Kurkuria is a Parsi snack long forgotten and lost in memory. I first heard of it from a Parsi Manager of an Agiary (Fire Temple) in Mumbai. Marzban Palsettia is from the Village of Nargol, in Gujarat and mentioned that ‘amongst other Parsi snacks, he even made Kurkuria for his colleagues’. I was intrigued. When I found this recipe  amongst the family recipes, I thought to share it with you, my readers. The taste imparted by using the Palm Toddy as ferment is distinctive; that, perhaps, adds greatly to the appeal of the Kurkuria as against other fritters.

There is more than one kind of Kurkuria to be had with Tea—some with fruit some without. Each is made differently; I will share the recipes in due course.

It is interesting to know that Kurkuria is also, the name of two villages in India; one in the State of Assam and another in West Bengal.

Both places also have a weather Bureau which are  named the Kurkuria Grant Weather – AccuWeather Forecast for Assam India and one by the same name for West Bengal.

INGREDIENTS:

250 Gms fine wheat semolina (Rava);

250 Gms plain wheat flour (Atta);

250 Gms finely ground white flour (Maida)

500 Gms powdered sugar (you may grind fine, sugar crystals of use icing sugar) ;

250 Gms plain wheat flour;

½ bottle of toddy (if not available add a flat tsp of fresh yeast and treat the flour accordingly);

250 ml milk with thick cream added to it (cream optional)

3 tablespoons rose water;

6 eggs;

5 Gms cardamom and nutmeg powder mixed;

1 tbsp ghee as shortening (butter used instead of ghee will destroy the earthy flavour of the Kurkuria Fritters);

Ghee / other cooking medium as required for frying.

Sieve the semolina and wheat flour;

Add tbsp ghee;

Mix lightly.

Beat the 6 eggs lightly and add to the flour;

Mix.

Add milk with cream, Cardamom-Nutmeg powder, powdered sugar;

Mix.

Do not knead the dough at any stage.

Add a little Toddy at a time and bring the mixture to a dropping consistency.

Cover the mixture and put it in a warm place. Allow it to rise.

When it has risen add the rose water. Mix.

Heat the ghee in a deep pan and drop the dough with a table spoon in the hot but not smoking ghee.

Keep each ball of the Kurkuria apart when frying; ensure they do not bunch up or stick to each other;

Deep fry the Kukuria to a brown and serve with Tea.

A few grams of blanched, peeled almonds crushed to a powder, if added to the Kurkuria dough would go a long way in improving its taste.

Bafela Eeda Ni Akuri is a breakfast dish but can be used for a quick small meal. An Akuri is usually made from raw eggs scrambled with various herbs and potatoes. Irani restaurants of Bombay (Mumbai) serve Akuri all day as a Mini-Meal— filling, healthy and very, very tasty.

Bafela Eeda Ni Akuri, on the other hand, is not found on any Menu — from the 5 Stars to the humble ‘Irani Hotel’ as the ubiquitous Irani restaurants are spoken of in Mumbai. While the Akuri is quintessentially a ‘Parsi Household Dish’, the Bafela Eeda Ni Akuri is not often seen in our homes.

I chanced upon this recipe amongst some written down by my mother’s family for an introduction to the ‘new daughter-in-law’ (Navi Vau) to the family favourites in the Parsi Cuisine.

The recipe seems to be recorded around the end of 1800s before my Grandmother was born in 1889. The weights and Measures noted in there are old and ni longer in use – Tola, Ratal and such – I have converted these to the nearest Metric Weights and Measures for ease in cooking the Bafela Eeda Ni Akuri.

There is an ingredient mentioned therein which says chutney or ‘VILAYATI SAUCE’. Since I know no one in the family or otherwise who is more than a 118 years old, I have to depend on a good guess to decipher what is the ‘VILAYATI SAUCE’. Most likely, it is the *Worcestershire Sauce or as now termed ‘Worcester Sauce’ (pronounced Wooster), I’d think, from its use in some Meat oriented Recipes or plain old **Tomato Ketchup, if it existed then.

Though both sauces existed at the time this recipe was recorded, I’d lay my bets on Worcester.

* Worcestershire Sauce or as now termed Worcester Sauce, a recipe thought up in 1830 by Lea and Perrins but not marketed as they did not approve of the taste. The Barrels of sauce were set aside and forgotten. Months later, the barrels were rediscovered. The sauce had, by now, matured and the taste mellowed to a full and rich one. The sauce was first marketed by Lea and Perrins in 1837.

However, Lea and Perrins were never able to claim intellectual property rights on the patent for the recipe or on the trademark ‘Worcestershire Sauce’ because of a High Court order in a litigation challenging its origin.

**TOMATO KETCHUP: A sauce of Chinese origin. The word ‘Ketchup’ first appeared in ‘Dictionary of the Canting Crew’ in 1690.

The English colonists were introduced to the ‘kicap’ or ‘kecap’ (pronounced ki- chap or ke -chap) as a fish sauce in the early 18th century in the Malay States (now, Malaysia and Singapore). Somewhere along the way from Malay to England, and then to America (through English settlers) the ‘Kecap’ became ‘Ketchup’.

The sauce was obviously very popular in the British Isles and by 1742, the recipe found its place in a London Cook Book with a distinctly British flavour (addition of shallots and mushrooms).

The popular Heinz Tomato Ketchup was marketed in 1876.

INGREDIENTS:

4 eggs;

250 grams onions;

250 Gms potatoes;

3 bunch of coriander;

3 green chillies (reduce the number of chillies if preferred less heat);

10 leaves of mint;

1 tablespoon ***chutney or schezwan sauce or your favourite flavouring;

IF making Bafela Eeda Ni Akuri in the MANGO SEASON, replace chutney/sauce with 2 finely cut raw green mangoes, absolutely delicious!

2 tbsp Ghee or butter or preferred cooking medium (original recipe specifies Ghee or butter not oil);

½ level teaspoon salt or as per your taste.

METHOD:

Boil the Eggs and let cool,

Cut each egg into 4 slices horizontally or as preferred;

Peel and dice the potatoes to 1/2 cm cubes;

Preserve the potatoes in a bowl of water till required;

Peel and grate the onions or dice to miniscule pieces;

Pluck the leaves off the coriander and cut the leaves fine (only leaves no stems however tender);

Cut fine the green chillies;

Cut fine mint leaves; Now,

Fry the Potato cubes and grated onions in a pan of hot Ghee,

Stirring constantly till golden;

Add coriander, mint, green chillies and Green Mangoes/chutney/ sauce and fry till a light brown,

Lay oiled eggs on top of the fried mixture,

Mix gently so as not to break/damage the egg slices.

Return the pan to the fire, cover and cook the egg and herb mix for 30 more seconds taking care not to let it burn at the bottom.

Garnish with coriander leaves and eat immediately with preferred bread or chapattis Best with Portuguese Pau.

***If you do not have favourite CHUTNEY, try this:

GRIND together to a smooth taste: 1 tbsp grated coconut, 1 tbsp coriander leaves, 2 green chillies, 1inch piece of dried tamarind, a pinch of dry mint powder or 4 fresh leaves, 1 centimeter  piece ginger (peeled) , 2 cloves garlic (peeled),  ¼  teaspoon cumin seeds, ¼ teaspoon fennel seeds, 1 pinch sugar , A Pinch of salt. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

– Quick N Easy Diet Mexican Recipe.

A QUICK N EASY MEXICAN MEAL

Huevos Rancheros or Ranch Eggs are a popular breakfast in the Americas. Huevos Rancheros / Ranch Eggs may be scrambled or cooked whole on the sauce or served fried on the sauce. To look at the dish reminds one of the Parsi Kanda-tamota Per Eedu but tastes wholly different.

SERVES 6

THE SAUCE:

2 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil;

3 large finely chopped onions;

1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic;

5 medium-sized tomatoes, peeled, seeded and finely chopped, or substitute 3 pint canned plum tomatoes, drained and chopped;

3 canned: Serrano chillies, drained, rinsed in cold water and finely chopped OR for a quicker meal use CHILLY POWDER OR FLAKES;

3 teaspoon sugar;

A flat teaspoon salt;

Freshly ground black pepper;

• tablespoons finely chopped fresh coriander (cilantro);

12 Fresh tortillas or ready to eat tortillas bought off the shelf;

Oil to fry tortillas (OPTIONAL);

2 tablespoons butter (OPTIONAL);

12 eggs;

1 large ripe avocado, peeled, stoned and diced.

COOK:

1. Heat 1 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a large heavy saucepan over a moderate heat until a light haze forms above it.
2. Add the onions and garlic, and cook, stirring frequently, for 4 to 5 minutes, until the onions are soft and transparent, PINK but not golden.
3. Stir in the tomatoes, chillies, sugar, salt to taste and a few grindings of black pepper.
4. When the mixture comes to the boil, reduce the heat and simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 15 minutes, or until most of the tomato juice has evaporated and the sauce is a thick smooth purée. Then add the coriander, turn off the heat, and cover the pan to keep the sauce warm.

READY THE TORTILLAS:

1. Take a heavy frying pan.
2. Heat 5 teaspoons of the oil in the frying pan over a high heat until a light haze forms above it.
3. Taking one at a time, fry each of the tortillas for 1 to 2 minutes on each side, or until they are slightly golden, (adding more oil 1 or 2 teaspoons at a time as and when necessary).
4. As you go on, transfer the golden fried tortillas to drain, onto a thick kitchen paper.

OR

Crisp up each tortilla on a hot griddle (this takes longer than frying);

OR

Toast each tortilla to a crisp.

OR

You may use the tortillas cooked but soft. Depending on your taste.

SERVING:

1. Place 2 golden fried and drained tortilla side by side on 6 separate plates.
2. Fry the eggs in butter/oil/preferred cooking medium in batches of six.
3. If frying in butter, heat the pan on moderate heat, add butter, let it melt, WAIT till foam subsides, then break the eggs into the pan.
4. If frying in oil, heat the oil on high heat and directly break the eggs into the pan and lower the heat.
5. Cook eggs till the whites are set and the yolks are still soft.
6. DO NOT LET THE WHITES BECOME CRISP. If there is danger of the whites becoming crisp, lower the heat further or lift the pan off the fire for a while.
7. Separate the eggs with a fish slicer.
8. Taking care not to break the yolk, carefully lift eggs, one at a time, and place on one tortilla each.
9. Spoon a 1 inch ring of the hot sauce around each egg.
10. Garnish with finely chopped fresh cilantro/coriander leaves and bits of Avocado.
11. Serve the extra/ remaining sauce in a separate bowl.

The way I personally prefer to serve these eggs surrounded by the hot sauce is to place them on soft tortillas and to add a dollop of butter on the eggs, sauce and tortilla while still hot. The butter as it melts infusing the sauce and flavouring the tortillas is absolutely delicious!