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Leaf wrapping is a very popular and ancient method of cooking food in India. In fact, the cooking technique not only produces delicious results but also extremely healthy ones. After all, the dish is cooked in its own juices in a sealed, completely natural packet. The steamed dishes prepared this way are both healthy and lip-smackingly good, though sometimes very subtle in their flavour. One of the most popular leaf-wrapped dishes in Indian cuisine comes from the region of Bengal and is known as Paturi.
Traditionally, Paturi is a dish where banana leaves are used to cook delicate fish and seafood in a blend of select spices. The most popular version is invariably the Ilish Paturi, made with Hilsa, but fish like Bhetki and seafood like prawns are also used to make this very famous dish. What’s more, many people also replace the banana leaves with other easily available leaves like bottle gourd leaves. The spices used are usually mustard seeds—both yellow and black—poppy seeds, green chillies and coconut.
Video courtesy: YouTube/Bong Eats
The paste made of these select spices usually includes mustard oil, and often, people also add curd to the marinate to make it less pungent. Bengalis from West Bengal, also known as Ghotis, also use a dash of sugar in the marinate—as they do with most of their food, in fact. One amazing and easy variation of this Paturi is known as Chingri Paturi. As mentioned before, this Paturi is made with prawns, usually jumbo prawns or tiger prawns—but the spice blend and the use of leaf wrapping remains a constant.
There is a reason why Paturi, whether made with Ilish or with Chingri, is considered one of the most festive dishes in Bengal. The dish makes for a beautifully crafted, seafood surprise, and anybody eating it feels elated when the leaf wrapping is unwrapped and the cooked dish within revealed. This is the reason why the dish is served on wedding feasts as well as on special occasions like Poila Boishakh or Bengali new year. In fact, cooked on any weekend, this Chingri Paturi can easily transform the simplest rice plates into a veritable feast.
Want to give the recipe a try over the weekend? Here’s the recipe.
Image used for representative purpose only. Image courtesy: elephantsandthecoconuttrees.com
Ingredients:
200 g jumbo prawns
1 cup coconut, chopped
1 tbsp plain curd
1 tbsp yellow mustard seeds
1 tbsp black mustard seeds
1 tbsp poppy seeds
5-6 green chillies
½ tsp turmeric powder
Salt, to taste
3 tbsp mustard oil
1 tsp lemon juice
2 banana leaves or 4 bottle gourd leaves
Method:
1. Soak the poppy seeds and mustard seeds in water for half an hour.
2. Wash, clean and pat dry the prawns.
3. Add turmeric powder, salt and lemon juice, mix well and set aside.
4. Place the soaked poppy seeds, mustard seeds, green chillies, chopped coconut, salt and a tablespoon of curd in a grinder jar.
5. Make a smooth paste and transfer it into the bowl of marinated prawns.
6. Add a tablespoon of mustard oil, mix well and set aside.
7. Cut the banana leaves into large square strips.
8. Heat a tawa and lightly roast the banana leaves. This helps soften the banana leaves.
9. Smear some mustard oil on the banana leaves, then place a portion of the marinated prawns at the centre.
10. Add a splash more of mustard oil, then fold the banana leaves and seal with a toothpick.
11. Make similar prawn packets with the remaining banana leaves.
12. Now, heat the remaining mustard oil in a pan.
13. Place the banana leaf-prawn packets in the pan, cover the pan and cook for five minutes on a medium flame.
14. Uncover the lid, flip the packets and cover to cook for another five minutes.
15. To serve the Chingri Paturi, place the pocket on a plate with rice.
16. Remove the toothpick and transfer the contents over the rice.
