Kolkata
Kolkata stirs up my soul. Wherever I go, whichever city I live in and call that my home, there is always a reference to something or someplace or somebody or some incident in Kolkata. It amuses me sometimes as well as it irritates me. I end up finding Venice as water-logged North Kolkata! I cannot ever severe my soul Konnection...
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Ramadan Food Trail With Calcutta Walks | As The Muezzin Calls
Beauty surrounds us, but usually we need to be walking in a garden to know it. ∼Rumi ‘Why do you need to go on a food tour in Kolkata with a guide?’ My friends and family members were pretty baffled. I, who have been going around each and every lane, bylane, market, sweet shop, food kiosk, restaurant in Kolkata – with my Nikon, smartphone and the Z-Sisters in tow. Well that’s true. But Kolkata being Kolkata – the overstimulated kaleidoscope that it is, the melting pot of culture, heritage and history that it is, one needs a guide… an explorer rather, who can guide you through the exploration of the…
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Scoop In Outram Ghat | Yesss, It Still Exists!
A comment left on my Instagram post by my cousin sis who had been my closest friend during my childhood, left me in utter confusion… ‘Does Scoop still exist in Kolkata? Khoj korish toh/do check!’ The referred scoop is not an ordinary scoop of ice cream or a new piece of gossip doing the media round, but a very special ice cream parlour by the Ganges. Visiting Scoop had been a luxury, a special destination for a very special treat that required a lot of saving up. After all, Rs 25 spent on an ice cream sundae from a meager pocket money of Rs 50/week didn’t come cheap. And what…
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Luchi Featured In Ahlan! Gourmet | My Ode To Phulko Luchi!
‘If Bruschetta remains Bruschetta and Crostata remains Crostata, then Phulko Luchi should be nothing else but be called Phulko Luchi!’ Luchi got featured in the February issue of Ahlan! Gourmet (above), along with Kosha Mangsho and Polao. Naturally, my Bengali foodie soul is very satisfied. When Olivia Spadavecchia, the Editor of Ahlan! Gourmet contacted me, I had already been planning to do a post – an Ode of the pictorial kind, on Luchi. I was slightly skeptical as to whether the Bengali names of the dishes should remain the same or was I going to translate and create names for them. What was I going to call Phulko Luchi? Puffed-up…
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Bohemian Restaurant In Kolkata | Chef Joy Talks About Food That Does Cabaret On The Senses!
Bohemian… bəʊˈhiːmɪən/ a socially unconventional person, especially one who is involved in the arts… a nonconformist, unconventional person, beatnik, hippy, avant-gardist, free spirit, dropout, artistic person; I have just returned from a short Christmas break in Prague. Apart from being the Czech capital, Prague also happens to be the capital of the region – Bohemia. This was a sojourn which was Bohemian in spirit. A bit of self-introspection – without my husband or the Z-Sisters, along with a bunch of 6 other girlfriends. We came back giggling like school girls. Till I had boarded the plane and it was off the UAE soil, everybody had doubts whether I’ll be actually…
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Khichuri As Harbinger of Hope & Kolkata Soaked In Rains
The best thing one can do when it’s raining is to let it rain. ∼ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow And of course cook something appropriate for the rains… Khichuri? Khichuri or Khichdi (a dish made up of rice and lentils) as it’s known in many parts of India can be conjured up as a delicacy unlike in many parts of India where it is a basic meal served during ailment and sickness. For Bengalis, Khichuri is synonymous to writing love letters – it requires more punch and accompaniments than other meals. Also, the ambiance required to serve Khichuri is also the same – romantic thunderstorm and dark rolling clouds out bursting into…
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Hot Garlic Pickle | The Pickled Diary – Episode 1
Hunger is the best pickle. ∼ Benjamin Franklin Mother (-in-law) Of All Pickles! My last post was called Pickles… Mother (-in-law) Of All Pickles! It was a loving post dedicated to my Mum-in-law who loves collecting recipes. Some would term this as an obsession. This obsession extends mainly to collecting recipes more than actually executing them! She has many hand-written notebooks where she writes down all the recipes that she collects. And one such notebook is her ‘Diary of Pickles’. I call this diary the Mother of all Pickles, or rather Mother (in-law) of all pickles. Instead of writing these recipes down if she had started typing them in from…
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Pickles | Mother (-in-law) Of All Pickles!
To most Pickles refer to the art of preserving food. And to others it is a tiny pinch of accompaniment with another more important and popular food item. But to me, a Pickle is like Abstract Art. I don’t understand it completely, yet at the same time it tickles my senses with it’s vibrant colours, the strong aroma of the mixtures inside the pickle bottle and finally the strong taste. I am not a pickle person. But I’ll pursue pickles with my camera and research as they always catch my fancy. There is nothing in a pickled bottle that will not catch my fancy – top it up with the…
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Momos in Tiretti Bazar | The Last Chinese Remnants Of Kolkata!
Tiretti Bazar – a buzzing Chinese Bazar which starts as early as 5am in the morning and disappears sharp at 8:30 am, just before the offices start and the roads turn into parking spaces for the day – is a story that needs to be told fast before it disappears. Kolkata is the only Indian city with an official Chinatown known as Tangra and the unofficial count of the number of Chinese stands at 5,000 – 200,000. An interesting read on the history of Chinese immigration in Kolkata will explain how the Chinese have contributed to many areas of the social and economic life of Kolkata. And this history dates…
