Here, Multimedia Editor Jaheim Karim shares one of his favourite Bengali recipes: a steaming bowl of his Mum’s shada patla kisuri.
Mum’s Bengali Shada Patla Kisuri
A rice porridge with onions and bay leaves
Ingredients
- 11/4 cup Basmati rice
- 2 bay leaves
- 2 tsp ghee or butter
- 11/2 tsp salt or measure to taste
- 1 onion sliced
- 10 cups water
Instructions
- Measure ⅔ cup of rice (I prefer basmati as this has a much nicer aroma)
- Wash the rice till the water runs clear and soak for 10 – 15 minutes with hot water; this will break down the rice quickly and enable your Kisuri to cook much faster.
- Take a pan, place rice in it and wash the rice well till water runs clear. While washing use your hands to 'grind' and break down the rice by rubbing in your palm. Once washed, bring to boil with 2 cups of water and bay leaves.
- Once it's boiling, turn down the heat and leave to simmer over a low – medium flame, you want the rice to cook through and thicken. You may find that the liquid evaporates, keep adding water if this happens, this recipe uses a lot of water before the cooked rice becomes the right consistency.
- Allow to cook until the rice is soft and mushy and of a loose porridge consistency.
- The Kisuri is ready when the rice is soft and mushy and is of a loose porridge consistency (top right photo). Taste for salt, add more if necessary. Take a small pan and add 2 tbsp of ghee (more if you like), fry your sliced onion in the ghee till golden brown.