It’s Christmas day, and time for the final part of our series on the roast dinner, and the final article of the year. 2021 has been a difficult year, especially in the early months, and I haven’t been able to post regularly. Well, here’s to ending the year right, and hoping for a brighter one…
The Roast Dinner Equation (Part 2)
In Part 1 of our exploration of the Christmas roast dinner, we talked about the bird, the buying, and the brining. Now, it’s finally time to get cooking…… Utsav: Alright, flavours. What are some of the traditional flavours used when making a roast chicken? Nodee: The baseline has to be a fat with some aromats….
The Roast Dinner Equation (Part 1)
I’ve always posted something special during the Christmas season. In 2019, I went down memory lane and posted my first draft of Food and the Senses, one of my first proper attempts at food writing. And in 2020, it was all about exploring the one thing all Calcuttans associate with Christmas: the Christmas cake. This…
The Mystique of Monochrome (Part 2)
Last time, we started our exploration of monochrome food with a close look at three out of seven dishes from the monochrome menu of Ottimo. This week, we will examine the remaining four dishes. As in every meal, not every course is perfect, and this menu too had its ups and downs. We will work…
The Mystique of Monochrome (Part 1)
As a concept, monochrome food seems counterintuitive: isn’t food meant to be colourful and eye-catching? From the green coriander on an orange butter chicken to the white sesame seeds on a brownish prawn stir-fry, contrast in food is eye-catching, and something which we have associated with being appetizing. Monochrome dishes look duller, since everything on…
Machh : From Kitchen to Table
It’s that time of the year again. Pujo is over, the lights and music have subsided, and we Bengalis, with heavy hearts, are slowly returning to our daily routine. However, to keep some of the Bong spirit alive, we still have two instalments of the Machh series to deal with. Here’s Part 3… Last time,…
The Magic of Mangsher Jhol
In my house, mutton wasn’t cooked very often, and usually reserved for special occasions. One of those occasions was Pujo, when a batch of mutton would be brought from the market and cooked into a delicious jhol. Which is why, to this day, a mutton curry to me feels celebratory, almost ceremonial, and also why…
Machh : In the Kitchen
In Part 1 of this series, we began our journey with a visit to the fish market and an overview of the major cuts of fish. It’s time to get cooking, and what better to start with than the simplest fish dish possible? The recipe couldn’t be simpler: coat pieces of fish in salt and…
Machh : From Market to Kitchen
It is an understatement to say that fish is an integral portion of Bengali cuisine. It is hard to imagine Bengali food without fish and rice. The fertile delta of the Ganges means that there is never a dearth of freshwater fish, and we Bongs are experts at making the best of it. However, the…
The CR Park Saga
I’ve been writing food articles for over two years now, and I’ve realised that my articles usually fall into two categories. The first type is an expression of the nerd in me, trying to craft meticulously edited articles with extensive internet research tied together into a clear narrative, then edited and re-edited until the day…
The Gourmet Glutton 