view, the journey time from bottom of hill to the top is roughly 15 mints. 

The cable car takes to the top station and from there, is an inclined lift which takes people to the sky bridge. 

Although, there is another passage through steps which took us to the sky bridge. We were tired climbing up and down the steps, but we finally made it to the sky bridge. We started walking on the open sky bridge, once we reached the other end, weather started to deteriorate and wind started howling at us, and soon we were trapped in a heavy thunderstorm. 

While we waited holding our breath, the loud rumblings continued and then the outcome, heavy and lashing rain, and we were trapped in a sort of a trench. A care-taker luckily was there with us, guiding us through the whole situations. We waited there for about 15 -20 mints till the ferocity of the rain subsided. While still it was raining, we made our way back to the origin of Sky Bridge. And what an experience it was. We were planning a relaxed action-free holiday, lo behold we were facing a thrilling adventure of sort. So, when life gets tough have 'snickers', yes we snicked  snacked on snickers while waiting for the thunderstorm to subside, entrapped with fellow tourists under a sort of trench.

When Hakim came to pick us up, he seemed worried about us, and asked if we are fine or not. He dropped us back to our hotel. 
And this is how our day one was spent with an unplanned adventure.

Day two and three, we went to Pantai Cenang and spent entire days there, relaxing on beach. I was hooked on to reading book for a change, and yes I did finish ‘The Girl on the Train’ during this holiday, and what a good read this turned out to be.

We got nicely tanned even though we were siting under these large umbrellas.

We are blessed with more skin pigment melatonin and so you would know how things are for us.

 Last day we were not sure what to do, so, we picked up a local driver Abu and he showed us rest of the interesting places in Langkawi. 

He seemed very keen in sharing local stories or legends about Langkawi. The legend of pregnant maiden lake is based on a lady. The whole day he kept telling us very interesting facts about Langkawi and he told us, he preferred life over here rather than in Kuala Lumpur, and I couldn’t agree more.

The splendid waterfall of Telaga Tujuh or seven wells waterfall kept us feeling relaxed and mesmerized. 

Abu also happened to tell us stories about fairies who visit this place frequently (hmmm never meant to feel haunted, but he told us they are good spirits who take care of the waterfall area).We saw many tourists diving into the fresh waterfall water. Although, we didn’t make it up to the top of waterfall, but enthusiasts do that. We spent more time sitting there, soaking up the positive energy. Another pit-stop was Temuran waterfall , we had a quick visit there.

We called the day at Pantai Kok Beach and this is how our visit ended in Langkawi. We were returning back to the real life now- life at Kuala Lumpur.

‘’ It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end.’’

 ---------------Ursula K Lee Guin.

See you all next week with a new blogpost ...till then take care and enjoy life....

Chocolate mice and Happy Diwali

Today is Diwali or should I say Deepawali. And Diwali invokes lots of good old memories- Rangoli decorations, bursting crackers, and eating ‘kheel’ and ‘khilona’ (you know those sugary things moulded into various shapes of animals).Stocking up fire-crackers and drying them in the sun, in case they were still wet somehow (god knows how many times we used to go upstairs to our terrace to check them in between). Putting up light bulbs on terrace or balcony, checking with a tester and feeling elated to become an electrician for the time being, gorging on home-made sweets that our mothers would churn out for these past couple of days. When I look back (yes, I do like to do from time to time. Everyone has their own share of memories. I would say treasure them and re-visit them from time to time, but be ready to make new and fresh memories.) And I have stacks of all those memories, and that includes memories associated with Diwali as well.

Here wishing everyone a very happy Diwali.

Shubh Deepawali everyone.May festival of light brings you loads of happiness, peace and prosperity.

Our residential complex had a Halloween potluck get –together couple of days ago. I happened to make these chocolate mice which was well received by the crowd. Little ones specifically adored these cute, tiny chocolate mice. 

I made about 60 of them and not a single mice was left. So you can imagine how delicious these can be.

Now to the recipe for chocolate mice

 Chocolate mice

Recipe requirements – makes 60 small mice

adapted from here

500 Gms of oats chocolate biscuit crumbs

4 chocolate bars 100 Gms each

5-6 tbs of sour cream (can use thick yogurt as well)

For decorations

  1 cup of chocolate biscuit crumble

Almond flakes about 1 cup for ears or 120 almond flakes

Dragees for eyes – 120

 Carrot thin juliennes for tails- 60

Method

Crush chocolate biscuits in a mixer or with rolling pin. I have used oats and chocolate biscuit to make it healthy. But you can use any other chocolate biscuits.

Melt chocolate bars in microwave for about a mint.

In a big mixing bowl – mix together oats chocolate crumble with melted chocolate. Add in sour cream and bind them well. Check with a tsp of sample and try to roll, if they stick together the mixture is ready to be shaped in like little mice.

Store it in fridge for about an hour. This will help it to help in shaping of mice.

Now take out about a table spoon of the mixture and start shaping in to rounds. Now at one end slightly, mould to a point (the nose) to form mice.

Roll each mice over the biscuit crumble to coat it evenly. 

Now put dragees for eyes. Almond flakes for ears and carrot thin juliennes for the tail. 

You can use strawberry juliennes as well for tails.

Chill at least for about 2-3 hrs or until they are all firm.

Happy Cooking 

Wish you all a very happy Diwali and a happy Halloween 

Chingri diye Chal kumro - ash-gourd with shrimp stir/fry - and it's 10 years of food-blogging

This blog turned 10 years old. Yes that’s a long time. I have planned to write a big senti-post with elaborate made-ups, emojis and what-not. But here I am, with my flaws, loss with words and ………

When I started taking baby steps, I never knew this could be shaping up something like this today. I needed to write, needed to write down my experiments in my small apartment kitchen like a mad scientist working endlessly, in their laboratory, except those laboratory products were being tasted by and tested on real people – aka my dear Husband and my dear daughter. Well what else can they do?

  I think (or rather I pretend to think- whatever is the case), they have also accepted this mad scientist/aka cook with her flaws and that she will continue experimenting things with them. Now, even they have started giving me instructions, ways to improve a recipe. We have healthy discussions about recipes on our dining table and the conversation even revolves around the spice –level and the levels at which vegetables are stir/fried/charred/burnt. We sometimes even discuss the need of ‘jeerey phoron’ over ‘panch phoron’ and vice-versa. Sorry politics and ‘gyan –wardhak- batein ‘, please find some other dinner table.

One fine day, dear daughter was calling me fanatically, and I thought it must be those days, where she has to vent out her feelings. ‘Ma you should see this!!  …..And I asked what? …..Hey! Your blog is on google search and that too on first page. Do you really know what it means…..and I was rolling my eyes, what it meant, trying to recall – and I gave a blank stare to her.…..probably she understood (after that day, she is on a reading spree- reading all those old posts from the beginning. I wonder how she feels, where she is mentioned or I have written about her. I need to ask her someday that too…….)

10 years can do that too (can make you go blank sometimes) ……it’s a long time …..Well food –blogging, is now a profession these days, as this is what I last heard about. I have seen a paradigm shift in this field- from hobby to making it a profession. I don’t know what should I say about that- but if that makes a difference to you. I now do tell, 'real –life' people or friends that I have a food-blog which some 3-4 years ago I couldn’t think or speak-out.

But yes, there are people, who still visit this food-blog, spend time accessing recipes and perhaps do make them in their kitchen. Some even find time to write me back and appreciate for sharing recipes with them,or drop a comment. Some even ask questions about recipes, some even criticize, and some are silent readers-they come, they read and I do think they try making recipes from here as well. 

Well, to all of you, thanks a lot for making ‘spice and curry’ a part for your life, a tiny place where you like to hang around and feel like it’s your home. Well that is what this food-blog is all about. Thank you for visiting and checking recipes here, making it a million-hits- food-blog.

Without you reader(s) this blog is incomplete. Hopefully, I will keep writing more recipes, but you have to promise me as well, that you will keep visiting us as well. 

Thank you for being with me all these 10 years of food-blogging!!!

Today I am sharing a very Bengali recipe- Chingri diye chal kumro- ash gourd with shrimp and coconut stir/fry. After all those blabbering above, I think I will spare you from more torture, and will write the recipe.

Here is how I made it 

Chingri diye chal kumro r torkari/ Shrimp and potato with coconut stir/fry

Recipe requirements- ( serves3-4 people)

1 medium size ash gourds

 300 Gms of shrimps- cleaned and deveined

2 medium size potatoes

 1 medium tomatoes chopped or 8-10 ripened cherry tomatoes slit in between

3-4 red bird eye chilies/Thai chilies

 1 and ½ tsp of red pepper powder

1 tsp of turmeric powder

Salt as per taste

For tempering

1 tsp of cumin seeds

2 dry red chillies

5-6 tbs of cooking oil/mustard oil

Method

Clean and cut ash gourd, potatoes in to long juliennes, little bit thicker.

Clean shrimps- deshell them and devein them. Marinate with turmeric powder and salt. Keep aside for 10 mints.

Heat up a fry pan, add 1tbs of mustard oil, and stir fry the shrimps for 4-5 mints. Take out and reserve to use up later in the stir/fry preparation.

Heat up a fry pan/wok/kadai, Add in rest of the cooking oil to it, add cumin seeds, dry red pepper, and let it splutter.

Stir/fry it for 1-2 mints at med-high flame.

Add in ash gourd and potatoes pieces/juliennes.

Add in red chilly slit in between and finely chopped tomato pieces.( you can add grated coconut as well.)

Add in all the dry spices- turmeric powder+red pepper powder+salt in a cup of water, mix it well.

Add this spices mixture to the above fried mix and keep on stir/fry for about 3-4 mints.

Let it cook for 10-12 mints at medium-low flame or till the potatoes turn soft. At this time add in fried spicy shrimp to above and mix it well. Take out and it’s ready to be eaten.

Serve and enjoy with warm cooked rice.

Happy Cooking friends and 

Thanks you for stopping by here and spending time with me all these 10 years of food-blogging !!

Shorshe Bhapa Bhetki/Siakap- Steamed Siakap with mustard seeds paste and Shubho Bijoya

How time is slowly slipping away from our hands like sand, the more I try to hold it tightly, it starts slipping away harder. Well this is time for you, and it never stops for anyone, it moves because it has to move, for that is what it's purpose is.

Past couple of days were spent in euphoria. Well after moving here in KL, I thought maybe, I will miss Durga Ma ‘darshon’, but here, I am again put wrong. Bengalis are everywhere, even in Kuala Lumpur. So, there is Malaysia Bengali association as well. I went, I saw and I was conquered. I was conquered with the ageless beauty of Ma Durga, her divine face and her aura.

We have now some great memories of Durga Puja in KL. We did our ‘pushpanjali’, had bhog, and saw ‘Sandhi Puja’, heard ‘Dhaak’ and saw ‘Dhunuchi’ dance as well. All things which makes Durga Puja so beautiful and festive. And, we were mesmerised with the ambience. OH! And not to forget – tried food made by local Bengali ladies as well in ‘Anando Mela’.

And since yesterday was Bijoya Dashami, the culmination of 9 days Navaratri festival, specifically last 4-5 days. Here wishing everyone shubho Vijayadashami, shubho Bijoya.

I have a fish recipe post today, and no sweet recipe this time.Shorshe bhapa Bhetki/Siakap/Barramundi, and this remains one of our favourite ways of making bhapa Mach aka steamed fish. Here is how we made it

Shorshe bhapa Bhetki /Siakap – Steamed Siakap with mustard seed paste

Recipe requirements- serves 3 people

 1 whole bhetki/siakap –cleaned and gutted – cut into 3 pieces

2 garlic cloves

6-8 red bird eye chilies/Thai chilies

2-4 tbs of brown mustard seeds

 1 tbs of cumin seeds

 1 tsp of red pepper powder

½ tsp of turmeric powder

 For marinating fish

¾ tsp of turmeric powder

Salt as per taste

3-4 tbs of mustard oil

  1 tsp of Salt or as per taste

Method

Clean siakap/bhetki fish pieces well in water. Marinate them with turmeric powder and salt and keep aside for about half an hour.

Fry the fish pieces lightly, just to get rid of the raw smell.

Soak mustard seeds for 1-2 hrs in water. After that grind them to make a paste with salt, cumin seeds, garlic and 3-4 Thai red chillies. You can use any other chilies as well.

Add in all the dry spices- turmeric powder+red pepper powder+salt in a cup of water, mix it well.

Add in mustard oil to the above spices mixture. Mix mustard paste with this spice mixture.

Prepare steel box which you will be using for steaming. Pour spice mixture with mustard paste and place fish pieces inside it.Cover it and put the box for steaming in a vessel filled with water. Steam cook it for 45-50 mints at medium flame.

Otherwise you can use electrical steamer. Steam cook the above for about 40-45 mints. I have used electrical steamer for the purpose. The timing can vary, please check your brand’s manual for fish cooking time.

Serve and enjoy with warm cooked rice.

Other Recipe post on Shubho Bijoya.

Shubho Bijoya with Dorbesh

Coconut and white chocolate truffles

Fig and Chocolate malpoa

jibe goja

Shubho Bijoya everyone.
Wish you all a very happy Dusehrah.

Chorchori and Sharodiya Shubecha

Autumn, this is that time of the year again. Every Bengali knows what it means, and how much importance it has in their respective lives. Some have nostalgic memories associated with it and some will continue making fresh memories with each passing autumn season. ‘Sharadoutsav’ is again reckoning from tomorrow with Shashti, the onset of Sharad kalin or Ashwin month Durga Puja according to Hindu calender. And with Durga Puja , a series of other festivals lining up now.

Puja invokes mixed feeling for me, makes me feel home-sick and happy as well. Although where ever we go, we find many places where we can get a glimpse of Ma Durga and absorb in Puja atmosphere. 

We do hope we can do this year as well. These 4-5 days, means – eating, cooking and more eating, get-together, outings and celebrating.

I have prepared a list of recipes for these special occasion.Yes most of them are Bengali recipes.You can have a look - here and an old post about Puja ramblings.

You all enjoy and have a wonderful Durga Puja holidays.

Today I have a chorchori recipe post with Ranga Aloo.Chorchori as it says, need no introduction. All you need is vegetables and stir/fry them and the vegetable medley is ready. This is eaten as first course. Here is how we made it ……..

Chorchori with Ranga aloo

Recipe requirements (serves 2-3 people)

2-3 sweet potato

2 medium size carrots

1-2 Cauliflower stalks

 2-3 medium size round brinjals

 1 medium size bitter gourd

1 medium size potatoes

 ½ tsp of turmeric powder

1 tsp of red pepper powder

 1tsp of freshly grounded coriander powder

Salt as per taste

 2 pinches of sugar

For tempering

1 tsp of panch phoron

2 dry red chillies

5-6 tbs of cooking oil/mustard oil

Method

Clean and cut potatoes, sweet potato, brinjals and carrots in to cubes.

Cut bitter gourd into cubes and marinate them with turmeric powder+ salt. Set aside in a separate plate.

If you are using vegetables stalks, like cauliflower, scrape the outer layer and then chop it into cubes. You can use other vegetable stalks as well cabbage, spinach or other green leafy vegetable stalks.

Heat up a fry pan/wok/kadai, Add in few tsp of cooking oil to it, stir/fry bitter gourd pieces for 3-4 mints at med-high flame, take out and keep aside.

Add in more oil and add panch phoron , dry red pepper, let it splutter.

Stir/fry it for 1-2 mints at med-high flame.

Add in carrots, vegetable stalks, sweet potatoes and potatoes pieces. Add brinjals pieces at the end.

In a small bowl  mix in all the dry spices- turmeric powder+red pepper powder+coriander powder +salt with bit of water and  mix it well.

Add this spices mixture to the above fried mix and keep on stir/fry for about 3-4 mints.

Now add in fried bitter gourd pieces and mix well. Splash some water over the stir/fried vegetables so that it doesn’t stick at the bottom.

Cover and let it cook further for about 8-12 mints or till the vegetables turn soft.

Serve and enjoy with warm cooked rice.

Happy Cooking Friends 

Shobayi ke Sharodiya Shubecha and Preeti .....Happy Durga Puja