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Bhorta (mashed) food items are an integral part of Bengali cuisine. Especially, during the scorching heat of summer days, bhorta made with vegetables, greens, or peels can keep the body cool and the mind at peace. Besides, bhorta items can be made with fish that are either boiled, steamed, baked, charred, or lightly fried. During Pahela Baishakh, or Bengali New Year, Bangladeshis love to eat different bhorta items along with panta rice and fried hilsa fish. Let’s take a look at 10 mouth-watering bhorta recipes to celebrate this Pahela Baishakh.
10 Tasty Bhorta Recipes for Pahela Baishakh
1. Egg-Potato Mashed Recipe (Dim-Aloo Bhorta)
Ingredients
Potatoes - 3-4, egg - 1 (boiled), onion - 1/8 cup (chopped), dry red chilies - 4 (as you like), salt - ½ teaspoon, and mustard oil - 2 tbsp.
Preparations
First, wash potatoes and eggs properly. Now boil potatoes in 4 cups of water for 20 minutes in a deep pan. Then add the egg and cook for another 12 minutes. When the potatoes become tender and the egg boils well, take them out of the hot water. Don’t put potatoes in the hot water for a long time as they will be too soft and moist by absorbing water. Then peel the potatoes and egg after they cool down.
Now, take a bowl and mash the potatoes and egg. Meanwhile, take another bowl and mash roasted red chilies, and onion. Add the red chili mixture to the potato-egg mash and combine it well. Finally, add mustard oil and continue mashing till the potatoes have a sticky texture. Garnish and serve with plain rice.
2. Mashed Almond Recipe (Badam Bhorta)
Ingredients
½ cup almonds, 4-5 chilies (dry roasted), ⅛ cup chopped onion, ½ teaspoon salt, and 2 tbsp mustard oil.
Preparations
First, fry the almonds. Wait until the almonds become cool. After cooling, grind them. Then add onion slices, pepper, and salt to the almond batter. Finally, pour mustard oil and mix the combination well again. Enjoy with rice.
3. Mashed Lentil Recipe (Dal Bhorta)
Ingredients
1 cup Masoor Daal, 2 cloves garlic, ½ tsp turmeric powder, ⅛ cup chopped onions, 1 tsp salt (as needed), 1/8 cup coriander leaves (chopped), 2-3 tbsp mustard oil, and 3-4 dry red chili.
Preparations
First, wash and clean the lentils. Now boil 1 cup of lentils with 2 cups of water in a deep pan for 8-10 minutes. Skim off the foams that come on top of the lentils during cooking. After boiling, add the turmeric and garlic to the pan. When water decreases, minimize the heat and cover the pan. As soon as the water has completely evaporated, remove the pan from the stove.
Meanwhile, fry dry chilies in another pan, and when they become blackish-brown, remove the pan. Now mash the roasted chilies and put salt into them. Add chopped onion, coriander leaves, and mustard oil to the mixture of boiled lentils and mashed dried chili. Now mash the mixture thoroughly by hand. Add extra salt if needed. Enjoy the bhorta with rice.
4. Mashed Jackfruit Seed Recipe (Kathaler Bichi Bhorta)
Ingredients
1 cup jackfruit seeds, ½ cup chopped onion, ½ cup chopped garlic, 4-5 green chilies, 6-7 dried chilies, ½ teaspoon salt and extra, 2 cups water, and 2 tbsp mustard oil.
Preparations
First, peel off the jackfruit beechy and clean it well. Then boil them with salt and water for 10-15 minutes. Next, smash the boiled jackfruit seeds on the mortar and pestle.
Then take another pan and heat the oil. Add chopped onion, chopped garlic, green chilies, dried chilies, mashed jackfruit seeds, and salt. Fry for 2 minutes. Finally, adjust the salt and serve with steamed rice.
5. Mashed Okra Recipe (Dherosh Bhorta)
Ingredients
¼ kg okra, 1/8 cup chopped onion, 1 clove garlic (minced), 3-4 green chilies, ½ teaspoon salt, and 1 tablespoon mustard oil.
Preparations
First, wash the okra with running water. Then cut them into about 2-3 inch pieces. Boil the okra pieces, green chili, garlic, and salt with ½ cup water. Make sure you use a lid to cover the pan and stir most often. When the water has fully evaporated, remove it from the heat.
When the mixture becomes cool, add the sliced onion, salt, and mustard oil and mash thoroughly. Enjoy with plain rice.
6. Mashed Tomato Recipe (Tomato Bhorta)
Ingredients
2 tomatoes, 1/8 cup sliced onion, 2 clove garlic, 3-4 dry red chilies, ½ teaspoon salt, and 1 tablespoon mustard oil.
Preparations
First, clean the tomatoes and fry them with garlic in the pan for 15-20 minutes. When the tomato and garlic are cooked properly, remove them from the heat. After cooling down, peel the garlic and the tomatoes.
Now fry dry chilies in a frying pan until they become blackish-brown. Mash the roasted chilies and add salt. After that add onion slices to the mixture of fried tomatoes, garlic, and chili. Then add the mustard oil to the combination and mash thoroughly. Take extra salt if needed. Enjoy with rice.
7. Mashed Hilsa Fish (Ilish Bhorta)
Ingredients
3-4 pieces of Hilsa fish, ⅛ cup chopped onion (ring shape), 5-6 dry chilies, salt (as required), 1 teaspoon turmeric powder, 1 tbsp mustard oil, and 2 tbsp soybean oil.
Preparations
First, clean the fish pieces and pat dry them with a kitchen towel. Add a pinch of salt and turmeric powder with fish pieces and mix well. Take a pan and add both mustard oil and soybean oil. When the oil heats well, put the fish pieces into the pan and fry well. Remove from the pan after frying moderately. After cooling, separate the bones from the fish. Now mash the boneless fish nicely.
Meanwhile, fry the dry chilies, until they become Blackish-brown. Remove the mixture from the pan. Now mash the roasted chilies and add salt. Then add chopped onion, mashed dried chili, and mustard oil to the mashed boneless fish. Mash the combination thoroughly by hand. Add extra salt if required. Enjoy with paanta rice.
8. Mashed Eggplant Recipe (Begun Bhorta)
Ingredients
2 eggplants, 1/8 cup sliced onion, 2 clove garlic, 3-4 dry red chilies, ½ teaspoon salt, and 1 tablespoon mustard oil.
Preparations
First, wash the eggplant with running water and let them dry. Make holes on both sides of the eggplants. Rub them with oil and then wrap (double) with aluminum foil. Then fry the aluminum-wrapped eggplant over the fire for 30 to 40 minutes. Turn it over every 10 minutes. When done, remove the eggplant from the foil.
After cooling, peel the eggplant. Meanwhile, take a frying pan to fry dry chilies and garlic. When the mixture becomes blackish and the garlic becomes soft, remove the pan from the burner.
Then add the mixture with the fried eggplants and mash the combination well. Then add salt, chopped onion, and mustard oil to the combination and mash everything well (thoroughly) by hand. Add extra salt if required. Enjoy with paanta rice.
9. Mashed Onion-Chili Recipe (Peyaj-Morich Bhorta)
Ingredients
1/2 cup sliced onion, 3-4 dry red chilies, ½ teaspoon salt, 2 tbsp coriander leaves, and 1 tablespoon mustard oil.
Preparations
First, fry the dried chilies as long as they become blackish-brown. Next, mash the roasted chilies and add salt. Then add the chopped onion and coriander leaves. After that add the mustard oil and mash everything well (thoroughly) by hand. Add extra salt if required. Enjoy with hot rice.
Mashed Dried Fish Recipe (Shutki Bhorta)
Ingredients
2 cups dried fish (any type), 3 tablespoons mustard oil, 4 cloves garlic, 3 red chilies, ¼ cup onion (thinly sliced), 2-3 teaspoon lemon juice, and salt (as required).
Preparations
First, wash the dried fish with boiled water. Then fry the fish nicely. When the fish is almost fried, add the garlic, chili, and chopped onions. Mash everything on the mortar and pestle. Finally, add lemon juice and salt and enjoy with hot rice.
TDM/MI
