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Bitter, fiery, sweet and sour – the Calcutta combination

posted on Monday, August 25, 2008 12:11 PM

Author: Sanjay Kumar, Brighton

Seasonal variations on the menu include sukto, a traditional lunch dish of a mixture of vegetables, one of which must be bitter such as palta pata or bitter wax gourd. Sukto is always served at room temperature and served at summer time on special occasions.

The quickly made charchari is a fiery combination of vegetables and dry spices in which peelings and scrapings are often included. A well cooked charchari – dry sharp and biting with just the right amount of fire. Some of the best I’ve tasted are those served at roadside dhaba’s. If charchari is served it’s nearly always with its sister dish – dalna – made in the same way but with much heavier gravy laced with spicy molasses.

Ambole is a sweet and sour dish of fish, vegetables and fruit. The fruit added depends largely on the seasons but can include amra (hog plum), chalta (elephant apple), green mango with shole maach (murrel fish) makes an ambole to die for. The ambole if on the menu is always cooked first as it is served last at room temperature.

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