A Memory and Delicious Liver Fry

On a lazy winter Sunday, Sarika cooked liver fry for her family, in Bengali style. She recalls her childhood and her parents with this dish. An exclusive for Different Truths.

It was Sunday. Winter Sundays are often synonymous with lazy mornings. There is something in winters, and that sitting under much-needed winter sun is just love. Reading under the sun is my all-time favourite since childhood.

Let us admit it, the digital era we are living in is exceedingly difficult to isolate ourselves from technology. However, at times I shun my phone for a few hours and enjoy the winter sun.  

So, it was a Sunday of the year 2021, after an hour of vitamin D consumption with my Rambo the puppy, I decided to cook one of those family favourites, liver fry.  

It is a bit spicy yet delectable as the son says! During winter, demand for spicy dishes usually grows in the house. 

Liver in Bengali, we call it mete. During my childhood days, Baba always made sure that the liver should be on my plate, every time maa prepared the meat. Today, Baba is in a different world and I just have those unforgettable memories with me.

Bengali Style Liver Fry

Ingredients

300 gm mete (lamb liver)

1 potato,

2 big sized onion, finely chopped,

6 green chillies, slitted (depends on you),

1/2 cup tomato puree, 

3 table-spoon ginger-garlic paste,

1 bay leaves

1 cinnamon stick

3 green cardamom, crushed,

Black cardamom, crushed,

5 cloves, crushed,

1/2 tea-spoon sugar, 

1 cup warm water,

4 to 5 table-spoon mustard oil,

salt, as you like,

1 tea-spoon turmeric powder,

1 tea-spoon cumin powder,

1 tea-spoon coriander powder,

1/2 tea-spoon red chilli powder (optional),

1/2 teaspoon Kashmiri red chilli powder,

1/2 teaspoon garam masala powder.

Method

Marinate lever with 1/2 tea-spoon turmeric powder, 1.5 tea-spoon ginger-garlic paste and pinches of salt. Keep for marination for at least an hour.

Now the potato pieces with 1/2 tea-spoon turmeric powder and salt and fry(shallow) until golden yellow. Remove them and keep aside.

Heat the remaining oil and temper with bay leaves, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, and mace. Allow them to splutter.

Now chopped onion and sauté until it becomes translucent.

Add the remaining ginger garlic paste and stir.

Add tomato puree and stir until it starts separating from oil.

Add remaining turmeric powder, cumin powder, coriander powder, red chilli powder, Kashmiri red chilli powder and salt. Sprinkle little water and stir for 2 minutes over low flame.

This time add fried potato, marinated liver, and green chilli. Give it a quick and nice mix.

Add water and mix again.

Cover the lid and cook for 15-20 minutes on medium heat or until the lever is well cooked. Do not like overcooking.

In this point stir over medium to high flame until moisture evaporates (if required)

Add garam masala and give a proper mix.

Your liver fry, Bengali style is done!

Photos by the author and visual by Different Truths