Chitol Muitha

Ingredients
Chitol fish boneless 250 gms
Boiled potato 150 gms
Onion paste 2tbsp
Tomato paste 2tbsp
Ginger paste 1tbsp
Garlic paste 1tsp
Coriander powder 2tsp
Cumin powder2tsp
Cinnamon powder 1/2 tsp
Clove powder 1/4 tsp
Cardamom powder 1/4 tsp
Red chilly powder 1tsp
Turmeric powder 2tsp
Black pepper powder 1tsp
Green chillies 4
Sugar 2tsp
Ghee 1tbsp
Mustard oil 4tbsp
Salt

Procedure

Mix the potatoes and half of all the pastes and powdered spices to the boneless Chitol fish. This will look like a dough.
Boil enough water in a deep pan. Make small balls with the fish mixture and boil them in batches of 2minutes each. Drain them aside.
In a kadhai heat mustard oil. Fry the fish balls in batches and drain.
Heat the residual oil. Add red chilly powder. Fry all the remaining pastes till oil separates. Add all the dry powder spices alongwith 2tbsp water. Saute this till oil separates.
Add sugar and  salt.
Mix the fish balls in the masala and saute for a minute. Add 2cups water. Cover and cook for 5minutes.
Pour in the ghee and let it rest covered for 5minutes.

Serve with steamed rice or parathas.
This again is an East Bengal   delicacy and tastes very much like desi chicken. The gravy has a unique taste which lingers and is very satifying.
Chitol fish 'pety' or tummy part can be prepared as kalia or curry. 

Aar fish kalia

Ingredients
Aar fish or any big fish 500 gms
Onion paste 1 cup or 150 gms
Garlic paste 1/4 cup or 10 gms
Ginger paste 1/2 cup or 25 gms
Sour curd (in lassi form)
Turmeric 2tsp
Kashmiri chilly powder 1tsp
Grated nutmeg 1/2 tsp
Bay leaves or tej patta 2 pcs
Green chilly 5
Mustard oil 2tbsp
Hot water 2cups or 250 ml
Sugar 1tsp
Salt 2tsp

Procedure

Wash, clean and pat dry fish pieces.
Marinate with a little turmeric,salt and chilly powder. Heat mustard oil in a kadhai or deep pan. Wait till the bubbles in the oil subside. Fry the marinated fish in batches and drain.
In the remaining oil add bayleaves.
Add the sugar till light golden colour. Add the kashmiri red chilly powder and immediately add all the pastes and saute till the water evaporates.
Add the curd in lassi form and cook for 2 minutes. Add salt and turmeric and cook till oil separates from gravy.
Put all the fish pieces in the gravy and add the hot water.
Simmer covered for 6 mins in sim gas.
Add slit green chillies and nutmeg powder and rest covered for 10 mins.
Serve with rice or any type of rotis.

This tastes great with bengali sweet pulao which has lots of raisins in it.

Dry chilly garlic chicken (Kolkata Jimmy's Kitchen Style )

Ingredients
Desi or regular chicken 500 gms
Juice of 1onion
Garlic paste 1tbsp
Ginger paste 1/2tbsp
Chopped garlic 1tbsp
Chopped green chilly 1/2 tbsp
Dark soya sauce 4tsp
Refined flour 1cup
Sugar 2tsp
Salt 1/2 tsp
Vegetable oil 2cups for deep frying the chicken.

Procedure
Cut the chicken in 1 inch pieces.Clean, wash and pat dry. Marinate with the onion juice, ginger and garlic pastes. Keep aside for 1hr.
Place flour mixed with little bit of salt on a plate. Heat oil for deep frying in a wok or a deep kadhai.
Dust every chicken piece with flour nicely on all sides. Fry in batches and drain in kitchen tissue.
Heat 1tbsp oil. Add chopped garlic and chillies to the oil. Cook in high till the garlic is just fried. Add fried chicken pieces along with soya sauce, sugar and salt. Coat the chicken well till glossy.
Put off the heat and serve at once.

It is very good as a starter or with gravy pan fried noodles.
Tastes best if cooked chicken with the bones.

Jimmy's Kitchen Kolkata serves this dish. Many of us are nostalgic and swear by their dry chilly chicken.
I tried to recreate this, for my family and it won hands down.

Fowl curry

Ingredients
Desi chicken 500gms
Chicken eggs 5
Peeled whole Potatoes 5
Fried onion slices ground 1cup
Garlic coarsely ground 1tbsp
Ginger paste 1tbsp
Raw papaya paste 1cup
Green chilly coarsely ground 4
Sour curd 1/2 cup(in lassi form with 1/2 cup water)
Roasted whole cumin seeds 1tsp
Turmeric 2tsp
Red chilly powder( kashmir) 2tsp
Cinnamon stick 1 inch
Mustard oil 1tbsp
Sugar 2tsp
Salt
Hot water 4 cups

Procedure

Clean, wash and pat dry chicken pieces. Marinate with half of all the pastes. Keep aside for half hour.
Boil eggs till done in salted water.
Make light cuts over the eggs and marinate with salt, turmeric and with little red chilly powder.
Heat mustard oil in a big kadhai or pan. Deep fry the potatoes with a pinch of salt and turmeric. Keep aside. Shallow fry the eggs for a minute and keep aside.
Add sugar in the hot oil and let it caramalise till golden. Add all the pastes and saute till oil separates.
Add marinated chicken and fry till the spices coat all the pieces well. Saute for 10 mins with sprinkle of hot water so that the spices do not burn. Till the oil separates.
Add curd, cinnamon stick, roasted whole cumin, turmeric,fried potates,salt and saute till another 5mins.
Transfer this curry to a pressure cooker and add the remaining hot water. Cook in high till 2 whistles.
Simmer low for 10 to 15 mins.
Put off the gas and wait till it cools down and opens easily.
Just before serving add the fried eggs and reheat for 1min.

Serve this curry with chapatis, naan, rumali rotis or hot rice.
Diced onions, green chilles and lemon wedges as a salad is a must.

The word fowl has a British feel. Popularly used during the Raj period. Even today in kolkata some restaurants address chicken as fowl.