Karaishutir Kochuri - Green Peas Stuffed Pastry

Come late November and the colorful Rajasthani quilts, plaid Bombay Dyeing wool blankets along with a wild assortment of woolens are out in and around Calcutta. Never mind that the mercury never dips below 10C in all of winter. After the sultry summer-monsoon, when the sky finally is clear and blue, the sun deliciously warm on your shoulders and there’s a definite nip in the air, the city revels in romance.

Middle aged men and women, bundled in bulky colorful sweaters teamed with mufflers and obnoxious monkey caps brave the early morning chill to walk in the few green parks in the city under the cover of thick fog. I have grown up watching neighbors shiver and tremble as they made their way to the Dhakuria Lake maidan and Safari Park. However no Calcuttan loses weight in winter except those teen girls ultra determined to fit into LBDs a size too small for the Christmas Eve dance at Tolly.

Winter is also when residents flock to Flurys and Nahums for plum cakes, to the neighborhood market for Darjeeling oranges for puddings and to the vegetable vendor for cauliflowers and green peas in their pods for samosas and kachoris. Little wonder we stay as round as ever. Ma, who never cooks much fried or junk food at home, always makes the exception every winter by making Karaishutir Kochuri, savory green pea stuffed pastry. It is the only dish my father, who can’t even make tea, helps her make. Baba must have spent half of his life’s winter afternoons shelling peas!

Away from the warmth of Calcutta winters, I make Karaishutir Kochuri every year when the mercury starts to dip to rekindle in my heart the innocent romance of book fairs,quiz competitions, music conferences and holiday dance parties of years gone by.

Karaishuti is also call Motorshuti in Bangla hence these kachoris are called Motorshutir Kochuris too.

Green Peas Stuffed Pastry

Ingredients:

For the filling -

Shelled green peas - 1/2 lb

Minced ginger - 1tbsp

Green chilies - 2-3

For dough -

All purpose flour (maida) - 1lb

Baking powder - 1/2 tsp

Salt - 1/4 tbsp or to taste

Ghee/ clarified butter/ oil - 1tbsp

Lukewarm water

For cooking -

Ground roasted cumin seeds - 1tsp

Fennel seeds - 1tsp

Asafoetida - large pinch

Salt - 1 tbsp or to taste

Oil - 1 tbsp plus for frying

Method:

• Blend peas, ginger and chilies to a smooth paste adding as little water as required.
• Sift flour, baking powder and salt together thrice. Add ghee/oil and combine to crumbly dough. Knead to a moderately stiff dough using lukewarm water. Cover and let sit for at least half hour.
• Heat 1tbsp of oil in a heavy skillet. Add asafoetida.
• After the asafoetida sizzles, roughly 10 seconds, add the green peas paste and salt. Cook on medium heat for five minutes or till all moisture evaporates and oil separates. Keep stirring to prevent the paste from burning.
• Turn the heat off. Add powdered roasted cumin seed and fennel seeds. Mix well and remove from heat. Allow the mixture to cool completely say for twenty minutes.
• Wet your palms and knead the pastry dough a little more till you get a stiff shiny dough. Divide the dough into 16 equal balls.
• Cover the dough balls with a damp cheese cloth.
• When the peas mixture has cooled completely, divide into 16 equal balls.
• Roll a dough ball into 3" diameter circle. Place a peas ball in the center and gather the edges of the dough to cover the filling and make a disc. Continue with other dough balls.
• Allow the stuffed discs to sit for 3-4 minutes.
• Using your palms flatten each disc to 4" diameter. Be careful not to make holes in the dough or allow the filling to spill along the edge. This will let oil seep into the kachoris and make them soggy.
• Heat oil in a heavy bottom skillet and deep fry the discs one or two at a time on medium-high heat. They will puff up like Indian puri. Fry till golden brown on both sides, turning once.

Serves - 4-6

Serve hot with your favorite pickle, green chutney, ketchup or as Bengalis do with spicy curried potatoes. These kachoris cannot be stored, they have to be eaten hot.

However, if you want to make the kachoris to store, heat about 2" of oil in the skillet on medium heat. The oil is ready when a little piece of dough when put in oil sizzles and comes up slowly. If the dough comes up immediately then the oil is too hot and allow it cool a little and test again. Once the oil is ready fry the discs one or two at a time on medium-low heat until golden brown on both sides, turning once. If you fry in very hot oil, the kachoris will turn soggy when cooled and will not store well. Cool and store in air tight containers. Kachoris will stay good for 2-3 days.

Alternatively, you can cook them on a heated dry skillet brushing each side with little oil like parathas. They taste the best as hot kachoris though.