Bengali dish Kamala Kopi - Orange Cauliflower curry
Winter means to us 'the Kolkatians' of "The City of Joy" as the season of gali cricket matches, badminton and volleyball till late night, picnics in the suburbs, film festivals at Nandan and Gorky Sadan, Dover Lane Music Conference, Russian Ballet “Swan Lake”, Gemini Circus at Park Circus, P C Sorcar magic shows, Yova Utsav at Netaji Indoor, theater at Academy of Fine Arts, and the famous Book Fair at the Maidan. Thoughts of Flury's cakes on Christmas, hot patties from Great Eastern, red meats on alternate days and nolen gur also come to mind.
Today we have many options to enjoy food throughout the year, even off-season vegetables at modern food marts. Yet we miss those earlier days — the flavor in food, the warmth of togetherness and the cultural atmosphere that once surrounded Kolkata winters.
This recipe I once thought was only a specialty in our family kitchen, prepared by my mother. Later I discovered a very similar Bengali niramish recipe called Kamala Kalia in an old cookbook written by Bipradash Mukhopadhyay titled Pak-Pranali, which many Bengalis still consult for traditional cooking.
Kamala Kopi - Orange Cauliflower
By Barnali Dutta — Published November 26, 2014
Prep time: 00:10 | Cook time: 00:10 | Total time: 00:20 | Servings: 3
Ingredients
- Fresh cauliflower 500 g
- Orange pulp 1/2 cup
- Boiled potatoes, 2
- Oil 1 tbsp
- Whole spices: cardamom 2, cinnamon 1 inch, cloves 3, black pepper 4–5, bay leaf 1
- Spice paste: red chili, turmeric, ginger 1 tsp each
- Roasted nutmeg powder 1/2 tsp
- Salt to taste
- 1 tsp sugar to balance the taste
Instructions
- Prepare the orange first. Separate the segments, remove the seeds and collect the juicy pulp.
- Cut cauliflower into large florets. Check for worms, blanch briefly in boiling water and then transfer immediately into iced cold water. Season with turmeric and keep aside.
- In many Bengali kitchens this blanching step is believed to help prevent bloating from cauliflower.
- Cut boiled potatoes into medium pieces, season with turmeric and fry until golden. Keep aside.
- Fry the seasoned cauliflower florets until lightly golden and keep aside.
- Heat oil in a pan. Add the whole spices for tempering. Add the spice paste and fry briefly. Add cauliflower and potatoes, mix well and fry gently. Add about 1 cup hot water and allow it to boil for two minutes.
- Add salt and sugar. When vegetables are cooked and the gravy thickens, add the orange pulp and cook for another one or two minutes. Turn off the heat and garnish with orange segments and whole green chilies.
- Serve hot with steamed rice or bread.
