Indian Vegetarian Cooking – Bengali Cuisine
Lip-smacking vegetarian delicacies from Bengal
Jun 3, 2009
So you thought Bengali cooking was all about fish and meat? Contrary to popular belief, Bengali vegetarian dishes can be as unique and tasty as their non-vegetarian siblings. Some of the ingredients used in this cooking are totally weird and unheard of, like thor (a dish using the stem of the banana plant), posto (poppy seeds), echor (unripe fruit of the jackfruit tree).
The Origin
It is noteworthy that most of the techniques of cooking were developed at a time when Bengali women spent almost all their time in the kitchen. Since men spent all their time at work or with their cultural activities and only come home for their meals, the women worked hard on their culinary arts to entice their husbands. The more time they spent in the kitchen, the more detailed and complex were the preparations.
However, the more elaborate meals are now reserved only for religious and social festivals like Durga puja and weddings.
A Typical Bengali Meal
Bengali cuisine absorbs the five essential tastes of astringent, bitter, sweet, sour and hot. A large part of Bengali cuisine is reliant on mustard oil as the medium for cooking. A typical meal starts with a “shukto”, which is a mixed vegetable curry with bitter gourd and raw banana, which acts as a cleanser for the stomach. This is followed by a “saag” (greens like palak, etc) prepared using mustard seeds, or eaten with mustard sauce and rice.
The main accompaniment of a Bengali lunch is steamed rice. The saag is followed by daal (a preparation of lentils). A very popular lentil preparation is the “bhaaja mooger daal” which is prepared after shallow frying the lentil without oil. Crispy fried thin strips of potato usually accompany this course. This is followed by a vegetable/fish/egg/meat/poultry curry. The meal always ends with a dessert, the most famous being the “roshogolla “(steamed cottage cheese balls in sugary syrup).
Aside of steamed rice, the accompaniment may also be also be luchi (deep fried flat bread) or biriyani.
Some Restaurants That Serve Authentic Bengali Dishes
Although most Bengalis will tell you that the best meals are made by Ma at home, there are a few restaurants that whip up such delicacies. 6 Ballygunge Place is a good one, with branches in Calcutta and Bangalore. Another good restaurant that seems to be very popular is O Calcutta. Aaheli at Peerless Inn in Calcutta is also a very nice place to experiment with Bengali cuisine.
Some Must-Have Bengali Vegetarian Delicacies
Whether you taste them in a Bengali household or in a speciality restaurant, there are a few dishes that you must try out. The first is the famous “Aaloo poshto” – a preparation of potato and poppy seeds; “Mochar ghonto” – banana blossoms cooked with coconut; “Pora” – roasted aubergine cooked with salt, green chillies, coriander leaves, onions and mustard oil; “Pithey” - a pancake like sweet base of semolina or flour which is rolled around a variety of fillings like coconut and kheer and fried in ghee.
Bengali cuisine is known for its delicacy, intricacy and density of flavours and perhaps the only multi-course cuisine from India and at par with French cuisine in structure. Little wonder that the Bengali’s love for food is renowned.
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