Recipe: Give your taste buds a treat this Durga Pujo with Mangshor Jhuri Bhaja

The highlight of every Durga Pujo celebration is the flavourful feast of traditional Bengali delicacies. This year, treat your taste buds with a bowlful of Mangshor Jhuri Bhaja.

Mangshor Jhuri Bhaja
Ingredients
Mutton, from the shoulder or leg, kept in one piece: 500 gms

Garlic paste: 1 tsp
Ginger paste: 1 tbsp
Ground black pepper: 1/2 teaspoon
Lime juice: 2 tbsp
Oil: -1 tbsp
Salt to taste
Sliced onions: 2 medium-sized
Sliced garlic cloves: 4
Ginger paste: 1 tbsp
Red chilli powder (optional): 1/4 tsp
Green chillies: -4, slit in half
Garam masala powder: 1/4 tsp
Water: 1/2 cup
Oil

Method
- Wash and dry the piece of mutton and make deep scores on the flesh with a sharp knife.
- Make a marinade by blending all the ingredients together.
- Rub well on both sides of the meat and into the cuts.
- Wrap in a piece of foil and marinate for 2-3 hours in a refrigerator, making sure that the meat is well sealed.
- Roast the meat for about 45 minutes.
- Leave aside for an hour to rest, without opening the foil packing.
- Remove the meat from the foil packet and shred finely with a fork or fingers.
- The meat should come off the bone in loose strands.
- Break up any large pieces.
- Do not discard any of the juices in the foil packet, but pour it onto the meat as it adds to the taste.
- In a wok or deep skillet, heat sufficient oil to fry the sliced onions, making sure that they are well browned and caramelized.
- Strain from the oil and spread on kitchen paper to become crisp.
- Drain off most of the oil keeping only 2 tablespoons in the pan/wok.
- Add the slit green chillies and sliced garlic and fry till the garlic is slightly golden.
- Add the ginger paste and fry for another 30 seconds.
- Add the fried onions to the pan, saving a handful for the garnish.
- Add the garam masala and chilli powder, if using, and all the shredded meat, including the juices.
- Sprinkle half a cup of water to bring all the ingredients together and stir fry for a couple of minutes till the mixture is dry with just the spices clinging to it.
- Check the seasoning, adding a little salt, if needed.
- Garnish with the remaining browned onions.
- Serve with flaky parathas or luchis.

(Courtesy: Monkey Bar)

'Kahaani', 'Parineeta', & Other Bollywood Movies That Brought Out The Essence Of Durga Puja

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The nine-days of Navratri (in parts of North India) and Durga Puja (in East India) are celebrated with much fervour. The festivities are marked by delicious food, the fragrance of shiuli flowers, and pandal-hopping.

It is thus inevitable that the festival has made its way to the silver screen over the years. Here's a look at some movies that showcase the grandeur of Durga Puja.

The nine-days of Navratri (in parts of North India) and Durga Puja (in East India) are celebrated with much fervour. The festivities are marked by delicious food, the fragrance of shiuli flowers, a..

Read More

Pradeep Sarkar’s ‘Parineeta’ was an adaptation of Bengali novella by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay. Starring Vidya Balan (Lolita), Saif Ali Khan (Shekhar) and Sanjay Dutt (Girish) in lead roles, the movie follows the lives of the three characters in 60s Calcutta. The film's Durga Puja scene shows Khan and Dutt perform the traditional dhunuchi dance. A pivotal scene, it marks the beginning of a friendship between Lolita and Shekhar.


(Image: imdb)

Pradeep Sarkar’s ‘Parineeta’ was an adaptation of Bengali novella by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay. Starring Vidya Balan (Lolita), Saif Ali Khan (Shekhar) and Sanjay Dutt (Girish) in lead roles, the ..

Read More

One of the most rousing depictions of the festival in Bollywood, Sujoy Ghosh’s ‘Kahaani' is set in Kolkata during Durga Puja. The film tells the story of Vidya Bagchi (Vidya Balan) searching for her missing husband as the city of joy gets ready to celebrate.

The climax of the film, on Vijaya Dashami, draws parallels to the festival's message of victory of good over evil, as Balan defeats her husband's killer.

(Image: imdb)

One of the most rousing depictions of the festival in Bollywood, Sujoy Ghosh’s ‘Kahaani' is set in Kolkata during Durga Puja. The film tells the story of Vidya Bagchi (Vidya Balan) searching for he..

Read More

Directed by Shoojit Sircar, 'Vicky Donor' shows a Delhi-Punjabi boy Ayushmann Khurana (Vicky) fall in love with a Bengali girl Yami Gautam (Ashima). The two varying cultures are depicted not just in the way their families are, but Sircar also shows the celebration of Pujo by Delhi's Bengali community, as the couple go Pandal-hopping in CR Park.

Directed by Shoojit Sircar, 'Vicky Donor' shows a Delhi-Punjabi boy Ayushmann Khurana (Vicky) fall in love with a Bengali girl Yami Gautam (Ashima). The two varying cultures are depicted not just i..

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An adaptation of Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's novel, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s ‘Devdas’ follows the lives of Shah Rukh Khan (Devdas), Aishwarya Rai (Paro) and Madhuri Dixit (Chandramukhi) in the Calcutta of landlords and courtesans.

While in the book, Paro and Chandramukhi don't come face-to-face, the movie showcased a bond between the two characters that begins when they meet around Durga Puja. This period marks an important turn of events in the movie, as it is during this time that Paro brings Chandramukhi, a courtesan, to her husband's home and is in turn forbidden from stepping out of the house.

The film's 'Dola re dola’ song, shot with the background of the puja celebrations, that features Rai and Dixit perform went on to become a craze.

(Image: imdb)

An adaptation of Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's novel, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s ‘Devdas’ follows the lives of Shah Rukh Khan (Devdas), Aishwarya Rai (Paro) and Madhuri Dixit (Chandramukhi) in the Cal..

Read More

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