POHELA BAISHAKH FEAST

শুভ নববর্ষ!!

(Happy new Bengali year)

Just yesterday, we celebrated "পহেলা বৈশাখ" (Pohela Baishak), the start of new Bengali year 1427, also marking the day of first harvest. It is usually celebrated every 14th April of the Gregorian calendar and is one of the most colorful festivals of Bangladesh. On this day back in Bangladesh, you'll see everyone in red and white dresses, especially in sarees and panjabis. Amidst this COVID-19 outbreak, the celebrations were ceased but my social media pages were filled with people celebrating at home with their families. It was quite a view, people finding happiness within this dreadful situation. There are usually celebrations in the States too, organized by the Bengali community. But this time, we all decided to celebrate at home. So marking this day, I wanted to try out a traditional baishakhi meal which includes পান্তা ভাত (panta bhaat), ভর্তা (bhorta), ভাজি (bhaji) and ইলিশ মাছ (ilish mach).

First I started prepping panta bhaat, which is basically rice soaked in water. My mom told me how panta bhaat was actually the food for the poor in Bangladesh. Since they often lack the availability of proper refrigeration, they would leave their leftover rice soaked in water to prevent it from going bad . So just following what my mom said, I first cooked the rice and soaked it in water, leaving it for about 6 hours. Usually, it is left outside allowing the rice to ferment which adds additional taste and benefits to the rice but I chose to leave in the fridge. I wasn't really sure if my stomach was ready for it yet. My bad!! But I will definitely give it a try in the coming years. The next star element of a traditional baishaki meal is ilish mach bhaji, which is fried hilsha fish. Unfortunately this time I couldn't get my hands on any, so instead I picked salmon as my next choice. Actually another Bangladeshi fish should have been my next choice but apparently, my stock of Bangladeshi fishes was exhausted so salmon it was. I marinated it with a little pinch of salt and red chili powder and shallow fried it until completely cooked with a beautiful crisp on the skin. Next up my begun bhaji, meaning fried eggplant. It was the basic shallow fried eggplant marinated with salt, red chili powder and turmeric powder.

For bhorta which means mashed in Bangla, I chose eggs, potatoes and shutki (dried fish). Mashed eggs and potatoes are pretty simple and are made in similar manner. First, I boiled the potatoes and eggs until cooked and mashed them in separate bowls. For seasoning, I added salt, red chili flakes, chopped onions to each of them. And lastly mustard oil to tie it all together. Mustard oil is a favorite in Bangladeshi cuisine. I remember my mom using it in almost every mashed food and also in salads sometimes. Interestingly, my mom preferred mustard oil over olive oil. Now comes my favorite and my go-to food for stress relief, shutki bhorta (mashed dried fish). Over the past two years, I have perfected my shutki bhorta to the point that it is not a hassle anymore and takes me about 15 minutes or less to prepare it. I didn't time it this time but next time when I write about the recipe in details, I will make sure to note it down. I first added chopped onions to a pan smeared with oil and let it brown. Once brown, I added minced garlic, salt and red chili powder along with the shutki. I usually disintegrate the shutki while cooking but you could chop it up before adding it to the onions. I didn't see my mom doing this but I added little bit of water about one-fourth of a cup. It cooks everything and brings them together. For an extra kick, I added in a small amount of red chili flakes just before serving.

So that was my first baishaki preparation and I hope to try more traditional baishaki dishes in the following years. This time I stayed within my comfort zone but next year onward, I will go all out. And yes, the food tasted really good. I shouldn't brag about my own food but Gosh! that was tasty and filling. Every element of the meal was very simple but the amount of satisfaction it gave was immense. Also, I will leave the details of the recipe for the next time. I want to give each and every element its deserved time and focus.