Useful notes

Frying fish (sauteeing with little oil)

 Fish tends to stick to the pot  (steel/cast iron, not nonstick) and break into pieces when you try to turn it. The trick is to

1. heat the pan/wok on high
2. Reduce heat to medium and add oil
3. Wait for a few seconds to let the oil become hot. The visual indication is that when you pour the oil, initially it will stay high on the pan surface due to surface tension and stay in a limited area due to higher viscosity. As it gets hot, it will flatten out more and spread out. White vapours will start coming out when it starts to get too hot. Don't wait any longer than that, as it may catch fire.
4. Reduce heat to medium low/low and lay down the fish pieces. Spread them out because they tend to stick to each other if in contact.

 (Courtesy: my mother)

 It helps to use a round bottom kadai (wok) for bengali style frying, where the fish is usually cut into small pieces 5cm x 7.5 cm or smaller). The oil stays deep in the center, where the currently cooking piece will be, and as it gets almost done you move it up along the sides where the heat is lower and the oil can drip out back tonthe center. In case of large pieces, like a whole pomphret, a flat bottom pan is better suited.

Ginger paste when sauteeing spices ( when cooking jhol/gravy items)

Ginger paste, when added to hot oil, tends to splatter dengerously. It can be reduced by first adding turmeric powder to the oil and then adding ginger paste. Don't leave the former for too long, as it will quickly burn black. After ginger put chopped onions on top and that will contain the splatter. (Courtesy: my mother)

Eggs

I have been struggling to make good fried eggs, and found out that the same technique as frying fish works for this. Add oil to hot steel pan and bring to medium heat. Break the egg on top (I bring them to room temperature first, as cold egg makes the pan cool down). Reduce to low / medium low. If you prefer a solidified layer over the yoke, either cover with a lid or turn it over (metal spatula works better than wooden or nonstick).

For poaching, adding a little acid (vinegar/ lemon juice) to the water really helps in coagulation. (Courtesy Quora)

leek stew

This is another impromptu dish with ingredients i already had and needed to finish.

Ingredients (3 servings)

Leek - 1
Carrot - 2 medium
Sweet potato - 1 medium
Aragula leaves - 2 cups (optional, i added them to use up my 1 week old stock).
Garlic (smashed) - 1/2 tsp
Pepper powder - 1/2 tsp
Freshly ground black pepper - 1/2 tsp
Chicken thighs - 3 (optional, if you are veg then adding shredded cheese at the end may work)

Procedure
Chop the sweet potatoes and carrots into thin slices. Chop the leek into thin rings. Keep the white and the greens separate.
Bring to boil in 4 cups of water and then simmer at low heat for 5 minutes with lid on.
Chop the chicken into small pieces and add (i put the bones as well).
Add salt according to taste and pepper powder.
Keep simmering for 10 minutes with lid on. The idea is that chicken gets cooked faster than sweet potatoes. Adjust your timing as suitable.
In a frying pan heat 1 tbsp oil and add the garlic. When brown, add the white of the leek and stir fry for 2-3 minutes. Add this and arugula leaves to the  simmering vegetables.
Keep simmering for another 5 minutes and then turn off heat. Let sit for 5 minutes.
Heat 2 tbsp of oil and stir fry the leek greens.
Add the fried greens and freshly ground pepper before serving.

Green lentils with mixed vegetables

This was an improvisation to use up the vegetables in my fridge. Turned out to be quite nice (I ate it at three consecutive meals and still not sick of it).

Ingredients:

Green lentils - 1/2 cup
Kale greens (or any leafy vegetable with slightly tough leaves, Kale is similar to mustard greens and belongs to the same genus Brassica. I feel the texture of Amaranth or "note` shak" is also suitable)
 - 200 g (chopped)
Tomato (medium) - 2 (chopped)
Carrots (chopped) - 2 cup
Onion (chopped) - 1/2 cup
Garlic - 1 - 2 cloves (finely chopped)
Green chili - 1 (chopped)
Cumin seeds - 1/2 tsp
Coriander powder - 1/2 tsp
Salt - according to taste

Procedure:

1. Boil the lentils in 2 cups of water for 10-15 minutes (should be half cooked, not completely soft).
2. Heat oil in a pan and first add the cumin seeds and let it pop for ~20-30 seconds.
3. Add the garlic, onion and green chili and fry until the onion starts to get brown.
4. Add the carrot and stir fry for 2-3 minutes.
5. Add the kale and stir fry for another 2-3 minutes.
6. Add tomatoes and cook until they start to melt.
7. Add the boiled lentil (with water) and mix salt and coriander powder, cook for 5 minutes.
8. Let it stand for 5 minutes and serve with rice.