Some time back I mentioned that I was officially out of ideas for everyday cooking. That's when I decided that I would do the round of each of the states of the country and try and cook up some meals from each cuisine. Something new for me to learn and something interesting on the table as well. By no means is this list of recipes exhaustive and a complete representation of the state. I worked through Andhra Pradesh and then tried my hand at Bihar. I know I didn't try Litti Chokha and possibly several other dishes, but I will at some point and hope to update this post. Till then, here is what I tried and my comments on it. For these recipes I depended on various blogs I came across. You can click on each name and it will lead you to the original recipe. I have of course tweaked them a bit here and there and so you may want to as well.
Bihari Chicken Korma - This dish has a large number of ingredients but it comes together really well once you have everything in place
Bihari Beans Masala - I never thought coconut would be a part of Bihari cuisine, but it is, in this recipe and it tasted good enough for my fussy daughter to eat a katori-full!
Bihari Chicken Korma - This dish has a large number of ingredients but it comes together really well once you have everything in place
Bihari Kebabs - The recipe calls for it to be in the over for approximately 25 minutes. For me it took 45 mins to get them nice and succulent, probably because I did not use papaya as a tenderizer, which is common in that part of the country I believe.
Fish curry - Its amazing how a set of very simple ingredients can turn out something so delicious
Mithila Style Fish Curry - This should have turned out a little more thicker than you see here. Its quite tangy and very different from how we do our fish down south.
Aloo Baingan Bihari Style - This turned out to be nice and crispy and was demolished pretty soon as it came to the table that day.
Chicken Biryani Bihari Style - If you consider this a pulao it will go down better. If you are used to the heavy duty biryanis, then this may not serve the purpose. If kids are around, tone down the chillis a bit.
Sarson wala bhindi - This came out really well and tasted great. I allowed it to cook for a slightly longer time and made it a semi gravy that we could have with chapathis.
Mutton curry - I have to admit I was totally skeptical about this one - a meat dish that did not use ginger-garlic was unthinkable for me but it came out great and I did not add any potatoes to it.
Pua Singhal (Scroll down the link for the recipe) - It did not turn out jalebi like as the recipe mentioned. Keeping the batter aside for an hour brought it to a consistency that allowed me to fry without it disintegrating. Its an interesting mix of sooji and curd and may taste a little off, but its something that will grow on you.
