Bengali Cuisine : The Traditional and The Trendy The 21st century is an interesting time. The global village is shrinking, and we are reaching a situation where you can savour Venezuelan arepas in the heart of London and a bowl of Korean bibimbap in a cosy cafe in Kolkata. Fusion food is on the rise,…
Author: Utsav
Part-time radiologist, full-time foodie
On Emulsions, Seasonality, and Contrasts
Anatomy of a Masterpiece (Part 2) Last week, we commenced a long, meandering journey through the intricacies of a particular dish from a particular restaurant in central London, a dish that put the vegetable front and center: a piece of cabbage that is cooked in butter and charred on the grill. The charred piece of…
On Vegetables, Umami, and Blackening
Anatomy of a Masterpiece (Part 1) This year’s Christmas offering isn’t exactly Christmas themed, but a deep-dive into a dish that screams winter, among other things. I’ve dissected dishes on my blog before, but this one has to be the most elaborate. With generous forays into a variety of aspects that ultimately converge onto a…
Fried, Covered, Devilled
A Tale of Two Cities : Part 2 I am lucky to have spent my college days in the heart of North Kolkata, a place which still retains some of that old-school charm. Just five minutes away from my college was the iconic Dilkhusha cabin, one of those places which give you the feeling of…
Anatomy of Fish and Chips
A Tale of Two Cities : Part 1 The skies were overcast, and there was a slight nip in the air. I briskly made my way towards my destination, one of those hyped fish and chips spots in London that serves you a grand version of the dish at a definitely steep price. But I…
Dosa in a Time Warp : Part 2
I like little islands of patterns in a sea of randomness. This article serves the dual purpose of setting in action one such symmetry, while giving me an excuse to reminisce. Just over two years ago, I went to Bangalore for the first time. And it took me hardly any time to fall in love…
Latke, Tortilla, Hash
The Potato Chronicles: Part 6 We are halfway through the series, and so far we have only dealt with boiled and mashed potatoes in its myriad forms. This time, we take a different approach, where we cut the potato up into pieces instead of dunking them in water as a first step. We could start…
Pies, Dumplings, Croquettes
The Potato Chronicles: Part 5 Last time, we explored the applications of mash in the context of Indian street food. This time, we will take a more of a global approach, exploring instances where the mash is incorporated into a larger dish. Stuffing a dough with a potato and cheese filling followed by poaching it…
Bonda, Tikki, Churmur
The Potato Chronicles: Part 4 Last time, we talked about global applications of the mash before taking a long detour into food science and concluding with a trio of Indian breakfast classics that hero the humble mash. A spiced mash also forms the basis for a huge array of deep-fried streetside treats in India. It’s…
Bhorta, Amylopectin, Palya
The Potato Chronicles: Part 3 So far, we have traced potato’s history upto the early 20th century, and explored some of the variations of the humble (and sometimes not-so-humble) mash all over Europe. This time, let’s set sail and go global, exploring some varieties of mash and mash-based dishes from around the world. The Bengali…
The Gourmet Glutton 