Thursday, May 19, 2011

PAT SAG BARA ( JUTE LEAF FRITTER)



Well I am out of blog for quite some time now for reasons beyond my control (after discounting my laziness.) And I am relieved to see that none of you have removed me from the blog followers' list. 
The other day I was exploring a near by Ghetto  market and came across fresh bunch of jute leaves. The immediate recipe in my mind was to make chicken molokhia which I haven't eaten for long.
But I decided to make a typical bong fritter which goes well with rice and dal. (And goes well with Rum too,  of course, God willing and  SOMEONE permitting).  The flavor of Jute leaf is just out of the world. There are numerous variations to this fritter, but I will put here the simplest and my favorite one. 
INGREDIENTS.
Jute leaf whole about 4 cups (loosely filled). (DO NOT CHOP THE LEAVES)
Green chili 4 
1 tsp Kala jeera ( Nigella and NOT Shah Jeera or Caraway seeds)
1 tbsp puppy seeds ( Posto, Khas khas) . (This is optional, if you dont have it, forget it, I mean the puppy seeds and not the fritters).
For the binder
2 tbsp rice powder 
1 tbsp whole wheat  flour
1 tsp suji ( semolina) 
(You may need slightly more binder, while mixing )
You can use a tempura mix instead too.
Salt as required ( Be careful while adding salt, as the volume will shrink substantially during frying ) 
Oil for sallow frying ( Mustard oil or any other oil will do)
NOTE: I have used  weak spice, Nigella, to keep the flavor of jute leaf. Strong spice like fennel and also bit of chopped garlic and onion may be added, but I don't add. I keep it pure vege and Vegan. Also do not use besan, which gives a strong aroma after cooking.
PROCESS
Wash the leaves gently without damaging them and drain thoroughly.
Chop the green chili into tiny pieces.
Dry mix the binders.
In a vessel mix the leaves, binder, green chili, nigella and puppy seeds. Sprinkle salt and mix thoroughly. Take care that the leaves don't get crushed much. Too much damage to the leaves  will make it  slimy.
The photo, immediately after adding the ingredients

The leaves will release water and that will be sufficient to stick the binders to the leaves. The binder should be just visible here and there and sticking to the leaves. Dont be tempted to add more binder. 
The Mix is ready for frying 

The leaves will shrink while  frying, and the binder will make it crunchy. Basically it is not a Pakoda kind of thing, where the batter may be predominant . Here the leaves will be dominating and the binder will be just enough to stick the leaves. ( See my Radish Bara recipe).
In a flat wide frying pan, heat oil , just enough for sallow frying.
Landing the leaves on the oil is bit tricky. Dip your fingers in water, catch hold of 10-12 leaves and bundle them together like a irregular ball. It will look bit clumsy , but dont bother.Then put it on oil and press slightly.. Repeat the process and put  few more Baras per batch.
Cover the pan for 2 minutes. Turn the fritters and press to flatten them as much as possible. Turn the fritters again and may be few times. When the fritters are done, remove them on to kitchen tissues. The leaves and the binder will become crunchy.
Ready for eating 

(NOTE. You can half cook the fritters  and keep it in the fridge for few days and fry later as and when you need.)
Eat it as such or with dal and rice. I eat it with hot rice, sprinkled with ghee, salt and hot green chili chopped into the rice. ( a dash of freshly ground pepper is amazing)
VARIATION . If you don't have jute leaves, try with Julienne of cabbage or radish too.




41 comments:

Kurinji said...

Yummy and innovative recipe....
Kurinjikathambam

sangeeta said...

I have never tried cooking with julte leaves . Although as i told you , the jute flowers and buds used to be a regular thing at home because one of our servants used to bring them . The subzi we all loved made with jute buds.

I think this bara can be made with sweet potato leaves too . I have tried making besan pakoda with them n it was good. Tell me if you want them , i have plenty of sweet potato leaves in my garden right now.

Ushnish Ghosh said...

Dear Sangeeta
I am coming ASAP. I love to give prior notice before coming because I don't like surprise visits and end up with tea and Mary biscuits.
Have a nice day

Priya Suresh said...

Jute leaves fritters looks soo crispy, yumm..

Jaya M said...

Ushnish Da,
I almost came jumping here seeing your pat saag fritters :D..last week My father-in-law came back home with a bunch of these green leaves which I have never seen before honestly.. I helped him in making this saag bhaja..Pat or jute leaves are a Bengal rural favourite and this has slowly vanished from city markets..Hope amra eyi shob ranna bhole jabo na :D..Bhalo thakben ..hugs and smiles

Shanthi Krishnakumar said...

Sounds interesting and looks crispy and crunchy

Sayantani Mahapatra Mudi said...

anekdin bade apnake online dekhe khub bhalo lagche. amaro khub chap jachhe. cheletao khub bhugche, weather change er jono.
Birbhum e sabai nalte shaker jhol khub bhalobase. amar maa o khub banay garom kale kintu ami khete parina. eta tabe darun recipe. maake banie debo. khub tripti kore khabe jani.

Suparna said...

hi Ushnish da,
I havent haeard of these greens, the fritters look tasty, it looks like an authentic bengali preparation...my dear H also hasn't mentioned abt these to me....dont think we can get these in B'lore :(
Would love to visit you for tea time with these yummy fritters and not marie biscuits ;)
See you around!!

Rumana Rawat said...

They looks so crispy.. and very tasty:)

Hamaree Rasoi said...

Kaku, kamon achen? Onek din pore post korlen....Frankly speaking i have never seen these leaves. but they way you have described the recipe procedure is very good. You are right too much of binder here will take away the actual flavour of these pat saag. Looks very crispy and perfect to enjoy with dal, bhaat.

Deepa
Hamaree Rasoi

Nandinis food said...

These fritters look amazing and interesting! They really make and awesome snack...

Unknown said...

wow, I have never heard about these leaves before, the fritters sound awesome. I am a new follower. You got a great blog here :)

Oriyarasoi said...

Welcome back...was really missing your comments on my posts!!!!

Awesome and very authentic recipe...i have never had this jute leaf....will give it a try if i can get my hands on it!!!

Nitha said...

Intresting rcipe.. Never heard or had this bfore..

aipi said...

Hi Ushnish Da ~ How are you ~ It was a real pleasure to see you back in action after quite a while ~ always get to learn something new, have never heard or cooked with jute leaves, now I am curious loved the fritter idea. Do they taste like spinach?
Hope to see more from you soon.
US Masala

Unknown said...

Thanks. Pat sager bara ta khete khub sundar hoi ami kheyechhi.
Apnar blog eo to onek bhalo bhalo ranna achhe.

Preeti Kashyap said...

Wow...this is so new to me. Bookmarked! Welcome back!!!

Prathima Rao said...

Something very new to me & looks tempting!!
Prathima Rao
Prats Corner

Revathy said...

Hey Ushnin,

Thanks for your lovely comments on the new recipe I added. Yes there is a Bong touch to the Aloo Parwal I cooked. Love Bong food!!! & Love my Bong friends!!! :)
I will post recipes on more Podis which I am sure you would enjoy.
Keep posting!

Rgds,
Rev
relishdelish.blogspot.com

Suman Singh said...

Hi Ushnin da, Hope you doing good..glad to see your post after long time..I've never heard of this greens before, looks and sounds delicious in fritters form...thanks for sharing the recipe..enjoy ur weekend! take care!

Sutapa said...

Hi Ushnish da,
Welcome back , we all missed you a lot!
It's great to see that we both posted a delicious Bong fritters in our blog that prove that Bengali though living faraway are always connected specially through food!
I would definitely try your version which seems very delicious and crispy!

Amrita said...

Good to see that you are blogging once again :) I have never cooked or had any dish made with jute leaves. India has such a diversity in cuisines which I am discovering through blogs now. What we get in the restraunts etc is just the "tip of the iceberg" so to speak. Thanks for making me acquainted with this snack .

Simplyfood said...

Great to see an update here.I will try this this baby spinach as can't get jute leaves.

Simplyfood said...

You should send this post to flavours of Bengal .more details at simply.food:)

Prathima Shivraj said...

looks delicious & inviting.

Thanq for visiting my blog & following me.

U r doing a great work, your's every blog is amazing, following you.

Unknown said...

Hello Da, Good to hear you after a long time, hope you are doing well. guess everyone needs a break, never i have tried jute leaf nor bog recipes must give it a try sometime as soon i get some greens!

Sayantani Mahapatra Mudi said...

ei weekend e sosurbari giechilam. aj sakale haat e gie anek sobzi kinlam...r ak anti pat shaak o enechilam apnar ei recipe try korbo bole. sange sasurimaa o esechen. ratre korechilam bora ar akdom super duper hit. sabbari khub pachondo. ak bati pata rekhechi maa tuesday te ele banie debo bole. Thank you bolbo na tabe sotti recipe ta darun. ami patshaak khaina tabe dal bhat die eta khete khub bhalo laglo.
jhol er recipe khub taratari die debo apnake.

Jayanthy Kumaran said...

this looks incredible..nice presentation ..:)
Tasty Appetite
Event: Letz Relishh Ice Creams

Dolly Sharma said...

Good to see ur back Ushnishda..Fritters look awesome and I would like a cup of garam garam Chai along with these crispy jute fritters. I haven't tried them b4 and I would'nt even know where to get these jute leaves in the first place.

Sharmistha Guha said...

Amar Ma kore....i've never tried!

Arti said...

Hello Ushishda,

Sorry am late here... but its so good to have you back in action that too with a yummy veg recipe. I have never heard of the jute leaves but it looks so tempting, crispy and delicious! Would love to try them out with radish instead and have them as you have mentioned with dal, bhat, et al but sans green chili!

Thanks for all your comments and constant inspirations in my Garhwal posts. I really look forward to hearing from you. I have learnt so many new stories never heard before from you...
Sorry for being a bit toooooo slow in posting also :P But I will try to do it fast :D Thanks a lot once again :)

Mugdha said...

Hi Ushnishji ~ Hope u r doing gr8...It was a real pleasure to see you back in action after quite a while...always get to learn new things from ur blog, have never heard or cooked with jute leaves, but loved the fritter idea.Hope to see more from you...:)

Madhu said...

I love greens and this looks awesome! How have you been?

Unknown said...

Hi Ushnishda, How r u doing?? I am fine even I was away from active blogging for last one month and sorry I missed out many of your recipes too. Trying to get hold of everything very soon. this jute leaves recipe is very new to me and sounds great..Btw I am so glad that you liked the jackfruit jam recipe, do try it if you get hold of Jackfruit, it is amazingly good..

Deepthi KR said...

hi ushnishda,
u hav got very lovely blog.......
plz stop by space when u find time...
DeepthiDigvijay
Good Food Recipes
Coffe With Me Deepthi

Vardhini said...

Jute leaves is something I have never heard have. Glad to learn new things.

Lovely blog and following u.

Do visit me when u get a chance.

Vardhini
VardhinisKitchen

Shilpi Bose said...

My mum keeps talking about paat shaak but I have never tasted it. Surprisingly many Bengalis here in Mumbai insist that paat shaak is available in Bombay, my mum does not argue with them, what is available is a look alike and not the real thing for as my mum points jute is not grown here which reminds me of my geography lessons a subject I intensely disliked.I am sure the bora is yummy. We once planted a pumpkin plant in our balcony and later helped ourselves to some delicious kumbro shaak and kumbro phooler bora. A blessing though kumbro phool and shaak are available here.

Unknown said...

this is some interesting recipe..am sure they are very tasty..am not sure about jute leaves..but will try with cabbage as you have suggested..

Purabi Naha said...

Wow, it has been ages since I had paat saak bora. Glad to meet another Bengali on blogosphere! Do visit my curry blog.

Anonymous said...

Hello Ushnishda :)
First time at your space. Beautiful pictures yo have got and I love these fritters :) I have to try this out :)

Sourav M said...

thanks for the recipe. enjoying it in Milwaukee, US with compliments from Phillipines who export it and the Vietnamese store that carries it ! what an Asian combo.......