Naa jwng Jinka Wngkhree

Naa jwng Jinka Wngkhree is a Bodo delicacy. Jinka can be seen grown in almost all the homesteads of Bodo villages during Spring season. It is a delicious wngkhree, my personal favourite too. 

Hence, even living in a city couldn't deter me from growing this vegetable on my terrace vegetable patch. Here are a few pictures of my terrace garden growing Jinka.   

Common name: Ridge Gourd 

Bodo name: Jinka

Assamese name: Jika

Hindi name: Torai

Scientific name: Luffa acutangula

Some Bodo Terminologies:

1. Naa: Fish

2. Naa Kursa: Fish Kuria Labeo

3. Wngkhree: Curry

4. jwng: with

Naa Kursa is probably the most favourite fish of the Bodos. Jinka and Naa Kursa is definitely a wonderful combination and turns out very tasty.  

Ingredients: 

1. Naa Kursa 2, cut into pieces

2. Jinka 3, cut into thumb size pieces

3. Potatoes 2, cubed (opptional)

4. Onion 1, make a paste

5. Ginger paste 1 tsp  

6. Garlic paste 1 tsp 

7. Green Chilli paste to taste or Red Chilli powder

(I used Red Chilli powder for this curry)

8. Salt to taste

9. Turmeric

10. Mustard oil

11. Fresh Coriander leaves for garnishing

(couldn't garnish as I  didn't have Fresh Coriander for this wngkhree) 

Method:

Fry the pieces of fish smeared with Salt and Turmeric. Keep aside.

Heat oil, add Onion paste and saute for a few seconds on medium flame. Add Jinka, Potato, salt, Turmeric, Chilli and stir fry for a few more seconds. Cover and cook on low heat stirring occasionally. 

Add Ginger, Garlic paste and stir well. Cover and cook again. Jink will give out some amount of moisture which will make the vegetables tender in the mean time.

When water dries up and Jika is dissolved, add 3 to 4 cups of warm water. Cover and cook. 

Add the fried pieces of fish cover and cook again. 

Check salt. Gravy shouldn't be too watery nor too thick.  

Naa jwng Jinka Wngkhree is ready to serve. 

Naa Gwri jwng Thadoon wngkhree

Thadoon: Root of Taro/Colocasia
Jwng: With
Naa: Fish
Naa Gwri: Spotted Snakehead Fish

Ingredients: 
1. Taro root 3 (long variety), peeled and cubed
2. Fish half kilo
3. Tomato 1, remove skin and grate
4. Paste: Onion 3+Ginger 1 piece+Garlic 10 to 12 cloves
5. Chilli to taste, fresh green or red
6. Salt to taste
7. Turmeric
8. Mustard oil
9. Fresh Coriander

Method:
Add Turmeric and Salt to fish. Fry fish but not fully, do not make it crisp or cook completely. Keep aside.
Keep a little paste aside for later use. Heat oil, fry the paste adding salt, chilli and turmeric. When half fried, add Thadoon pieces. Keep stirring and fry on medium heat.

Add hot water and pressure cook 2 whistles and simmer on low heat till one more whistle. Let it stand till the pressure is reseled completely.
In the meantime, heat oil and fry the reserved paste. Add tomato, little salt and turmeric. Fry till done.
Pour the Thadoon from cooker to a karahi along with the gravy. Add fried tomato and fried fish. Add more hot water if required. Let it cook covered. Check salt, chilli. Break some of the Thadoon pieces. Care should be taken to make the curry neither too thick or thin.

Garnish with chopped fresh coriander and serve with rice.

Thadoon can be cooked with Smoked Shrimps (Nathur Gwran) too. Tastes superb. Same method as above may be followed to cook.
You may also check the Thadoon curry with fish Thadoon jwng Naa jwng

Thasso Bisong jwng Naa jwng

This Bodo delicacy can be cooked with fish, smoked or sun dried fish, pork or even naphaam. 

I cooked this dish with fresh fish and it turned out super delicious. 

There are several varieties of Thasso, this particular one is called Thasso Dudali. I have chosen this variety as it is very tasty and less likely to irritate the throat while eating.

Thasso Bisong: Taro Stem
Naa: Fish
Jwng: With

Ingredients:

1. Thasso Bisong, a bunch
2. Fish, a few (best with small fish)
3. Paste of Onion+Ginger+Garlic+chilli
4. Turmeric
5. Salt
6. Mustard oil

Method: 

Smear salt and turmeric on fish and fry. Keep aside.
Peel skin from Thasso and cut into cubes.
Heat oil, fry paste, add turmeric and Thasso. Add salt. Cook covered, stirring occasionally.
Once cooked, Thasso gives out lot of water and gets cooked in the same water.
When cooked add fish and cook for some more time. Do not make it too dry, gravy should be thick.

Thasso Bisong can be cooked without fish or meat if you want to make it a pure vegetarian dish.
Click on this for the recipe Thasso Bisong Bathwn 

Chicken+Bamboo Shoot Ondla

Ondla is a favourite delicacy of the Bodos. It is a curry made of ground rice mainly cooked with meat or fish. A variety of herbs, shoots, leaves, edible flowers are added to this curry which enhances the taste making it one of the most delicious dishes of ethnic Bodo cuisine.

To cook this particular Ondla, I have used fresh Bamboo Shoots. A variety of Bamboo Shoots are available during the Summer months in Assam when new shoots of Bamboo sprout. Of course some varieties of Bamboo shoots are available round the year on the hills of other States of North East India. The tastes also differ.

 
How to clean and cut: Peel off the outer layers till the very tender part is found. Wash whole before slicing. Cut off the portions whenever fiber is found while slicing the Bamboo shoot.

To cook this recipe you need:                          Serves 4

1. Chicken 600 gm (after cutting)
2. Bamboo Shoot 300 gm (after slicing)
3. Joha Rice 2 tbsp, soaked in water for an hour and ground to a paste.
    (rice powder can be used too, only make sure that no lump
        is formed while adding to the curry)
4. Onion 2 medium, grated
5. Paste of 10 cloves Garlic+1 small piece of Ginger
6. Turmeric half tsp
7. Salt 2 tsp or to taste
8. Green Chilli to taste, chopped or slit lengthwise
9. Mustard oil 3 tbsp
10. Kharwi/Khaar/Kola Khaar/Kol Khaar 2 to 3 serving spoons depending on the strength
      (Soda-bi-carb is a substitute)
      (for a change, Kharwi may be omitted sometimes while cooking this curry.

How to cook: 

Heat Oil, fry Onion for a few minutes.
Add Chicken, Bamboo Shoot, Salt, Turmeric, Ginger+Garlic paste and Chilli. Reserve a little paste to add later. Keep stir frying on medium heat till Chicken turns pale brown.
Add 2 glasses of Water and pressure cook, 6 whistles.

Pour the curry on a Karahi (pan) and add ground rice/rice paste. Add more water if required.
Add Kharwi if you want at this point. Check Salt, Chilli. The gravy should not be thick yet not too watery. Add the reserved Ginger+Garlic paste.

Serve with a hot plate of rice. Tastes superb. 

Sobai jwng Aloo

Sobai jwng Aloo means: Black Lentil with Potato.
  Black Lentil is lightly roasted and crushed to split open, so that some of the skin is removed and bring in the aroma before it is finally cooked with chicken, fish or vegetables such as potato, radish, ash gourd. 

Sobai Wngkhree is one of the most favourite of the Bodos. Although Sobai is preferred with meat or fish, it is also eaten as a vegetarian dish adding a few pieces of Radish (Moola), Potato (Aloo) or Ash Gourd (Kumbra). 
 In this recipe I have added a few pieces of potato to Sobai wngkhree (curry) and garnished with Long Coriander (Gongar Dundiya). Ow I must tell, it turned out really tasty ... yummmm 

Washed and soaked Sobai

Ingredients:                                                   Serves: 4

1. Black Lentil (Sobai) 1 cup 

2. Potato 1, cut into thick pieces

3. Onion 1, grated

4. Paste of Garlic 8 cloves+Ginger 1 small piece

5. Chilli to taste (if green chopped, make a paste if red dried)

6. Turmric a pinch or half tsp
7. Salt to taste
8. Kharwi 2 to 3 serving spoons depending on the strength
9. Long Coriander (Gongar Dundiya) 4 leaves
10. Mustard oil 2 tbsps

Method: 

Wash and soak Sobai for half an hour

Add a little salt and fry the pieces of potato in oil and keep aside. But do not let it get cooked. 

Now heat oil and fry onion. When onion turns translucent, add Sobai, paste of ginger+garlic, chilli, salt and turmeric. Reserve a little paste of Ginger+Garlic to add later. Keep stirring on medium heat. Fry this way for a while.

Add 2 glasses of water and pressure cook, 3 whistles. Depending on the age of Sobai takes more time to get cooked, if old wait for 4 to 6 whistles. 

Pour out from pressure cooker and cook on medium heat now adding Kharwi. Mash most of the Black Lentil. Add potato, I am adding potato late as it doesn't take much time to cook. But if matured Ash Gourd (Kumbra) is added, then cook along with Black Lentil in pressure cooker. Radish (Moola) can be cooked like potato. 

Check salt, chilli and the thickness of the wngkhree (curry). Add water if required. At this point add the reserved ginger+garlic paste. 
Garnish with Long Coriander (Gonger Dundiya).