Bengali Cuisine

To the casual taste, Bengali food means rice and fish. This is because Bengal is on the monsoon-drenched east coast of India. The other characteristic is the use of coconut, which is the usual characteristic of coastal cuisines. Which is also clear in the the cuisine of eastern Bengal (Bangladesh). Unlike other coastal kitchens, however, coconut oil is not used. The preferred cooking medium is mustard oil. Bengali spicing is somewhat different from the norm in the heartland of India, but similar to that used further east.

The utensils used in a Bengali kitchen are very similar to those in other parts of India. Such as the karai, a deep hemispherical vessel for deep frying, the hanri, a deep pot for boiling, the degchi, a deep rimmed flat bottomed pot for cooking, the tawa, a flat cast iron griddle for rotis and parathas, and the sil-nora, a grinding stone for spices. The traditional cutting instrument is the wicked looking boti, which is difficult to use and requires some practice. It is now slowly being replaced by knives. Dry sweets, made of chhana or grated coconuts are often shaped in molds.

The food was traditionally eaten on plates made of bell metal or stone. Traditionally, to eat food people would sit cross legged on mats with plates and bowls placed in front of them on the floor, or on a small wooden pallet.