Jamai Sashti: Delectable dishes to pamper your son-in-law with

Jamai Sashti 2022: Jamai Sashti is a popular festival in West Bengal and as the name suggests is dedicated to jamai or son-in-law of the family. It’s the day when the son-in-law is lovingly invited by their in-laws along with their daughter to indulge in a grand feast featuring an array of mouth-watering dishes. It is celebrated on sixth day of Shukla Paksha in Jyestha month of the Hindu calendar.  This year Jamai Sashti is being celebrated on June 5.

Before the feast, the mother-in-law performs a special ritual with durba (twin blades of grass), grains and five fruits to bless her jamai and pray for the good fortune and prosperity of her daughter and son-in-law. (Also read: Jamai Sasthi 2022: History, significance and all that you need to know)

On the occasion of Jamai Sashti, we have compiled some traditional Bengali recipes that are relished on the festival.

1. Mangsher Jhol

Recipe by Executive Chef Amit Kocharekar, The Resort Mumbai

Ingredients:

1 kg curry cut mutton

2 tbsp onion paste

3 potatoes peeled and cut into halves

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp garam masala powder

2 tbsp garlic paste

2 tbsp ginger paste

2 cups of finely chopped onions

Salt – to taste

1 tsp cumin powder

1 ½ tsp coriander powder

1 tsp turmeric powder

2 tsp red chilli powder

1 tbsp. lemon juice

2 tbsp. mustard oil

150 gm dahi

4 tsp desi ghee

2 bay leaves

2 dry red chillies

1 black cardamom pod

4 green cardamom pods

4 cloves

1 cinnamon stick

Method

– Take a bowl and place the mutton pieces in it. Marinate with onion paste, ginger and garlic paste.

– Take turmeric powder, lemon juice, and mustard oil. Mix it well. Keep it aside in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours.

– Sprinkle salt and turmeric on the potatoes and fry them till they turn golden brown. Set them aside.

– Take a pot, add ghee, bay leaves, cardamom, cinnamon stick, cloves and red chillies.

– When they turn fragrant, add chopped onions and sauté them well.

– Add the rest of the ginger-garlic paste. Mix well.

– Add the marinated curry cut pieces, mix well and cook for 5 minutes.

– Then simmer the food, add whisked curd, stir continuously.

– Then add all the spices like turmeric powder, garam masala, cumin powder, coriander powder, and red chilli powder.

– Mix them well and add the fried potatoes.

– Add warm water as well if required

– Close the pot with the lid; cook till mutton get tender

2. Pantua (Sweet)

Executive Chef Amit Kocharekar, The Resort Mumbai

Ingredients

1 litre milk

100 gm milk powder

300 gm sugar

3 tbsp white flour

20 seeds black cardamom

200 gm sugar

1 tsp baking powder

400 ml white oil for deep frying

2 tbsp lemon juice

Method

– Heat the 1.5-litre milk in pan. When it is hot enough and about to rise add the lemon juice, stir it till the milk curdles.

– When the whey separates strain the paneer (cottage cheese) and tie the paneer in a muslin cloth and hang it until all the water is drained

– In the meantime, make sugar syrup by boiling with sugar and equal quantity of water in a pan. Keep aside.

– Put the paneer in mixing bowl and add milk powder, flour and baking powder, knead it until it becomes smooth (all small lumps of paneer should be disrepair) and make soft dough and keep it 30 minutes for rest. Make small equal size balls

– Place black cardamom seeds and small sugar cube inside the ball.

– Heat oil in a wok. When hot, put the cottage cheese balls and fry on medium flame till it is reddish brown in colour.

– Remove the balls from oil and put into the sugar syrup. Keep the pantua in sugar syrup for some time so that fried balls soak the sugar syrup.

3. Aloo Dholkia

Recipe by Swapnadeep Mukherjee, Head Chef, The Metropolitan Hotel & Spa

Ingredients

Potato – 80 gm

For the filling:

Crumbled potato – 20 gm

Cashew nuts – 02 gm

Raisins – 01 gm

Green chili chopped finely – 01 gm

Turmeric – ½ gm

Salt – 02 gm

Chaat masala – 02 gm

Garam masala – ½ gm

For the marinate:

Ginger garlic paste – 10 gm

Kasmiri chilli powder – 01 gm

Amchoor – 01 gm

Kala namak (rock salt) – 01 gm

Cooking oil – 50 ml

Kasuri methi – ½ gm

Yogurt – 50 gm

Method

Prick the potatoes and microwave for 5-6 minutes till cooked. Keep a glass of water on the turntable to prevent wrinkling of potatoes while cooking. Cool and peel the potatoes.

Cut small slices from both the ends of the potato, so that the potato gets a base to stand.

Scoop the potatoes. Mix the ingredients for the filling. No cooking. Fill the potatoes with the mixed filling.

Mix all the ingredients of the marinate and apply the paste to the potatoes. Let it marinate for 30 minutes.

Grill the potatoes till they become golden brown. Serve with some chaat masala, green chutney, onion roundels and lemon

4. Sunehri Macchi

Recipe by Swapnadeep Mukherjee, Head Chef, The Metropolitan Hotel & Spa

Ingredients

Sole cubes – 200 gm

Mustard oil – 2 tbsp

Ginger garlic paste – 2 tbsp

Yellow chili powder – 1 tsp

Green chili paste – 1 tbsp

Salt to taste

Cumin powder – ¼ tsp

Gram flour – 2 tbsp

Spinach leaves – 5-6 leaves

Lemon juice – 2 tbsp

Method

Marinate the sole cubes with salt and lemon juice and keep aside.

In a pan heat oil and add gram flour and stir till light golden in colour.

Remove from flame and add ginger garlic paste, green chili paste, yellow chili powder and cumin powder and make a paste.

Marinate the fish cubes in the prepared marinade and leave in refrigerator for 30 minutes.

At medium pre heated coal fired tandoor or pre heated domestic oven put fish skewers and roast evenly.

In the meantime, take oil in a pan and sauté washed spinach leaves and add salt and lemon juice to it.

Once the fish is cooked remove from skewer and toss in the pan containing sauté spinach. Serve hot and garnish as per your choice.

5. Mix Seafood Salad

Recipe by Swapnadeep Mukherjee, Head Chef, The Metropolitan Hotel & Spa

Ingredients

Prawns B grade (peeled) – 500 gm

Sole fish diced – 500 gm

Diced tomato – 150 gm

Sliced onion – 50 gm

Basil leaves – 20 gm

Chopped garlic – 20 gm

Salt/Pepper – to taste

Olive oil – ½ cup

Lemon juice – 10 ml

Water – For boiling the seafood

Saffron – 01 gm

Fresh coriander chopped – 10 gm

Method:

Boil the water in a sauce pan and blanch the seafood for 3 to 5 min and refresh in cold water, drain and keep aside.

Heat saffron strands in olive oil to extract the color and taste of saffron.

In a separate bowl mixed diced tomatoes, onion, basil leaves, salt, pepper, lemon juice, chopped coriander and saffron oil to make the dressing.

Add blanched seafood and toss it gently, make sure fish does not break.

Check seasoning and serve cold with lettuce and lemon wedge

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