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Spuds, toms and the delicate essence of West Bengal nosh

posted on Monday, August 25, 2008 12:09 PM

Author: Sanjay Kumar, Brighton

The pedestrian tuber was bought to Calcutta and named vilayati alu (English potato) to differentiate the import from the indigenous ranga alu (sweet potato). Who bought the potato to India is a matter of conjecture. Dr. K.T. Achaya wrote that the potato was a part of the banquet given by Asaf Khan for Sir Thomas Roe, the first English ambassador to the court of Jehangir in 1615. Around 1780, a ‘basket of potatoes’ was considered a fit enough gift to present to Warren Hastings, the Governor-General in Calcutta. The new comer was regarded with deep suspicion by Indians and it was a long time before the potato became a kitchen constant.

The essence of West Bengal cooking is the delicate balance between the main ingredients and its seasoning. The one must not overpower the other and all spices must be freshly roasted. Some dishes are twice cooked, like jhole which is a spicy stew. Vegetables are lightly sautéed and put aside. The fish is then fried. Ground spices are then brought to the boil and vegetables are added and the fish. The reason is that all the ingredients need to be cooked to their proper consistency when removed from the fire (or cooker). This variation of sautéing is called santlano and is common to Bengali cooking. The trump card of Bengali cooking is the addition called phoron or sambhara which is a combination of whole spices fried and added either at the start or finish of cooking as flavouring special to each dish.

The noted gourmet, writer and former French ambassador to India, Antoine Daridan during the turbulent 1960’s remarked to his Bengali host, the legendary chief minister B.C Roy that of all foods in the world only Chinese and Bengali cuisine could compare with the taste and sophistication of his native fare. He may have a point because the deceptively simple appearance of a Bengali meal is actually the combination of precision and balance that calls for every method of cooking. Rice and dalls are boiled; bhaja is deep fried; chhenchki and charchari are braised or stir fried; bhapey is steamed and there are a few dishes the ingredients of which are put into the embers of a wood or charcoal fire like jackfruit seeds which are tasty substitute for chestnuts, or fish in mustard chutney wrapped in banana leaves.

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