Feats of festival: Savoury and sweet Eid recipes

Eid is the perfect occasion to celebrate with family and friends. And Bengali Eid is not complete without a stunning feast. This Eid, The Business Standard has brought to you these three mouthwatering food recipes from chefs Rashedul Hasan and Nabila Rahman.

Rashedul Hasan 

Rashedul Hasan was the first Bangladeshi-Australian who competed in MasterChef Australia, television's biggest cooking competition. Hasan lives in Australia with his family and working on opening up his own restaurant soon.

Nabila Rahman

Nabila Rahman is a food and product photographer. She has been working in this field since 2020. Nabila works at Adency LTD, a digital marketing agency as a Creative Art Director and Food and Product Photographer. 

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Shahi Morog Polau 

Serves 6 people

Shahi Morog Polao is the ultimate Bangladeshi chicken and rice dish. I feel there is definitely something Shahi about it. That aromatic rice, succulent chicken and luscious creamy texture make it incredibly appealing.

I have lots of memories of this dish growing up. This is especially my favourite dish for Milad Mehfils. The fragrance is everything when it comes to this dish.

Cooking Shahi Morog Polau requires care and patience. It has characteristics of Chicken Biryani and yet is quite different.

Ingredients 

Step 1: Shahi Morog Polau Masala

1.5 tbsp Green Cardamom 

1 inch Cassia bark or Cinnamon Stick

1.5 tbsp Shahi Jira 

1 tsp Mace

1 tsp White Pepper 

3/4 tsp Nutmeg (grated) 

Step 2: Biye Barir Roast

2 Chicken (1.5 - 2 kg) 8 roast pieces 

1/2 cup Bereshta Oil

1/2 cup Ghee

2 tsp Salt (to taste)

2 tsp Sugar 

1/8 tsp Saffron colour (optional)

3 tbsp Ginger paste 

2 tbsp Garlic paste 

1 tbsp White Poppy Seed paste

1 tbsp Cashew paste

1/2 cup Bereshta 

1 tbsp Morog Polau masala 

6/7 Alu Bokhara / Prune 

5/6 Green Chilli

1/2 cup Mawa 

1/2 cup Crème fraîche / Malai

1 tsp Rose Water

1 drop of Kewra (optional)

Step 3: Aromatic Polao

1/2 cup oil from the roast (strained)

5 Green Cardamoms 

2 Bay leaves

1 inch Cassia bark or Cinnamon stick

5 Green Chillies 

1/4 tsp Mace power 

1/4 tsp Nutmeg powder

3 tsp Salt

1 tsp Sugar

1 tbsp Ginger water

1 tbsp Garlic water

1/2 cup Powder milk

3 cups of Kalajira / Chinigura rice

6 cups of Water

1 tsp Rose water

1 tbsp Lemon juice

Garnish 

1/4 cup Bereshta 

12 sliced Pistachios

6 boiled Eggs

Method:

Step 1 (Spice blend)

Toast all the spices and grind them into powder using a spice grinder or mortar and pestle.

Step 2 (Chicken Roast)

Cut a slit at the joint of the leg, which will hold shape and prevent stiffening. Heat oil and ghee in high heat. Add chicken, salt and sugar and fry for five minutes. 

Optional: Add Jafran colour and stir. 

When the outside of the chicken turns slightly brown, bring the heat down to simmer for 5 minutes and cover.

Add garlic and ginger paste, stir chicken and fry. When the rawness of the paste goes away, add fried Bereshta and shahi roast spice blend, this will release an amazing aroma.

If needed, add ½ cup water. Then add prune / aloo bukhara and green chilies. When chicken is fully cooked (10 minutes after prune is added) add Crème fraîche, mawa and rose water (optional Kewra).

Cook for another 2/3 minutes so that everything comes together. Set aside till required.

Pro Tip: Use oil/ghee from the roast (strained from the top); this creates delicious chicken+spice flavours.

Step 3 (Aromatic Polao)

For the Polao, heat oil from the roast in a large pot on high heat. Add cardamom, cinnamon and bay leaves. Tear off heads of green chillies and fry. Add ginger and garlic juice and fry for another minute.

Add rice, mace, nutmeg, salt and sugar and fry for 2 more minutes. Then add milk and water – stir and bring it to boil. Stir until the rice is half cooked. Cook in simmering heat for 10 minutes (time depends on rice quality). Once cooked, use a fork so the rice grains don't clump together.

Step 4 (Layering)

Now remove 2/3 of the rice. Arrange half of the chicken roast pieces with some of its gravy on top of the remaining 1/3 of the rice. Cover with another 1/3 rice. Garnish with 1/3 of chopped pistachios, rose water and lemon juice. Repeat another layer with the rest of the chicken, some gravy and the rest 1/3 of the rice. 

Cover and cook in simmering heat over Tawa for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and serve with garnishes - remaining pistachio, lime juice, boiled eggs and Bereshta.

Pro Tip: Make your own Bereshta and use the frying oil for cooking. This will give so much flavour.

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Smokey Shahi Goat / Khasir Rezala

Serves 4 - 6 people

Who doesn't love a Mutton/Goat Rezala? This is a popular Bengali dish usually made for special occasions like a Wedding, Eid, family celebrations or festivals. But when we make it at home it lacks that awesome smokey flavour that we get in a wedding Rezala because they cook in large pots over a coal /wood fire. This recipe brings some of that smokey flavour to your table.

This aromatic, rich and flavoured curry reminds me of the winter wedding season in Dhaka. When it hits the table everyone is trying to find the best piece of meat before others get it. 

Ingredients 

1 kg Mutton/Goat (cut in medium pcs with bone)

 2 tbsp Yoghurt

1 cup Bereshta (Fried onion) 

1/2 tsp Nutmeg Powder 

1/2 tsp Mace Powder

12 pcs Cashew-nut (soaked in water)

1 tbsp Sugar 

1/2 cup Bereshta Oil 

2 tbsp Ghee 

5 pcs Green Cardamom 

3 pcs Cinnamon Stick 

2 pcs Bay leaf 

1/2 Cup Sliced Onion 

2 tbsp Ginger Paste 

1 tbsp Garlic Paste 

1 tbsp Cumin Powder/Paste 

1/2 tsp Coriander Powder 

1/2 tsp Turmeric powder 

 1/2 tsp Kashmiri Chilli powder 

Salt - to taste

5 pcs Black paper 

4/5 pcs Cloves 

6 pcs Prune/Aloo Bukhara 

1/2 Cup Warm liquid milk 

6 pcs Green Chilli 

1 drop Kewra 

1/2 tsp Rose Water 

Pro Tip: Make your own Bereshta and use the frying oil for cooking. This will add flavour to the curry.

Method 

1. First blend the yoghurt, bereshta, nutmeg powder, mace powder, soaked cashew nuts and sugar to a fine paste, with no lumps. Keep aside for later.
2. Heat bereshta oil and ghee in a cooking pot on medium-high heat. Add cinnamon, cardamom and bay leaves and fry for a minute.
3. Add sliced onions and fry till they turn brownish but not as brown as bereshta. Add a splash of water to stop browning. Add garlic and ginger paste and 2 tsp salt. If you are using cumin paste, add it with ginger/garlic paste. If powder, then add later with other dry spices. Keep frying for 5 minutes so that all the rawness goes away.
4. Then add all dry spices – cumin powder, coriander powder, turmeric powder and Kashmiri red chilli powder. Fry for 1 minute, add a splash of water and continue to cook for another 3 minutes. Add black pepper and cloves.
5. Increase the heat after adding meat. Stir the meat well and mix thoroughly. Let the 'Koshano' process continue for 15 more minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. Meat should start to release enough water. Keep an eye, if it doesn't, you might have to add 1 cup of hot water.
6. Put on the lid, reduce heat and keep stirring every 5 to 7 minutes intervals so that it doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot. Cook for about 1 hour. Meat should be 80% cooked, still having some toughness. Add Prune / Aloo Bukhara and whole green chillies and cook for another 20 minutes.
7. When the meat softens (cooking time depends upon the quality of the meat, use your intuition) after releasing all its juices, add the yoghurt nut mix and stir well. Add 1/2 cup warm liquid milk and cook on low heat for 30 more minutes. Meat should be soft but still sticking to the bone and holding shape.
8. Now turn off the heat and take off some oil (about 1 tbsp) from the top of the gravy. Take really hot charcoal, put it inside the pot over a small metal bowl and drop 1 tbsp oil from the top over the hot charcoal, which will create instant smoke. Close the lid of the pot tightly so the smoke is trapped inside for about 10 minutes.
9. Open the lid, remove the charcoal and strain the oil from the metal bowl. Add the strained smokey oil, kewra and rose water to the pot, stir carefully and cook for 5 to 10 minutes.
10. Serve your Smokey Shahi Goat Rezala in a bowl and garnish with some Bereshta. It goes really well with Matar Polao or Paratha.

Pro Tip: "Koshano" is the most important part of bringing out flavours, so it's important to push it far enough without burning the masala.

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Shahi Jorda

Ingredients:

500 grams Basmati rice

6-7 pcs Cardamom 

4-5 pcs Cinnamon 

2-4 pcs Cloves 

250 grams Sugar (or to taste)

0.5 cup Orange juice  

2-3 tsp Ghee

less than half a cup oil 

One handful of Raisins 

1-2 tsp Zarda Yellow food colour 

Crushed almonds – to taste

12-15 pcs Baby Sweets

4 cups of water 

Method

1. First, wash the rice well and drain the water. 
2. In a pan, add bay leaf, a little salt, 1 tsp of oil and zarda colour with water (4 cups) and boil the rice. When the rice is cooked, drain the water.
3. Now heat the ghee in a pan. On medium heat fry all the spices a little, and keep stirring them together with sugar, orange juice and one and a half cup of water. 
4. Once the water starts boiling, add the rice and mix all of it well. 
5. Now cover it and reduce the heat on the stove and cook for 20 minutes. 
6. Then add 1 tsp of ghee and stir lightly. Cover and keep it for 20 minutes. Make sure the rice does not boil too much. 
7. Mix raisins and garnish with chopped almonds and baby sweets and serve.