Batabi Lebu Makha (Pomelo Salad)

10 December 

Let me tell you a story first before I talk about today's recipe. When I was a kid, during the Durga Pujas many stalls would be setup around the puja premise in IIT Kharagpur. Food stalls would be setup by institute students or even wives of the IIT employees. Apart from the regular roll, moghlai paratha, fuchka, dahi vada stalls, there would be various book stalls. These were setup by different publishers or sellers. One of such stalls would have children books from around the world. 

At that time it was USSR and not Russia. That particular stall would brings many books especially written by the Soviet authors. They had hardbound fairytale books with vintage styled illustrations. The stories in those books were nothing like what we used to get in India. It talked about fairies, demons, forests, castles and it had opened up a whole new world of imagination for kids like me who loved to read. 

I used to really look forward to Durga Puja because of this stall. We didn't have Amazon or flipkart back then and these books were not available off the shelf. We had to patiently wait for a year to get hold of new storybooks. Every time I come to Kolkata, I browse through my childhood book collection. It feels like a Pandora's box when I leaf through them. The pages of those fairytale books were so good they still look crisp white. 

While most of the storybooks we got at that time were fairytales there is this one book which I am particularly fond of and it is not a fairytale. The book is named Rat-a-tat-tat and is a collection of children stories by the famous Russian author Nikolai Nosov. The book was translated from Russian and was published in 1989 by Raduga  Publishers. The absolutely amazing and heart touching illustrations are by Herman Ogorodnikov. It is hard not to fall in love with this book. The innocent stories makes you laugh and cry at the same time, and leaves behind a warm feeling every time you read it. I think this is something every kid should read. 

After USSR broke up, it felt like a heartbreak to us. We no longer got access to those wonderful books in India. Who ever has these books, they are like a rare treasure to them. 

My childhood favorite

I never heard any other kid in my known circle mention about this particular book. So I assumed that it was only me who was fascinated by the book. But long after that when I was in college, there was a junior of mine and one day I got to know its her favorite book as well. I couldn't believe that I would meet another person ever who even knew about the existence of this book, let alone love it. 

Right now the book is listed in Amazon at a whooping price of Rs. 25,888. We had bought it for about Rs 20 back then. Maybe as the days pass it would cost even more. But even if it becomes priceless, I do not think anyone of us who owns one of the hardcover version today, would like to part with it. The stories are so much embedded in us and is like an inseparable part of our growing up memories.

Now coming to the recipe for today. Its  a very simple fruit salad made with Pomelo. Pomelo is mainly known as Batabi Lebu in West Bengal. In Bangladesh and among Bengalis from Tripura, it is known as Jambura. While Bengalis refer to the Pomelo Salad as Batabi Lebu makha, in Bangladesh they call it Jambura Bhorta or Jambura Makha. In Assam, they call it Rebab Tenga.

I remember there was an aunty , a close friend of mom who used to bring these huge juicy Batabi Lebu for us from her garden. Mom would then remove the flesh form the pith, add seasoning and we would enjoy it mostly during the afternoons. The taste of the juicy, pulpy, tangy and spicy makha would linger on the tongue for quite some time. That memory of having batabi lebu makha remains ingrained in my memory till date. 

The next pomelo experience that I recently loved was in Meghalaya. The fruits in Meghalaya are really class apart. Street side vendors would prepare these batabi lebu makha, scoop them in small packets and give a toothpick along with the packet which can be used as a spoon. We had them whenever we were tired form any long hike. 

The pomelo in the picture was given to us by our uncle which he got from his own farm. It was calling out to be made into a makha and savored on a sunny (finally!) afternoon of December while reading my favorite book from childhood - Rat-a-tat-tat.

Preparation Time : 5 minutes

Serves: 2

Ingredients:

• Pomelo ( Batabi Lebu ) - 1/2 
• Green Chili (chopped) - 2
• Salt - as per taste
• Sugar  - as per taste

Equipment:

• Knife
• Mixing Bowl

Procedure: 

1.  Remove the skin of the fruit. Cut and separate each segments and remove the thin white skin and the seeds and the pith or any white spongy skin.

2. In a mixing bowl add the pomelo flesh, salt, sugar, chopped green chili and give it a good toss. You can adjust the sugar depending on how sour the pomelo is.

3. Rest the salad for a bit.

Enjoy it with or without a drizzle of mustard oil.