Bengali cuisine
Bengali
cuisine is one of the finest blend of non-vegetarian and vegetarian dishes.
Here are some recipe for the delicious and authentic Bengali food.
The serving
of Bengali's food is adopted from the French. Bengali's
first serve the shukto as the starter which is like a taste cutter for the tongue so that, after having this you can enjoy the delicious taste of the main course and at last the sweets or dessert.
first serve the shukto as the starter which is like a taste cutter for the tongue so that, after having this you can enjoy the delicious taste of the main course and at last the sweets or dessert.
Veg Bengali foods recipe:
Shukto:
shukto |
shukto is most common and famous side dish in Bengal.it
is a mixed vegetable dish which is bitter in taste and a little sweet.it
is served first to eat with hot plain
rice before eating the other dishes.
Here is the recipe of this dish:
Preparation
time:
|
30 min
|
Cooking
time:
|
40 min
|
Dietary:
|
Vegetarian
|
Serves:
|
3
|
Main
ingredient:
|
Ridge Gourd, Potato, Carrot, Drum
Stick, Bitter Gourd.
|
Ingredients:
Ø 5 tbsp. of Mustard oil
Ø 5 tbsp. of panchporon
Ø 1 tbsp. of ginger chopped
Ø 3 tbsp. of poppy seed paste
Ø 3 tbsp. of mustard paste
Ø 1 tbsp. of fennel seed
Ø 2 Green chillies
Ø 1 potato cut into long sliced
Ø 1 bitter gourd cut into long sliced
Ø 1 drum stick cut into long sliced
Ø ½ cup ridge gourd cubes
Ø ½ cup carrot small cubes
Ø 1 ½ tbsp. sugar
Ø ½ cup coconut milk
Ø 1 tbsp. Ghee
Ø Salt to taste
Steps to make:
·
Take
a pan, add oil and heat it and then fry panchporon in it.
·
Now
fry potato, Bitter gourd, drum stick, ridge gourd and carrot till it turns soft
and set them aside.
·
Now
saute Green chilli and chopped ginger in oil.
·
Now
add poppy an mustard seed paste and add sugar and salt to taste and stir well
·
Now
add the fried vegetable and continue.
·
Then
add coconut milk and fennel seed and stir for 7 min.
·
And
at last add ghee and switch off the flame.
Your
shukto is ready to serve.
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Bengali's have this in their breakfast It is very famous in Bengal. In every nook and
corner one can find this dish in ad hock stalls.
Ingredients:
Ø All-purpose flour/Maida : 1 cup
Ø 1 tbsp. of oil
Ø Salt to taste
For the filling:
Ø ½ cup Chana or Chola dal soaked in
water for 4-5 hrs.
Ø 2 Cardamom
Ø Cinnamon ½ inch stick
Ø ½ tbsp. Cumin seed or jeera
Ø ½ tbsp. saunf or fennel seed
Ø Turmeric a pinch
Ø Salt and sugar to taste
Ø Ghee or Oil for deep frying
Method of preparation:
1. Add 1 tbsp. of oil to the Maida and
knead it well with water and make a hard dough and set aside for 30 min.
2. Now take the soaked dal and grind it
to a coarse paste with a minimum adding of water.
3. Now roast the cinnamon, cardamom and
cumin seed and then grind to powder.
4. Heat ½ tbsp. of oil and add dal paste
and then add the roasted powder, turmeric, salt and sugar and fry it well.
5. Make small balls of the dough and put
the filling into it and then roll into puri.
6. At last deep fry in the oil till it
become light brown.
Now dal puri is ready. Serve it with
any vegetable side dish.
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Potolar dolma is a classic dish of Bengalis.
potol stuffed with cheese and potatoes.
Ingredients:
Ø 12 Potol/parwa
Ø ¾ cup oil
For the stuffing:
Ø Potatoes, Indian cottage cheese.
Ø 350 Gms of onion sliced.
Ø Fresh ginger paste 1 tbsp.
Ø 3-4 fresh garlic cloves.
Ø 2 Green chilli, chopped
Ø 2 tbsp. red chilli powder
Ø 1 tbsp. turmeric powder
Ø ¾ tbsp. garam masala
Ø Salt to taste
Method:
·
Wash
and clean potol and scrap it.now cut the tips from both end and then scoop out
the seed from one side without breaking the the other side.
·
Put
some salt inside and outside the potol and leave it for 10 min.
·
Heat
oil in a wok and fry that potal until it become red brown. Then drain it and
keep aside to cool.
For the stuffing:
·
In
the same oil fry onion and garlic till golden brown and the add turmeric
powder, ginger, red chilli, green chilli and a little salt.
·
Mix
it with mashed boiled potato and crumbled the cottage cheese.
·
And
then mix garam masala to it and keep it a side.
·
Stuff
the potol with this and pack tightly.
For the gravy:
Heat up the
remaining oil, add bay leaf, ginger and onion paste, red chilli, turmeric
powder and fry it well. Then add water and let it boil and then add the stuffed
potol to it cover it with lid. Let it simmer in low heat. The gravy will be
thickened.
Potolar
Dolma is ready. Serve it with boiled rice or palao.
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Bhoger khichuri
This is a traditional and authentic dish which is served to god during
all festival. The fragrant rice, yellow dal and some spice is cooked and it
result into sticky mashup bhoger khichuri.
Bhoger Khichuri |
Ingredient:
Ø Gobindobhog or any other par boiled
rice.
Ø 1 cup Yellow moong dal.
Ø 1 cup Chopped vegetable of choice.
Ø 1 Tomato
Ø 2-3 halved potato
Ø 2-3 Green chilli
Ø 1 inch Ginger
Ø 2 pcs Bay Leaf
Ø 1tbsp of cumin seed or Jeera.
Ø 1 tbsp. cumin powder or Jeera powder
Ø 2 tbsp. Dhaniya or coriander powder
Ø 1 tbsp. turmeric powder
Ø 1 tbsp. Garam Masala
Ø 1 tbsp. red chilli powder
Ø 1 tbsp. Ghee or Butter
Ø 3 tbsp. Sugar
Ø Salt to taste
Ø Mustard or white oil.
Method of Preparation:
Ø Heat the oil in a Wok and add whole
jeera , Bay leaf, turmeric powder, chilli powder, Coriander powder .Now saute
it for 30 seconds and then add sugar and salt to taste. Sugar should melt
completely.
Ø Now add Rice and Dal and saute it for
3-4 mins till the rice become translucent.
Ø Make a puree of tomato, green chilli
and ginger and add it to rice and lentils and cook well until the tomato is
properly cooked.
Ø add some
water and fix it with some salt and sugar in the khichuri to prevent it from
sticking to the kadhai or wok. Add the ghee.
Ø Now
transfer the content from the wok to the pressure cooker it helps to cook
faster and to get sticky consistency. Add 4 cup water and vegetable.
Ø Pressure
cook for 20 min till rice and lentil is completely cooked and mushy. Add some
ghee and serve it with bagun bhaja.
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Non-Veg Bengali foods recipe:
Bong’s are
true fish eater most of them cannot live without their piece of fish.
So here are
some recipe of fish.
Doi sarso mach is a
signature Bengali dish.it is a common dish in bongs lunch.
l Ingredients:
Fish (preferably rohu) 4 Pcs
Turmeric powder-1/4 tbsp.
Salt to taste
Oil for frying.
l For paste:
Mustard seed- 1 tbsp.
Curd- 1 cup
Garlic- 4 -5 cloves
Green Chilies- 2
l For Tampering:
Few Curry Leaves
Cumin Seeds-1/2 cup
Method of Preparation:
§ Marinate the fish with salt, turmeric powder
for 10 minutes. Heat oil & half fry the fish.
§ Make a paste of the Mustard Seed, Ginger and
Green chilies and refrigerate it for 10 minutes.
§ Mix curd with the paste.
§ Heat 1 tbsp. oil in the wok and add cumin seeds,
then curry leaves and chilies.
§ After ½ minute add the mixture of curd and
paste with 2 cups of water.
§ Add salt as per your taste and bring it to a
boil. Finally add the half fried fishes and cook it for 10 minutes
§ Garnish with coriander leaves.
Your Doi sarso Maach is ready. Serve it with hot boiled rice.
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Chingri malai curry
or prawn malai curry is a very famous dish of Bengal served with boiled white
rice.
Prep Time: 11-15
minutes
Cook Time: 6-10 minutes
Serve: 4
Ingredient:
§ Prawns 200 grams
§ Salt to
taste
§ 1 teaspoon
Turmeric powder
§ Turmeric powder 1 teaspoon
§ Mustard oil 4 tbsp.
§ Green chillies 4
§ Coconut scraped ¾ cup+1 tablespoon
§ Mustard seeds 1 tbsp.
§ Cumin seeds 1 tbsp.
§ Cumin powder 1 tbsp.
§ Sugar 1 teaspoon
§ Red Chili powder ½ teaspoon
§ Ginger paste 2 teaspoons
Prep Time: 11-15 minutes
Cook time: 6-10 minutes
Serve: 4
Level of Cooking: Moderate
Ingredients:
- Prawns (kolambi/jhinga) 200
grams
- Salt to taste
- Turmeric powder 1 teaspoon
- Coconut scraped ¾ cup + 1
tablespoon
- Mustard oil 4 tablespoons
- Green chillies 4
- Cumin seeds 1 teaspoon
- Mustard seeds 1 teaspoon
- Cumin powder 1 tablespoon
- Sugar 1 teaspoon
- Red chilli powder 1/2
teaspoon
- Ginger paste 2 teaspoons
Method
Step 1
Add turmeric powder and salt to the prawns and marinate for
15 minutes.
Step 2
Heat 3 tablespoons mustard oil in a non-stick pan and fry
prawns for 1 min and keep it aside.
Step 3
Place three-fourth cup of coconut in a mixture jar and add
half cup of hot water and grind it. Now place a muslin cloth and pour the
coconut over it.
Gather the edges of the cloth and squeeze tightly to get the
coconut milk.
Step 4
Slit green chillies. Add oil and then add cumin and mustard
seed and let it splutter
Step 5
Add green chillies prawn and coconut milk and cook for half a
minute on medium heat.
Step 6
Now add red chili powder, cumin powder, ginger paste and
sugar and cook it till the prawns are done.
Step 7
Garnish it with remaining coconut and serve it hot.
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The pungent taste of the mustard
paste and smoky flavour from pan-frying the fish in banana leaf makes the
recipe unique.
Prep
Time: 11-15 minutes
Cook
Time: 31-40 minutes
Serve: 4
§ Hilsa ( ilish) sliced 1 kilogram
§ Banana leaf 7-9
§ Mustard Powder 2 tbsp.
§ Turmeric Powder 1 tbsp.
§ Red chilli powder 1 tbsp.
§ Salt to taste
§ Mustard oil ¾ cup
§ Green chillies slit 8-10
Method
of preparation
Step 1
Mix Mustard, turmeric and red chili powder, salt mustard oil
and green chillies and apply evenly on fish pieces.
Step 2
Cut each banana leaf into half and place three to four leaves
on tawa and put another set of leaves crosswise on top. Carefully place the
hilsa pieces on top and put the remaining masala ad oil on top. Fold the banana
leaves on the fish pieces and tie with a string. Cook it over high heat.
Step 3
It will take 20-25 minutes for hilsa to cook. Colour of the
leaves will start changing from green to yellow.
Your Fish is ready to eat.
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Favourite Desserts/ sweets:
Bengali meal is incomplete without are some recipe sweets.so
here of famous sweets.
Sandesh
sandesh |
It is a simple and delicious mix of fresh crumbled panner and powdered
sugar with invigorating aroma of cardamom-the mouth-watering Bengali sweet
recipe.
Ingredients: 1 ltr cream
milk
2 lemon
Powdered sugar 1/3 cup (50 grams)
Green cardamom 5 pcs
Pistachios 10-15 cut into small pieces
A few saffron strands
10-12
almonds cut into small pieces
2 tbsp. milk powder
Method
of preparation:
Step 1: Boil the milk and left it for cooling for 7 min.
Step 2: Add lemon juice to the milk for making milk curd
cheese
Step 3: Take a muslin cloth and pour that cheese and squeeze
it till the water comes out.
Step 4: Then pour some cold water to the cheese and strain
the water completely to extract the lemon juice.
Step 5: Now take out in a plate and press it with figure to
make the cheese soft for 5-7 min.
Step 6: Now add sugar powder and saffron strand to the cheese
and mix it completely.
Step 7: Now heat the
pan in low flame and fry cheese but it should crumble again fry it for 4-5 min
to make it softer.
Step 8: Again take out the cheese in the plate and let it
cool and then add cardamom powder.
Step 9: Now make round small balls with your palm and on the
top press it with pistachio.
Your Sandesh is ready.
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Rossogulla:
rossogulla |
Rossogulla is a
traditional Bengali sweet made up of Indian cottage cheese cooked in sugar
syrup.
Let’s see the recipe of
it.
Method:
Step 1: Make milk curd cheese as mentioned in the above method
of preparation of sandesh. (Follow up to step 4)
Step 2: Now take it in a plate and knead it till the lump is
removed.
Step 3: Now sprinkle some flour on the cheese and again mix
it to make the dough soft.
Step 4: In a pressure cooker add sugar and water and boil it.
Step 5: Now make small balls of the cheese dough and put it
gently on the sugar water and cover with lid and wait for the first whistle.
After the first whistle wait for 7-8 minutes and then switch off the gas. They
will expand double the original size.
After cooling you can pour saffron strands and rose water.
Your Rossogulla is ready to eat.
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Mishti Doi
Mishti Doi or sweet yoghurt is a traditional Bengali dish which is
made up of cream milk and jaggery.It is famous in west Bengal and odissa.
Mishti Doi |
Ingridient:
1 ltr cream milk
3-4 tbsp. Yoghurt
250 gms sugar
Method:
Step
1: Boil the milk until it reduce it to half and stir it frequently.
Step 2: Put the sugar into a pan and heat over into the low
flame. Allow sugar to caramelize. Add
milk to the sugar and mix it to blend.
Step 3: when sugar and milk are mixed thoroughly then add the
yoghurt.
Step 4: pour into a container and keep in a warm dark place
to set the doi. For best result you may pour it in a earthen pot.
After chiiling serve the mishit doi.
Mishiti Doi is ready to eat.
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Payesh/kheer
Kheer |
Payesh or kheer or rice
pudding is a dessert which defines our Bengali culture and love for sweets.it
plays important role in every ceremony be it your birthday, your baby shower or
any puja.
Ingredients
:
2 ltr full cream milk.
400 Gms sweetened cream milk.
1 cup sugar.
1 cup basmati rice.
1 cup cardamom powder.
50 gms of raisins.
50 Gms almond.
Few strands of saffron.
Rose petals.
Methods of preparation
Wash the rice and soak it in water for half an hour and cover
it with lid.
Put the milk, condensed milk and sugar in a deep and
thickened pan and boil. When milk comes to boil add rice to it.cook till the
milk thickens and reduces to half its volume.
Then add almonds, raisins and cardamom and cook for 5 mins.
Then switch off the flame and ad saffron.
Cool it and then serve.
Kheer is ready.
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Food walk by
Let’s Meet Up
Tours
Exploring street foods of Kolkata
we provide a "non-touristy
experience" our guide/ Tour Expert will meet you outside Oberoi Grand
Hotel and lead you through the diverse neighbourhood while tasting delicious
foods from the best specialty food shops, ethnic eateries, and local stalls.
We explore the local street food shops/stalls, here you may taste the Phuckas (a hollow round chip made with flour, that’s filled with spiced potatoes, and dunked into tamarind water before being served and eaten in a single bite),aalo chat (boiled potatoes with spices),
Jhal muri stall |
Jhal Muri ( It
consists of puffed rice like rice krispies), fried dal, peanuts, random crunchy
things, fresh chopped onions, a few bits of fresh tomatoes, coriander, a
handful of masala seasonings, and a light drizzle of mustard oil to top things
off) and Mango lassi topped with cashew nut,almonds,cherries and raisins.
How can you miss the Sweets! Yes, we
explore the traditional sweets at some of the famous sweet shops; you may taste
the Rosogulla at K C Das.
We visit the Nizams where the katti
roll was invented, walk around New Market area to explore the spice shops and
oldest tea shops of the city. A man powered rickshaw ride/walk to the food
street of the City “Park Street” to taste the Katti roll at Kusums.
We walk towards Russel Street to
taste the Kolkata Chai in clay cups.
exploring spice market |
Nodal point: Outside Oberoi Grand
Hotel
Duration of the tour: upto 2.5 hours
Charge: 4000 for minimum 2 pax
Includes: Food Charge, Tour
Expert/Guide Charge.