Bengalis have a strong passion for food, especially fish. Bengali cuisine comes from West Bengal and Bangladesh and is influenced by Mughal, Portuguese, and British rule. Typical meals include rice, dal, vegetables, and fish. Popular fish varieties are hilsa, rui, prawns, and crab. Breakfast may consist of puffed rice with milk and fruit. Lunch includes starters like sukto followed by rice, dal and fried snacks. Dinner features fish curries, vegetables, meat, chutneys and sweet yogurt for dessert. A signature Bengali recipe provided is for maachher jhol, a fish curry made with mustard oil, spices and vegetables.

1. Welcome to the World of BengaliWelcome to the World of Bengali
CuisineCuisine
Bengalis are an infectiously passionate lot & few
things unite them more than their passion for food
– especially fish.
So lets try to explore the richness of Bengali Cuisine

2. LOCATIONLOCATION
Situated in eastern Part of India
Surrounded by states like –Bihar, Jharkhand,
Orissa, Assam & neighboring country of
Bangladesh ( which was once a part of West
Bengal & is also referred as East Bengal
sometimes)

3. HISTORYHISTORY
 Capital city – Kolkatta ( previously called
Calcutta ) of all Indian cities has been under
foreign rule.
Foreigners include - Moguls ,Portuguese &
British.

4. BENGALI BREAKFASTBENGALI BREAKFAST
 19th
Century- Preparation of a little butter, two or three
green chilies ,a pyramid of boiled rice, a ditto egg, &
around of dried fish, with salt & cayenne at discretion .
 Today – A big bowl containing Moorri (puffed rice), thick
creamy milk & healthy dollops of freshly mashed fruit
such as sweet, ripe mangoes or jackfruit .
 OR moorri in its savory form just tossed with mustard oil
& chopped green chilies .

5. Contd.Contd.
Breakfast may also include a lump of date palm
jaggery to balance the savories of one with
sweetness of the other.
( five different types of jaggery can be made alone
from date palm )

6. MID-MORNING SNACKMID-MORNING SNACK
(Jhalkhabar)(Jhalkhabar)
 It may include rossogolla, sandesh & singhara.
 Singhara is a Bengali samosa consisting of vegetables
such as cauliflower or potatoes, all nicely spiced, wrapped
in a triangular pastry & deep fried.
 Sandesh is most classical & oldest of all chhana
sweets.Chhana is simply mixed with thick sugar syrup &
cooked over low flame till the moisture evaporates.It is
then pressed into pretty wooden moulds.

7. Contd.Contd.
Rossogolla is the most famous among all Bengali
sweets.To prepare it first milk is curdled& the
curds separated from the whey. Moisture is
squeezed out of the curds through muslin. Now
dough is formed into small balls & drop them in
boiling syrup where they are allowed to puff up.

8. LUNCHLUNCH
Sukto is a lunch time favorite & a starter of the
meal.
It is followed by rice, dhal & accompanied by a
fried tidbit or Baja .
It may also include ‘rui macher jhol’ ,‘aam jhol’ ,
‘misti doi’ & they can finish off with a sandesh.

9. Evening SnacksEvening Snacks
 It may include ‘jhal moori’, a spicy combination of
moori ,potatoes & cucumber.
 People might also prefer to have phuchka.First fry a
small, very crisp ball shaped poori.Then poke a hole on top
& stuff in some spicy potatoes. Then fill to the top with
tart, cumin& red chilli flavored tamarind water & stuff
it in your mouth before the water drips.

10. DINNERDINNER
 It starts with an elegant pilaf of rice ,the dhal,flavored
with fish head (macher matha diye mooger dal & the
bhaja ,delicate pumpkin flowers dipped in chickpea flour
batter & deep fried.
 Next would come fish –perhaps prawns simmered in
coconut milk ( chingri malai ) -&vegetables such as
pungent sorse dharush ( okra cooked with a paste of
mustard seeds ) & kopir dantar dalna chingri maccher
diye (Cauliflower stems cooked with tiny shrimp).

11. Contd..Contd..
 Meat would follow – perhaps mangsho jhol, nicely
marinated lamb cooked in mustard oil with potatoes &
onions.
 Chutney course would be next – this could be made with
tomatoes, nicely studded with bits of preserved sweet
mango-accompanied by soft loochis( breads )
 Then would come the sweet yogurt , steamed yogurt
(bhapa doi ( steamed yoghurt )

12. Contd…Contd…
 Finally, would come the sweets –
 Rasmalai- a chhana sweet floating in cardamom flavored
cream
 Kala Jamun- dark round balls made out of fried chhana
 Lady Kennys- fried chhana balls stuffed with raisins (last
named after a foreign woman, Lady Canning ,the wife of
a Governor General.

13. THE HEART OF BENGALI CUISINETHE HEART OF BENGALI CUISINE
------- FISH------- FISH
Fish is treated very auspicious in Bengali’ s life.
Bengali people prefer to have only fresh water fish
No meal is treated complete without fish.
Most famous varieties of fish among Bengalis-
Elish , Hilsa, Rui, Perch, Mullet, Crab, Carp,
Prawn, Crayfish & lobster.

14. RECIPES FROM BENGALRECIPES FROM BENGAL
MAACHHER JHOL Portion- 04
Ingredients Qty
Carp steaks 800g
Ground turmeric 2.5ml
Salt 2.5ml
Mustard oil 150ml
Ground corriander seeds 15ml

15. Contd…Contd…
Red chilli pwd. 2.5ml
Ground cumin seeds 5ml
Finely grated ,peeled fresh ginger 7.5ml
Nigella seeds 1/4tsp
Whole, dried,hot, red chillies 4
Bay leaves 2
Onion ,peeled & finely chopped 100g

16. ContdContd……
 Green chillies
 METHOD
 Rub the fish well with the turmeric & salt & set aside.
 Heat the oil in a non-stick frying pan over a medium
flame.Let it get smokingly hot.
 Put the fish pieces & brown lightly on all sides without
cooking them through.

17. ContdContd……
 Remove & put it on a plate.Combine coriander seeds
,cumin,ginger, 1 tsp turmeric, chilli powder & salt in a
small bowl.
 Add 3 tbs of water& mix. Heat oil ,add nigella seeds, bay
leaves & red chillies. Allow it to crackle.
 Add onion &sauté till golden brown in colour. Now add
the fish in single layer & 250ml water.Lay the green
chillies over the fish. Cover & cook for 10-15 mins.
 Note: the whole chilli should be eaten by those who know
what they are doing.