A Lost Bengali Mock Meat Recipe, involving a dal stuffing within chhana/curd cheese (or chhena)/paneer and cooked in a spice-based gravy
Prep Time1 hourhr30 minutesmins
Cook Time1 hourhr
Total Time2 hourshrs30 minutesmins
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: bengali, Indian
Keyword: chhena recipe, Indian mock meat recipe
Servings: 4people
Author: Samrat Roy Chowdhuri
Cost: ₹150
Equipment
Preparation Bowls
Mixer Grinder
Knife
Wok or any cooking vessel to fry and cook the curry
Spatula
Serving Plates
Ingredients
For the Chhena Balls
500gmchhana/chhenaor paneer
2pcgreen chilly
1/2tbspghee
For the Dal Stuffing
125gmchana dalor 1 cup chana dal
1pcgreen chilly
2tbspghee
1tspnigella seeds or kalonji or kalo jeera (in Bengali)
1tspasafoetida or hing
1/2tspginger, finely chopped or paste
1/2tspsugar
salt as per taste
For Frying the Balls
Mustard oilor any other frying oil you are comfortable with
For the Curry
2tbspghee
1/2tbspcumin seed
1tsphing
1tbspfinely chopped ginger, or paste
1/2tbspturmeric powder
1tbspcumin powder
1/2tbspcoriander powder
2pcfinely chopped green chilly
2pctomato
2cupwater
1tbspsugar
salt as per taste
Instructions
Preparing the Dal Stuffing (25 minutes)
Take split bengal pea gram or chana dal. Wash it properly and soak it for at least 3-4 hours
In a mixer grinder, transfer the dal and make it into a fine paste
Heat a wok and add ghee to it
Add nigella seeds (kalonji/kalo jeera)
Once the seeds starts sizzling, add in the hing, finely chopped ginger and green chillies
Stir for a few seconds and add the dal
On a medium flame, continuously stir and cook the dal till the raw flavor disappears and the color changes. This can take anywhere between 15-20 minutes
Put off the flame, transfer to a bowl and allow to cool
While this cools, move to the next step
Kneading the Chhena/Chhana and Preparing the Chhena/Chhana Devil Balls (1 hour)
Knead the paneer/chhena/chhana for 10-15 minutes to ensure a smooth consistency
Add the other ingredients mentioned under "For the Chhena Balls" like green chilly and ghee
Knead for another couple of minutes
Take a spoonful of this mix, and make it into a disc shape. Take some of the dal stuffing and put it into the disc-shaped chhena/chhana mix. Use your fingers to cover the dal with the chhana mix. Use your palms to form a round shaped ball. Keep aside
Follow the above steps for the remaining chhena/chhana mix and dal stuffing
Once you have all the chhana devil balls ready, proceed to the next step
Frying the Chhana Devil Balls (30 minutes)
In a wok, heat enough oil to deep fry the balls
Ensure that the heat/flame is set to medium
Fry all the balls in batches
Preparing the Chhanar Devil Curry (30 minutes)
In a wok, heat ghee
Add the cumin seeds and once it splutters, add the hing and ginger
Cook till the raw smell of the ginger goes away. Add turmeric powder, cumin and coriander powder
Stir and cook till oil separates
Add the finely chopped green chillies, finely chopped tomatoes and cook till oil separates
Add water and once it comes to a boil, add the salt and sugar
Check seasonings and adjust if necessary
Add the chhena/chhana balls and allow to simmer for a 5-6 minutes
Put off the flame. Allow to rest for another 5 minutes
Serve hot
Notes
You can consider paneer instead of chhana/chhena. For best results, consider home-made chhana/chhena/curd cheese
Mash/knead the chhana/chhena/curd cheese properly till the grainy appearance goes away. It takes anywhere between 10-20 minutes
Traditionally, split bengal gram dal is used. However, you can try with any other dal that gives a fine texture after grinding
While making the balls, ensure that there are no cracks on the surface. The cracks can lead to the ball splitting into two while frying
While this is a no-onion, no-garlic dish, you may use both for added flavors
While preparing the gravy, remember that the balls will soak up a lot of gravy