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| Kochuri alur torkari by Shaswati Saradar |
I woke up this morning to see little Nimki, our kitten, resting on Kainaz and looking beadily at me.
Then I heard a thump. I got off the bed and saw Baby Loaf, our elder kitty, resting by the bistro table (that I call our dining table) in the drawing room.
K told me that Baby Loaf too was on the bed earlier, lying by my feet (see the picture above again for evidence).
He was ‘kneading’ the duvet just before I woke said K. A cat’s way of telling you that you are now its parent. They say that kneading is the way cats replicate the experience of being nursed by their mum as kitties. I later saw the pic that I clicked of Nimki and got a glimpse of Loaf in it.
I had not even realised that he too was on the bed. I am so sorry Loaf!
I remembered what my mom told me about my younger brother yesterday when we were discussing his wedding anniversary on the phone.
“I told S (my younger brother) that Nimki is just like him. They are younger brothers and want all the attention. Look at S and the date he chose to get married on. His marriage anniversary falls before yours in the same month and I only remember the first. Please remind me of yours before the date comes.”
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| Thanks Mallika Gowda, chef Manisha Sharma and team Oberoi Trident for making this happen |
It was rather apt that Loaf was kneading today, for his ‘pishi’ (paternal aunt) had promised to make us kochuris for breakfasts.
I am talking of Shaswati Saradar our friend and neighbour and my fellow Bengali and Presidency College alumni Shaswati Saradar.
Her message to us last night read, “do ping me once you guys are up, then I will start frying. This will take a bit more time than luchis.”
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| Pic credit: Shaswati Saradar: kochuri dough |
“I love my intern,” she replied.
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| Picture credit Shaswati: Post frying |
I fed the boys again, showered and then breakfast arrived on cue. I decided to use stainless steel plates today as a hat tip to the mishtir dokan (sweet shops) of Kalighat in Kolkata which had sweetened Shaswati’s growing up days. The fabulous heenger kochuri (asafoetida seasoned puffed deep fried refined flour breads) with the characteristic alur torkari (garam masala infused unpeeled and cubed potato curry with Bengal gram added in) breakfast that Shaswati had most kindly made and sent us, were inspired by her memories of what used to be served in those shops.
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| #FinelyChoppedBreakfasts |
With that I took some of the doda halwa from Old Gurgaon’s Om Sweets that she had also given and which her sister had sent from Delhi. I paired it with a filter kaapi using the remainder of the coffee decoction sent yesterday by Meena of Perima’s Kitchen as a part of her home chef Tamil brunch set.
The sort of breakfast that I would be lucky to have on any given Sunday.
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| #SmilesOfFinelyChopped |
Announcement:
PS:
- Today’s #SmilesOfFinelyChopped was brought to you by Shaswati’s breakfast. Do read my post on #worldmentalhealthday on why I treasure these smiles so much
- The inception of this kochuri breakfast was when I told the story of Maharani Tea Shops’s kochuris in Kolkata on my #FoodocracyIndia broadcast. Shaswati had joined to watch and I ended the broadcast by requesting her to make my kochuris for us. You can watch by clicking on the link below
- You can read about Maharani’s kochuris here
- Talking of anniversaries, Finely Chopped just turned 13 and this is what it wrote on that day
- I really enjoy blogging about these day to day stories during the lockdown and here is where you can read about how it helped the blog grow again during the lockdown
From the #HouseOfCats
Good to see Mishti Debi too!!
What a fantastic meal to celebrate a Sunday! And that unpeeled potato curry is one of my favourites – it has a different earthier flavour which i love!