Minnesota State Parks

[xl_target]

Oh! IFG Meet!

Yessss.... where I will possibly cook Salmon with sorshe bata, Salmon Paturi and chingrir malai curry

TC

Hey Guys!
> What mouthwatering dishes TC
> You can add this to you repertoire of recipes - picked it up from a friend's mother long time ago -
> The taste still lingers
INDIAN SAUSAGE CURRY
Serves 4 people / Can be served with Rotis, Noodles or Pasta.......
Ingredients
*6 Sausage sticks (sliced)
*5 tbsp oil
*1 medium sized onion (chopped)
*1 tbsp ginger garlic paste
*1 tomato (made into paste)
*1½ tsp chilli powder
*½ tsp turmeric powder
*1 tsp salt
*1/2 tsp soya sauce
*1/2 tsp lemon juice
*1 cup water
Directions
>In a wok, heat oil, add onions, ginger garlic paste and saute for a while.
>Now add the tomato paste, chilli powder, turmeric and salt and mix well.
>Add the sausages, soya sauce, lemon juice and water.
>Cover cook till the water boils.....
Indian Sausage curry is ready to serve!!!!
Briha

Brihaji,
I'm going to give this recipe to my wife to see what she can do with it. drool!

[xl_target]

Oh! IFG Meet!

Yessss.... where I will possibly cook Salmon with sorshe bata, Salmon Paturi and chingrir malai curry



TC

At the risk of sounding like a teenage girl...
OMG!...You will be the guest of honor, especially if you can come up with a "sorshe bata" fish.
I know it won't be ileesh mach but not much compares with that. On the other hand you have to be Bengali to truly enjoy ileesh mach.
The millions of little bones will really bother you if you can't instinctively remove them with your tongue before swallowing.

However we will get you some freshwater fish. A true Bengali doesn't eat fish from the sea.
Though the Salmon can be fudged a little as it is born and usually dies in freshwater.
The true Minnesota delicacy is Walleye! Light, flaky, sweet. Very little compares with fresh Walleye.

I've eaten fish all over the world and some definitely stand out.
Among them are Kashmiri Trout, Canadian Smallmouth Bass and Minnesota Walleyed Pike.

I'll start reloading ammo now, in anticipation of your visit. LOL
If you want to shoot a machine gun, you have to come in August.

Just like CK did:

Hmm! It looks like I will have to really complete that cap and ball pistol purchase.

[TC]

At the risk of sounding like a teenage girl...
OMG!...You will be the guest of honor, especially if you can come up with a "sorshe bata" fish.
I know it won't be ileesh mach but not much compares with that. On the other hand you have to be Bengali to truly enjoy ileesh mach.
The millions of little bones will really bother you if you can't instinctively remove them with your tongue before swallowing.

However we will get you some freshwater fish. A true Bengali doesn't eat fish from the sea.
Though the Salmon can be fudged a little as it is born and usually dies in freshwater.
The true Minnesota delicacy is Walleye! Light, flaky, sweet. Very little compares with fresh Walleye.

I've eaten fish all over the world and some definitely stand out.
Among them are Kashmiri Trout, Canadian Smallmouth Bass and Minnesota Walleyed Pike.

I'll start reloading ammo now, in anticipation of your visit. LOL
If you want to shoot a machine gun, you have to come in August.

Just like CK did:

XL,
Would love to be the guest of honor as long as I get to lay my hands on all those reloads and a new M16

Ileesh would certainly be the best mouthwatering option Since Ileesh too is born in saline water where the Ganges meets the sea I mentioned Salmon.
But the Walleye, it seems, would be a great alternative.
I have tried some weird fish too but nothing beats the Ileesh so far - on both sides of the Indo-Bangladesh border and, at the peak of monsoon

Too early to plan schedule but will keep the August wind in mind....
Have fired lots of machine guns. What I would really love to fire is THAT cap and ball revolver



TC

[prashantsingh]

Very informative post with some lovely snaps. Thanks for sharing xl.

[xl_target]

TC, Let me know your schedule when you get it ready.

Prashant,
Thanks but it doesn't compare to your true life adventures, which I really enjoy reading about.

[brihacharan]

Hi xl_target / TC,
> Though not a "Born Bengali", I can proudly say that I'm the adopted son of Sri & Smt. Rai Bahadur Kali-Charan Pakrasi - I used to address them as Jeta Babu & Jetai Ma!
> Their 3rd son Baidyanath was a colleague of mine & presently lives in Florida....
> xl_target - here's a suggestion to rear your own "fresh water fish" - Get a "Pukkur" dug in your backyard
Briha

[TC]

Hi xl_target / TC,
> Though not a "Born Bengali", I can proudly say that I'm the adopted son of Sri & Smt. Rai Bahadur Kali-Charan Pakrasi - I used to address them as Jeta Babu & Jetai Ma!
> Their 3rd son Baidyanath was a colleague of mine & presently lives in Florida....
> xl_target - here's a suggestion to rear your own "fresh water fish" - Get a "Pukkur" dug in your backyard
Briha

Brihaji,
But I always considered you a Bengali.... you have a daughter .. Remember ?

Regards

TC

[xl_target]

Hi xl_target / TC,
> Though not a "Born Bengali", I can proudly say that I'm the adopted son of Sri & Smt. Rai Bahadur Kali-Charan Pakrasi - I used to address them as Jeta Babu & Jetai Ma!
> Their 3rd son Baidyanath was a colleague of mine & presently lives in Florida....
> xl_target - here's a suggestion to rear your own "fresh water fish" - Get a "Pukkur" dug in your backyard
Briha

Ha! No thanks Brihaji,

Please remember that I have three giant "pukurs" just blocks away from my house.

lc1.JPG

[brihacharan]

[quote="xl_target"]

Ha! No thanks Brihaji,

Please remember that I have three giant "pukurs" just blocks away from my house!

Wow xl_target, You are a lucky man with 3 Giant' Pukurs' in your backyard
I suppose one is allowed to fish there - in which case you can keep TC busy making "Macher Jhol" or "Doi Mach"
Briha

[xl_target]

Ha! No thanks Brihaji,

Please remember that I have three giant "pukurs" just blocks away from my house!

Wow xl_target, You are a lucky man with 3 Giant' Pukurs' in your backyard
I suppose one is allowed to fish there - in which case you can keep TC busy making "Macher Jhol" or "Doi Mach"
Briha

Oh Yes, you can fish in all of Minnesota's waters. They even have Walleyes in there.
Just don't have much time for fishing. I think I have way too many hobbies and not enough time.

[xl_target]

AFTON STATE PARK

Last weekend, my wife wanted to take a class at one of the State Parks in the Twin Cities (Minneapolis/St. Paul). It was a hands-on class on weaving with Cattails.

When I told CK that, he had a momentary brain fade and was thinking probably thinking; "How Barbaric"! I could hear the "what?" over the silent phone.
I then had to remind him that Bulrushes are called Cattails here and had nothing to do with Felines.


Cattails


The object was to make a Fedora out of the Cattail fronds.

The class was taught by this lady

My daughter wanted to go too so we set off early in the morning, picked up my daughter and headed out to beautiful Afton State Park.
We got there about 10:00 am


Afton State Park


The swimming area and beach at Afton State Park

Afton State Park is a state park of Minnesota, USA, on the St. Croix River in Washington County. Its hiking trails offer views of the river, rolling glacial moraine, and bluffland it preserves. It is a popular place for birdwatching, picnics, camping, and other typical outdoor recreational activities. To deter overuse of a state park only 20 miles (32 km) from downtown St. Paul, there is no vehicle access to the camping area or swimming beach.

The park is located approximately 5 miles (8.0 km) south of the town of Afton, Minnesota. The park surrounds the unaffiliated Afton Alps ski area on three sides. The name "Afton" was given to this area by its settlers as a reference to the Robert Burns poem "Afton Water," which is about the River Afton in Scotland

quote and image from here

While the girls attended the class at the Afton Stae park visitor center, I decided to check out the hiking trails. There was a 3.5 mile loop that I wanted to try out.
By the time everyone got settled down, it was 10:30 am
I had to be back in time to take them for lunch so I only had about an hour and a half to do this.

You start out on a tarmac path (shared with bicycles) and then it devolves into a short jaunt over Prairie grassland before you drop down to an old railroad grade that follows the river.
Then it's back up to the hill to the visitor center.

I had a small soft cooler in my back pack with an ice pack and three bottles of water.
I saw one old gentleman on the first part of the trail, briskly walking towards me and I thought of Brihaji.
Otherwise I had the trail to myself.


..... more to come.

[ckkalyan]

When I told CK that, he had a momentary brain fade and was thinking probably thinking; "How Barbaric"! I could hear the "what?" over the silent phone. I then had to remind him that Bulrushes are called Cattails here and had nothing to do with Felines.

Good one xl_target! The image that came to mind during our telecon was the cat-o-nine-tails!



Now, bulrushes and fedoras - I am familiar with!

Have a nice trip and (initial, short) hike - enjoy the rest of your planned outing with amazing nature!

[brihacharan]

xl_target wrote...I had a small soft cooler in my back pack with an ice pack and three bottles of water.
I saw one old gentleman on the first part of the trail, briskly walking towards me and I thought of Brihaji.
Otherwise I had the trail to myself.

xl_target,
> Thanks Buddy - that was the 'best' compliment I've received...Though not in body, but truly in spirit
> BTW - the Fedora the lady is wearing is simply gorgeous!!!
> Some hand-skills are worth "taking one hats off" to!!!!
TC.
> I know that "My Daughter" is in safe hands - Take care of Her
Briha

[brihacharan]

Hi xl_target / TC,
> The sprawling lakes around xl_target's residence must be bustling with Trout - Combine this with TC's passion for cooking must make your proposed meet truly a memorable one
> Here's something to tickle your taste buds - TC you're on!!!

Crispy Trout a la Briha

Ingredients
•1 tsp Olive oil
•1 Trout fillet, about 6 oz
•1 tbsp Cornmeal
•1/2 tsp Chopped fresh parsley
•1 Clutch green beans, trimmed
•2 tsp Sliced almonds
•Salt to taste
•Black pepper to taste
Directions
Heat 1 Tbsp Olive oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. While the pan is heating, sprinkle the flesh side of the trout with salt, pepper, and cornmeal, pressing lightly so the corn meal sticks. Place in the pan, flesh side down, and saute for 4 minutes. Flip it and cook for another 2 minutes. Top with the parsley. Place the beans in a steamer basket and steam for 5 minutes. Toss them with the remaining oil, the almonds, and the salt and pepper.
> One small request Guys - Think of me when you sink your 'pearlies' into this yummy fish-dish

Briha

[ckkalyan]

Crispy Trout a la Briha

Very, very - fishy indeed Brihacharan-Ji! Truly Yummy - Slurp!