These Gur diya narikolor laru (coconut balls with jaggery) were made to celebrate Rongali Bihu, the Assamese festival that is celebrated to usher in the Assamese New Year. Fresh grated coconut is mixed with a jaggery syrup. The mixture is then cooked and rolled into balls. Bihu? Assam, […]

Khar is an alkaline based delicacy from Assamese cuisine, generally had at the start of a typical Assamese meal, especially lunch. It is had with some rice. Apparently, khar is said to have cleansing properties. It is said to help in preparing the digestive system to welcome the […]

This kala chana – alu chaat l black chickpeas and potato chaat is an explosion of flavours. It is loaded with kala chana ( black chickpeas), potatoes and an assortment of other vegetables, fruits and nuts. A couple of fresh and dry ground spices are also added. All […]

Mint – coriander chutney / Indian style green chutney is a a very common chutney, not only in most Indian households, but also on the food carts of roadside vendors and restaurants in India. Growing up, how many times have we pleaded with the roadside chaatwalla ( chaat […]

This date – tamarind chutney / Indian style date and tamarind chutney is the perfect blend of sweet and tangy with a slight heat running through it. In the local Indian dialect, it is known as khajur – imli chutney ( khajur-dates, imli- tamarind). It is the perfect […]

There are some combinations of food that brings back memories. Celebrating one such combination of luci and bootor dali. Thick and lightly spiced bootor dali ( chana dal / split chickpea dal) scooped up with flaky, puffed up luci / poori is surely a comforting delight. If you […]

Sharing this luci /poori recipe; I had made these recently to accompany some bootor dali (Assamese style split chickpeas curry). Flaky, puffed up luci / poori are a delight, so here’s a recipe for you to try. Luci? Poori? Luci (pronounced loo-sie) / poori is a deep fried […]

We, like so many others, are great fans of Italian food, especially pasta. This, of course, does not mean that we gorge on it every other day. No, we have it, maybe, once a week, sometimes even after longer periods; but , when we do have it, we […]

Hope you have had a good weekend. As the country takes the first baby steps out of lockdown today, with millions of children back at school, I hope it is the start of positive times ahead. On the cooking front, sharing with you a light yet flavoursome and […]

Mention bogorir jola mitha asar / Assamese style hot and sweet jujube pickle and almost every Assamese will start drooling. Me included! This explosion of heat and sweetness laced with the thick and sticky jaggery syrup with the slight sourness coming from the jujube is more than enough […]