Read Cook & Eat

 Punjabis are known for their love of food, second to Bongs. And quiet like Bongs they are willing to shed sweat, tears and blood for their food. The Punjabis are a hearty community of people who are well known all over the world for their immense contribution in various fields, food being the main. After all they did gift the world "Butter Chicken" and "Chicken Tikka Masala" which now our colonial masters can't seem to do without. They also gifted us vegetarian fares like Sarso Da Saag (Mustard green,cooked in spices), Makki di roti(Unleavened corn bread cooked on a tawa), Gajar ka halwa(grated red carrots cooked with milk, ghee, dry fruits and mawa) In fact, to be absolutely fair to my food-holic brothers, they also gifted us Bhangra( If you don't know what Bhangra is, you are literally living under a rock. Even the Canadian Prime Minister does bhangra!) Hence it's only fair to say that Punjs and Bongs cook with a lot of similar ingredients in the...

As Bengalis, we love the(humble) potato to bits. We are obsessed with it, we dream about it and we find innovative ways to include the Alu(potato) in our daily dishes. Alu to us is Bae! As such whether it is the starting of the meal or the end, potato is the Prima Donna to our gastronomic adventures. We start off meals with Ucche-Alu Bhaate(Bitter gourd mashed with boiled potatoes) that clarifies the blood and is good for health; we have Jhuri Alu Bhaja (thinly shredded potato crisps that beat any packet chips available), we have Alu-Posto ( a delectable dished cooked with poppy-seed paste and diced potatoes with a tempering of nigella seeds); the Mangshor Jhol'r Alu (Mutton Curry cooked with potato halves) and the holy grail of potatoes, Biriyani'r Aloo. Ask any Bengali from Kolkata to Connecticut and they will pledge before you that no matter how tasty a Biriyani is, if it has no Alu, it's not a Biriyani. We just can't do without it. Like the Brits and the...