Misti Kuler Achaar/Sweet Pickle of Indian Berries/Ber ka Meetha Achaar

This year just after Saraswati Pujo I got the kul/berries that I was looking for. It is taken for granted…should I say we were told as children by elders…”Soroswoti Pujor aage kul khabe na, Ma Soroswoti raak korbe (don’t eat berries before Saraswati Puja for God will be annoyed)”. We always stuck to it and felt guilty even by chance we got a bite of it before the puja day.

Chaltar Tak/Ambol with Tak-Misti-Jhal Taste – Elephant Apple Sweet and Sour Chutney

The Chalta came to my house as a gift from a friend. Chalta is not commonly found and is rare. I had seen a Chalta tree in one of my Uncle’s house. That was the first and last I have seen a Chalta tree. The tree bears lots of fruit at one time and this is seasonal sour fruit cooked to make tak/anbol/chutney.

Chalta is known as Elephant Apple in English.

When I got the Chalta/Elephant Apple, I was very happy as I was thinking about it few days back. I knew I had to spend some time dressing the Chalta before cooking it.

Murir Moa and Ganesh Chaturthi

Ganesh Chaturthi came and went away. This is Incredible India, where festivals come and go. But festivals don't have their own time of appearing. There is the Almanac which is followed to know the date and auspicious time of the Puja rituals...otherwise what a bizarre it would be...

Almanac/Ponjika

Tamarind Chutney (Hot, Sweet and Sour) / Imli Chutney aka Te(n)tuler Chutney

The thought of the word tamarind and the sourness brings water to the mouth. Tamarind carries back memories of childhood days. There was a girl in our class who used to bring the tamarind pods to the class. She used to hide and keep them in her bag and how our group waited for the bell to ring for the short break. We – the small kids -- would run out with the tamarind pods and then break open the pods with the help of a stone – hit hit hit and the pod breaks, the sour fruit comes out and then in they go into the mouth. Why was it that the sourness was not felt then but now -- simply can’t do this act again? Age has done its job and the tamarind has got its place in the kitchen to be used for so many dishes.