BENGALI FOOD MEALS
The Bengalis are great food lovers and take pride in their cuisine. The medium of cooking is mustard oil which adds on its own pungency. Another very important item of Bengali cuisine is the variety of sweets or mishti as they call them. Most of them are milk based and are prepared from chana (ponir as it is popularly known). The most popular among the Bengali sweets are the Roshogolla, Shondesh, Pantua and Mishti Doi and these four sweets are a must at every wedding besides some other sweets, which may vary as per individual choice. A meal, for the Bengali, is a ritual in itself even if it only boiled rice and lentils (dal bhat), with of course a little fish. Bengalis, like the French, spend not only the great deal of time thinking about the food but also on its preparation and eating. Quips like “Bengalis live to eat” and “Bengalis spend most of their income on food” are not exactly exaggerated. The early morning shopping for fresh vegetables, fish etc. is the prerogative of the head of the family, even in affluent household, because he feels that he alone can pick up the best at a bargain price. The Bengalis are very particular about the way and the order in which the food should be served. Each dish is to be eaten separately with a little rice so that the individual flavours can be enjoyed. The first item served may be a little ghee which is poured over a small portion of rice and eaten with a pinch of salt. Then come the bitter preparation, shukto, followed by lentils or dals, together with roasted or fried vegetables (bhaja or bharta). Next come the vegetable dishes, the lightly spiced vegetables, chenchki, chokka, followed by the most heavily spiced dalna, ghonto and those cooked with fish. Finally the chicken or mutton, if this being served at all. Chaatni comes to clear the palate together with crisp savoury wafers, papor. Dessert is usually sweet yogurt (mishti doi). The meal is finally concluded with the handing out of betel leaf (paan)
ROSSOOLLGA
Rôshogolla/Rossogolla, a Bengali traditional sweet, is one of the most widely consumed sweets in India. Mistakenly thought to have originated in Bengal, its actual oorigin was Odisha, from where it travelled to Bengal.Other variations of “Channa” based sweets have existed in Orissa or other parts of Eastern India from about the 17th century;as the process and technology involved in synthesizing “Channa” was introduced to the Indians by the Dutch in the 1650s. The cottage cheese "schmierkase" was also known as Dutch cheese. Despite all the controversies, the earlier versions of Rossogolla lacked the spherical regularity, texture and binding capacity of the modern avatar that is well known and highly acclaimed today. This was due to the fact that the know-how involved in synthesizing such a sweet was unknown before being experimentally developed by Nobin Chandra Das and then constantly improved and further standardized by his successors. Even today, Nobin Chandra Das is affectionately referred to as the "Columbus of Rossogolla".[8][9]Rôshogolla/Rossogolla, a Bengali traditional sweet, is one of the most widely consumed sweets in India. Mistakenly thought to have originated in Bengal, its actual oorigin was Odisha, from where it travelled to Bengal.Other variations of “Channa” based sweets have existed in Orissa or other parts of Eastern India from about the 17th century;as the process and technology involved in synthesizing “Channa” was introduced to the Indians by the Dutch in the 1650s. The cottage cheese "schmierkase" was also known as Dutch cheese. Despite all the controversies, the earlier versions of Rossogolla lacked the spherical regularity, texture and binding capacity of the modern avatar that is well known and highly acclaimed today. This was due to the fact that the know-how involved in synthesizing such a sweet was unknown before being experimentally developed by Nobin Chandra Das and then constantly improved and further standardized by his successors. Even today, Nobin Chandra Das is affectionately referred to as the "Columbus of Rossogolla".[8][9]Rôshogolla/Rossogolla, a Bengali traditional sweet, is one of the most widely consumed sweets in India. Mistakenly thought to have originated in Bengal, its actual oorigin was Odisha, from where it travelled to Bengal.Other variations of “Channa” based sweets have existed in Orissa or other parts of Eastern India from about the 17th century;as the process and technology involved in synthesizing “Channa” was introduced to the Indians by the Dutch in the 1650s. The cottage cheese "schmierkase" was also known as Dutch cheese. Despite all the controversies, the earlier versions of Rossogolla lacked the spherical regularity, texture and binding capacity of the modern avatar that is well known and highly acclaimed today. This was due to the fact that the know-how involved in synthesizing such a sweet was unknown before being experimentally developed by Nobin Chandra Das and then constantly improved and further standardized by his successors. Even today, Nobin Chandra Das is affectionately referred to as the "Columbus of Rossogolla".[8][9]Rôshogolla/Rossogolla, a Bengali traditional sweet, is one of the most widely consumed sweets in India. Mistakenly thought to have originated in Bengal, its actual oorigin was Odisha, from where it travelled to Bengal.Other variations of “Channa” based sweets have existed in Orissa or other parts of Eastern India from about the 17th century;as the process and technology involved in synthesizing “Channa” was introduced to the Indians by the Dutch in the 1650s. The cottage cheese "schmierkase" was also known as Dutch cheese. Despite all the controversies, the earlier versions of Rossogolla lacked the spherical regularity, texture and binding capacity of the modern avatar that is well known and highly acclaimed today. This was due to the fact that the know-how involved in synthesizing such a sweet was unknown before being experimentally developed by Nobin Chandra Das and then constantly improved and further standardized by his successors. Even today, Nobin Chandra Das is affectionately referred to as the "Columbus of Rossogolla".[8][9]Rôshogolla/Rossogolla, a Bengali traditional sweet, is one of the most widely consumed sweets in India. Mistakenly thought to have originated in Bengal, its actual oorigin was Odisha, from where it travelled to Bengal.Other variations of “Channa” based sweets have existed in Orissa or other parts of Eastern India from about the 17th century;as the process and technology involved in synthesizing “Channa” was introduced to the Indians by the Dutch in the 1650s. The cottage cheese "schmierkase" was also known as Dutch cheese. Despite all the controversies, the earlier versions of Rossogolla lacked the spherical regularity, texture and binding capacity of the modern avatar that is well known and highly acclaimed today. This was due to the fact that the know-how involved in synthesizing such a sweet was unknown before being experimentally developed by Nobin Chandra Das and then constantly improved and further standardized by his successors. Even today, Nobin Chandra Das is affectionately referred to as the "Columbus of Rossogolla".[8][9]Rôshogolla/Rossogolla, a Bengali traditional sweet, is one of the most widely consumed sweets in India. Mistakenly thought to have originated in Bengal, its actual oorigin was Odisha, from where it travelled to Bengal.Other variations of “Channa” based sweets have existed in Orissa or other parts of Eastern India from about the 17th century;as the process and technology involved in synthesizing “Channa” was introduced to the Indians by the Dutch in the 1650s. The cottage cheese "schmierkase" was also known as Dutch cheese. Despite all the controversies, the earlier versions of Rossogolla lacked the spherical regularity, texture and binding capacity of the modern avatar that is well known and highly acclaimed today. This was due to the fact that the know-how involved in synthesizing such a sweet was unknown before being experimentally developed by Nobin Chandra Das and then constantly improved and further standardized by his successors. Even today, Nobin Chandra Das is affectionately referred to as the "Columbus of Rossogolla".[8][9]Rôshogolla/Rossogolla, a Bengali traditional sweet, is one of the most widely consumed sweets in India. Mistakenly thought to have originated in Bengal, its actual oorigin was Odisha, from where it travelled to Bengal.Other variations of “Channa” based sweets have existed in Orissa or other parts of Eastern India from about the 17th century;as the process and technology involved in synthesizing “Channa” was introduced to the Indians by the Dutch in the 1650s. The cottage cheese "schmierkase" was also known as Dutch cheese. Despite all the controversies, the earlier versions of Rossogolla lacked the spherical regularity, texture and binding capacity of the modern avatar that is well known and highly acclaimed today. This was due to the fact that the know-how involved in synthesizing such a sweet was unknown before being experimentally developed by Nobin Chandra Das and then constantly improved and further standardized by his successors. Even today, Nobin Chandra Das is affectionately referred to as the "Columbus of Rossogolla".
MISHTI DOI
The last item before the sweets is Doi or yogurt.It is generally of two varieties, either natural flavour and taste or Mishti Doi – sweet yogurt, typically sweetened with charred sugar. This brings about a brown colour and a distinct flavour. Like the fish or sweets mishti doi is typically identified with Bengali cuisine.
In a daily meal it is likely that some of the courses might get missed, for instance the 'Shak',the additional course, Chutney and Papor. In some cases, the dessert might be given a miss as well. The courses overall are the same at home or at a social function (e.g. marriage feast). Rice, which is the staple across the meal gets replaced by 'luchi' or luchi stuffed with dal or mashed green peas. Interesting thing to note is that the replacement is a relatively recent phenomenon and has been seen in practice only from about early 20th century.
 |
| Bengali Meal |
- Rice
- Ghee
- Bhaja
- Ghonto
- Danla
- Chokka
- Pantua
- Rossogolla
- Shondesh
- Pan
