Bangladeshi cuisine

Bangladeshi cuisine refers to the Bengali cuisine prevalent in Bangladesh. Bangladesh was eastern part of Bengal before partition, hence the two regions share similarities in cuisine. However, Bangladeshi cuisine incorporated beef which is not eaten by the Hindus (in present day West Bengal). It also has considerable regional variations. A staple across the country however is rice, various kinds of lentil, which is locally known as dal (sometimes written as daal) & fish. As a large percentage of the land (over 80% on some occasions) can be under water, either intentionally because of farming practices or due to severe climatological, topographical or geographical conditions, not surprisingly fish features as the major source of protein in the Bangladeshi diet. There is also a saying which goes, "Machh-e-Bhat-e-Bangali" (Fish and rice make a Bengali).

Another integral part of Bangladeshi cuisine is beef, presence of which is a must in most of the feasts and banquets across the country, though consumption of beef is mostly a religious taboo in traditional Hindu belief. Regional feasts such as Mezbaan of Chittagong, Ziafat of Sylhet/Comilla or Dawat of Dhaka will remain incomplete without serving  spicy beef.

  

Bangladeshi cuisine is a generic terminology to refer to the cooking-style and trend now prevalent in Bangladesh. However, there are several regional variations, in terms of dishes, cooking style, serving style and nomenclature. In general, for cooking purposes, the administrative divisions more or less correspond to regional divides as well.

Beef curry served with roasted onion in Dhaka, Bangladesh

The main differences are as follows:

• South - Barisal Division, Chittagong Division and Khulna Division, being close to the sea, tend to have a larger use of sea fishes in their cuisines in addition to coconut. Shutki, which is an especially treated dry fish, is extremely popular in these areas. Chittagong also exports shutki.

• Dhaka/Central - Dishes involving fried rice and a lot of meat are usually legacies of Dhaka's past as the capital of Bengali empires. Much of this is still visible in the old city, where dishes like biriani, Mughlai porota and bakorkhani are made by speciality stores, many of which have existed for over a century.

Shorshe Ilish, a dish of smoked hilsa with mustard seeds, has been an important part of both Bangladeshi and Bengali cuisine.

• West and North-west - Vegetable curries heavily occupy the main eating in these areas. Also, spices are more commonly, and more heavily, used. River fishes (sweet water fishes) are common in the dishes.

• North-east - Large number of lakes around the Sylhet Division encourages greater use of lake fishes in the cuisine. Because of proximity to the hills in Assam, several fruits and pickles that are otherwise absent in rest of the country, such as hatkora are used in cooking and serving, producing a distinct nature to the dining menu here.

[edit] Staple ingredients and spices

The staples of Bangladeshi cuisine are rice, atta (a special type of whole wheat flour), and at least five dozen varieties of pulses, the most important of which are chana (bengal gram), tur (pigeon pea or red gram), urodmung (green gram). Pulses are used almost exclusively in the form of dal, except chana, which is often cooked whole for breakfast and is processed into flour (beshon). However, unlike neighbouring Indian food that includes types of rice and bread, the main source of carbohydrates in a "regular" Bangladeshi meal is plain white rice. Different kinds of fried rice, in the forms of pulao and biriyani are eaten mainly on special occasions and at parties. (black gram), and

Bangladeshi food varies between very 'sweet' and mild-to extremely spicy, many tourists even from other South East Asian and Subcontinental countries find the food spicy. It resembles North East Indian and South East Asian food more closely than that of any other part of the Subcontinent, most probably due to geographic and cultural proximity. The most important flavours in Bangladeshi cuisine are garlic, ginger, lime, coriander, cumin, turmeric and chilli. In sweet dishes, cardamom and cinnamon are amongst the natural flavours.

[edit] Regional specialties

Phuchka - an enormously popular spicy snack

• Aloo Bhaji occurs across the region.
• Luchi ,a flatbread.
• Shujeer Halwa a sweet from across the region.
• Fuchka a popular spicy snack.