Bengali food... Who doesn’t love it? Especially if you’re a fish lover or hard-core non-vegetarian. Machh, mangsho, shorshe... If you’ve ever said “Machh-mangsho na thakle bhalo lage na!” then this roundup of Bong recipes, that will make you feel like you’re in a Kolkata kitchen, is for you. Ebar pet pujo hok!
Kaalia is a fish curry that incorporates onions, garlic and ginger and is cooked with loads of tomatoes. "The gravy is spicy, thick and ascends the palate in an orgasmic burst of flavour," says Swarupa Dutt who presents her recipe for the dish. The maachh or fish used for Kaalia are sweet-water ones like rohu or katla, but pomfret and surmai work as well, she adds.
Please find the recipe here: Maachher Kaalia
A compilation of popular Bengali recipes is not complete without a recipe for hilsa in mustard gravy/sauce dish. Indrani Roy looks up her late mom's cookery diary and digs out a recipe for the Roy family favourite that has very few ingredients allowing the fish and mustard to do a culinary tango to their hearts' content in this preparation.
Please find the recipe here: Shorshe Ilish
A mutton dish with a yoghurt-based gravy, the fragrance of rose water and the nutty flavour of the almond-cashew paste make it a connoisseur's delight, promises Bethica Das. There are many versions of this delicacy, says Bethica but the end result is always simply mouthwatering.
Please find the recipe here: Mutton Rezala
Greens cooked with prawns makes a difference to the prawns and to the greens. Kochu shaak or arbi or colocasia leaves and chingri is an excellent partnership. Shalinee Ghosh Laval cooks up the shaak with jumbo-sized prawns with mustard oil and light seasoning.
Please find the recipe here: Kochu Shak With Prawns
Chef Ananya Banerjee's soft, flaky puris, stuffed with a spicy green peas filling, are pure joy on a plate. Best served hot with Aloo’r Dom or Cholar Dal, they’re wonderful lazy Sunday breakfasts or brunch fare.
Please find the recipe here: Korashutuir Kochuri
A little patience and a few simple ingredients is all you need to make a soul-satisfying Bengali hilsa curry. Joseph Manavalan, who spent many years in Kolkata, mastered this spicy, beautiful dish, full of aroma.
Please find the recipe here: Doi Maach
Also known as Pran Harah, Debjani Chatterjee offers her recipe for the delicious Bengali mishti made with chenna or soft cottage cheese and nolen gur or date palm jaggery.
Please find the recipe here: Kancha Golla
"Muri is etymologically derived from muro, which colloquially means head. Ghonto means mishmash or a medley and can be entirely vegetarian as well," explains Swarupa Dutt, who has another Bengali recipe, this one typical of the former East Bengal, for a fish head rice dish, cooked with fistfuls of raw rice, potatoes, spices and the crispy fried head of a rohu or katla fish.
Please find the recipe here: Muri Ghonto
Chef Subhash Jana marinates river fish bhetki in a mustard-coconut-green chilly paste, then wraps the fish in banana leaves and gently steams or pan-fries it. The result? A smoky, punchy, melt-in-the-mouth masterpiece.
Please find the recipe here: Fish Paturi
Aadore Dalmia Sayani pairs steamed rice with a humble Bong plate of her simply-made golden, spiced potatoes. Often enjoyed with a dollop of ghee or a side of dal, this dish is about savouring the basics.
Please find the recipe here: Aloo Bhaat
A light yet flavourful fish curry, courtesy Saurab Paul Chowdhury, it's made with rohu or katla, tender potatoes, and a medley of spices. The mustard oil, as always, provides the signature zing, while the green chillies and cumin bring warmth and depth.
Please find the recipe here: Macher Jhol
Slow-cooked, this delicious version, by Joseph Manavalan, of the favourite dark, thick mutton curry gets its flavours from caramelised onions, whole garam masala spices, yoghurt and goes best with a plate of steaming hot luchis or plain rice on a Sunday afternoon.
Please find the recipe here: Kosha Mangsho
Bengali cuisine always brings up images of fish-rice and meat dishes in most non-Bengali minds. "But it is not as fishy as you think. A fabulous vegetarian spread and an amazing range of sweets are also hallmarks of Bengali cuisine," says Chef Ananya Banerjee while offering a ghar ka recipe for Alor Dum.
Please find the recipe here: Alor Dum
If you are in the process of mastering Bengali cooking, then learning how to create the perfect -- and we mean p-e-r-f-e-c-t -- rosagolla is a must. Priyadarsini Raj's recipe is the way to go, where she explains how to mould the perfect gollas without much ado.
Please find the recipe here: Rosogolla
One more Bong special from Bethica Das' kitchen, she chooses to put together an intriguing chutney from lightly-boiled jackfruit.
Please find the recipe here: Raw Jackfruit Chutney