A date with Bengali Ranna

Executive Chef Nitin Mathur’s love for Kolkata and Bengali food is well known. When Chef Santu Aditya, all the way from Gateway Hotel, Kolkata, who is popular across India for his expertise in the Bangla cuisine visited Taj Krishna – together they recreated the magic of the cuisine that gets even more enticing with use of specialty ingredients like Kasundi mustard, the bekti fish, posto, and the nolegur, sourced all the way from the Eastern state.

‘Taste of Bengal’ the Bengali food promotion at hotel Taj Krishna will feature traditional and the not so widely available dishes on the alacarte and also as a part of thali at the fine dining restaurant ‘Firdous’ till March 26. What’s summer menu without the Aam prar shorbort (aam panna) and the Beetnoon gandhraj lebu jol – the nimbu pani made using the lime that Bengalis vouch for. So, both the Niramish and Amish Bangla ranna begins with these coolants.

Then come the chops in all the versions – Aloor chop, Chingri Mochhar chop, Murgur chop (Prawn cakes crumbed and deep fried) and the must have masala fish fry (Kasundi and green chilli marinated fish, crumb fried) and Postor bora – the street food that one can never say ‘no’ to. On the main course are included traditional dishes in addition to a few rare preparations. One can try the uniquely Bengali lentil cake preparation Dhokar Dalna, Aloo jhinge posto (potato and ridge gourd cooked with poppy seeds) and Kosha mangsho (the delicious lamb curry) with the luchi.

Nurture the Bengalis’ love for rice with Chingri malai curry, Betki paturi (traditional recipe of Betki fish marinated in mustard and steam-cooked by wrapping in a banana leaf), Bhaja moong dal (quintessentially Bengali version of making moon dal), the fish curry without which a Bengali meal is incomplete- machher jhol, or the fiery chicken curry made using coconut and green chillies – Narkel kancha-lonka diye murgir mangsho along with the aromatic ghee baat.

Have a great finish to a delightful meal with the nolengurer rosogolla, mishit doi or the assorted sandesh platter – or all the three. After all, how can one miss any dessert from this land of sweets?

By Rajeshwari Kalyanam