4 Delectable Bengali Dish to Sooth Your Taste Buds!

A perfect Bengali Dish is complete only with fish and rice. The specialty of Bengali cuisine lies in the perfect blend of sweet and spicy flavors. A perfect Bengali Dish in its aroma makes the meal complete. Most of the cooking is done with Mustard oil (one should burn the oil to remove its heaviness). Intake of this oil is a must for all Bengalis. It helps to keep the body adapted to all seasons and weather. This oil is an Ayurvedic treatment against joint pains, keeping all muscles supple. It is rubbed especially on newborn babies to avoid a cough, cold and congestion. Most of the cooking is in tandem with the seasons, which is the secret of shiny glowing skin in Bengalis.

Macher Jhol (Fish Stew)

Macher Jhol

Ingredients:

1. 6 Rohu fish pieces,
2. 2 Potatoes peeled & diced
3. 1 Tomato sliced
4. Oil to fry
5. 1Onion, small piece Ginger & 6 pods Garlic paste
6. Turmeric powder
7. Chilli powder
8. Coriander powder
9. Cumin powder
10. A pinch of sugar
11. Salt to taste

 Preparation:  8 min

Wash the fish pieces and marinate it with salt & turmeric and leave aside for 5 min. Make a fine paste with onion, ginger & garlic.

Procedure: 15 mins

Keep the skillet on the gas and heat the oil well, simmer the gas (as it has a tendency to spurt) and put in 2 pieces of fish and fry well on high flame till slightly golden on both sides. Put aside on tissue paper for the oil to soak. Repeat the same till all fish pieces are fried. Add the paste in the remaining oil along with tomatoes and fry well till the paste leaves oil at the sides. Then add coriander, cumin and chili powder, a pinch of sugar and salt to taste. Add the potatoes and 2 cups of water. Keep to boil and cover till potatoes are cooked. Add one cup of water, boil and put the fried fish pieces into it. Cover and Simmer on slow fire for 5 min.  Serve with steaming plain rice…

It’s a one meal diet which is nutritious and healthy. This Bengali dish is especially taken during summer months as it keeps the body cool.

Ilish Macher Paturi (Steamed Fish)

Ilish Macher Paturi

Ingredients:

1. 6 pieces of Hilsa fish(a delicacy found during early monsoon)
2. 10gms Mustard seeds
3. 2 tablespoon posto (khus-khus)
4. Few green chilies
5. One fresh lime
6. Turmeric powder
7. Chilli powder
8. 2 spoons Mustard oil
9. A pinch of sugar
10. Salt to taste
11. Fresh & soft green banana leaves
12. Toothpick

Preparation: 15 min

Wash the fish and keep aside to drain the water off. Do not wash many times as the natural fish oil is lost. Make a paste of mustard seeds and mustard (posto used to nullify the bitter taste of mustard), add2 green chilly. Make a thick paste using water. Care should be taken to see the medium consistency of the paste. Add turmeric powder, chili powder, sugar, and salt. Squeeze half fresh lime and 2 spoons of mustard oil to the paste. Mix well and keep aside.

Take the drained fish, add it to the prepared paste and marinate for 5 min.

Now cut the fresh green banana leaves into a size enough to wrap one fish.

Place each paste-covered Hilsa fish in the middle of each leaf and fix with a toothpick so that the paste does not leak while steaming the paturi .

Procedure:20 mins

Heat a non-stick skillet, place one wrapped Hilsa fish in the middle and cover it. Steam on medium heat for a while till the leaf- burning smell comes, then only your fish is cooked. Turn it until that side is done. Keep on turning the sides till frying smell comes (the oil of the wrapped is sufficient for cooking the fish). Leave aside. Repeat with each piece. Serve after removing toothpick with steaming rice…

A highly nutritious Bengali dish delicacy- must for Bengali weddings.

Chingri Macher Malaikari (Lobster in Coconut Milk)

Chingri Macher Malaikari

Ingredients:

 5 big size Lobsters

1. One cocoanut for milk
2. 2 onions, small piece ginger &6/8 flakes of garlic paste
3. 2 tomatoes
4. !/2 cup cashew nut paste
5. Chilly powder
6. 1 teaspoon sugar
7. Salt to taste
8. ¼ piece nutmeg
9. One teaspoon pure ghee
10. Oil for cooking

Preparation: 20 min

Wash the lobsters keeping only the tail fin and the headshell intact. Make sure that the midrib is incised and the black thread is pulled out. Keep aside and drain water. Make a paste of onion, ginger & garlic. Grate the coconut, put half a cup of tepid water and squeeze fresh milk and keep covered. Soak the cashew nuts and make a semi-liquid paste.

Procedure: 25 min 

Heat the skillet with oil. Add the onion, ginger & garlic paste. Fry till oil leaves sides. Add tomatoes, cook and then add the lobsters. Cover and cook till tender. Add chilly powder, sugar, and salt. Cook till the water dries and leaves oil at the side. By now the aroma must reach you. Add cashew nut paste and the pure ghee. Simmer and cook, taking care to cover. Keep stirring as it will have a tendency to stick to the bottom. Now the lobster is tender add the coconut milk and boil for 1 min on low flame. Garnish with nutmeg powder and cover. Serve with steaming hot rice.

It is rich in protein and one meal diet. A Bengali delicacy and a must Bengali dish for weddings.

Aloo Posto (Potato with Khus-Khus)

Alu Posto

Ingredients: 

1. 4 medium-sized Potatoes
2. 50 gms of posto (khus-khus)
3. Few green chilly
4. A pinch of sugar
5. Salt to taste
6. Oil for cooking

Preparation: 10 mins

Soak the posto for 10 min. Make a paste of the same after adding a few green chilly. Make sure a semi-liquid smooth consistency is made. The secret of delicious posto is a smooth silk paste with no seeds. Peel the potatoes and dice it and keep aside.

Procedure: 15 mins

Heat the skillet with oil. Fry the diced potatoes on slow fire. Care should be taken to make it golden brown. Add the posto paste, salt and a pinch of sugar.

Add one cup of water, cover, and simmer. Stir from time to time as it has a tendency to stick to the bottom. Add one spoon of oil if it does. Keep frying till a cooking smell comes. Cover and keep aside. Garnish with slit green chilly. Serve with steaming plain rice.

Highly nutritious, has a cooling effect and nullifies acidity. This Bengali dish is a must during summer months.