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Bangladeshi recipes

12 Bangladeshi recipes to cook at home, each with photos, step-by-step instructions and cook times. The quickest, Borhani, takes 10 minutes. Most take around 55 minutes.

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Bhuna khichuri

In Dhaka, the first heavy monsoon downpour sends people home craving bhuna khichuri, and Eid mornings in old Dhaka often start with a pot of it too. Unlike the loose, porridge-like khichdi of north India, the Bangladeshi bhuna version is dry and fluffy: dry-roasted moong dal and short-grain rice are fried in ghee with onions and whole spices until fragrant, then cooked with just enough water so the grains stay separate. Serve it hot with begun bhaja, a bhorta or two and a spoon of pickle. Chef's tip: roast the moong dal in a dry pan until it smells like toasted nuts before you wash it; that roasted note is what makes this khichuri taste of Bangladesh.

55 minRice & GrainsGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Begun bhaja

Begun bhaja is the crisp-edged, creamy aubergine slice that sits beside dal and rice on almost every Bangladeshi lunch plate, from Chittagong to Sylhet, and it is a must with bhuna khichuri on a rainy afternoon. Thick rounds are rubbed with turmeric, chilli and salt, then shallow-fried in mustard oil until the outside is caramelised and the inside melts like custard. Chef's tip: salt the slices and leave them for 10 minutes, then pat dry; they drink up far less oil and brown more evenly.

27 minSidesVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Bhorta platter (aloo, begun and dal bhorta)

No word says home cooking in Bangladesh like bhorta: anything boiled, roasted or fried, then mashed by hand with raw mustard oil, sliced onion, green or burnt chillies and coriander. A family lunch in Dhaka or Khulna might set out three or four bhortas in little heaps around a mound of rice, and this page makes the classic trio: aloo (potato), begun (fire-roasted aubergine) and dal (dry-fried red lentil). They share one method, so they live together here. Chef's tip: mash with your fingers, not a fork, rubbing the onion and chilli into the oil first; it bruises them and releases their sharpness into every bite.

45 minSidesVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Chotpoti

Chotpoti is what Dhaka eats at dusk: vendors ladle it from great brass pots at Dhanmondi Lake and outside every university gate, and during Ramadan it is a fixture of the iftar spread. Dried yellow peas (motor) are simmered with potato until soft and slightly soupy, then served warm under a shower of raw onion, green chilli, grated boiled egg, crushed fuchka shells, roasted cumin and plenty of sour tamarind water. Chef's tip: soak the peas overnight and cook them until some burst and thicken the liquid; chotpoti should be spoonable, halfway between a stew and a salad.

65 minSnacks & StartersSpicy
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Fuchka

Fuchka is Bangladesh's answer to pani puri, but with its own character: in Dhaka the crisp shells are filled with a coarse mash of potato and yellow peas sharpened with raw onion, chilli and coriander, then dipped in or splashed with a sour tamarind water rather than a mint-heavy one. Stalls along Bailey Road and at every fair sell them by the plate of eight, often with a little extra chopped chilli for those who dare. Chef's tip: make the tamarind water ahead and chill it hard; ice-cold sour water against a crisp shell is what you're after.

50 minSnacks & StartersVeganSpicy
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Bhapa pitha

When the date palm sap starts flowing in early winter, small steaming pots appear on street corners all over Bangladesh, from Rajshahi to Dhaka's Karwan Bazar, selling bhapa pitha in the dark mornings. Damp, lightly salted rice flour is packed into a small bowl around a layer of grated coconut and khejur gur (date jaggery), wrapped in cloth and steamed over a narrow-necked pot until soft, fluffy and fragrant. Eat them warm, straight from the cloth. Chef's tip: the rice flour should feel like damp sand that just holds when squeezed; too wet and the cake turns gummy, too dry and it crumbles.

50 minDessertsVeganGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Firni

Firni is the dessert that turns up in little clay bowls on Eid tables across Bangladesh, especially after the evening meal on Eid-ul-Fitr. It is smoother and thicker than payesh: instead of whole rice grains, coarsely ground rice is simmered in milk until it sets into a silky pudding, scented with cardamom and rose water and scattered with pistachios and almonds. It is served chilled, so it's made a day ahead. Chef's tip: grind the soaked rice to a coarse semolina-like grit, not a fine powder; that slight texture is what makes firni feel rich.

65 minIndian SweetsGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Borhani

At a Bangladeshi wedding in Dhaka, the moment the kacchi biryani comes out, so do glasses of pale green borhani. It's a thin, salty-spicy yoghurt drink blended with mint, coriander, green chilli, black salt and a whisper of ground mustard, made to cut through a rich meal and settle the stomach. Pour it alongside any spiced rice dish, including a vegetable biryani or bhuna khichuri. Chef's tip: the ground mustard seed is the signature; toast it lightly first and grind it fine, or the drink turns bitter.

10 minDrinksGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Shorshe ilish

Hilsa, ilish, is the national fish of Bangladesh, and during the monsoon, when the shoals swim up the Padma and Meghna rivers, families in Dhaka and Chandpur cook it almost daily. Shorshe ilish is the most loved way: steaks of the rich, silvery fish gently simmered in a paste of ground yellow and black mustard seed, green chillies and mustard oil until the sauce turns sharp, creamy and nose-tingling. Eat it with plain white rice and nothing else. Hilsa is very bony, so warn guests and eat slowly; salmon steaks are an easier, less traditional swap. The common mistake is boiling the sauce hard after the mustard paste goes in, which turns it bitter. Chef's tip: grind the mustard seeds with a pinch of salt and a green chilli, and let the paste rest for 10 minutes before cooking; this tames the bitterness.

45 minFishGluten freeSpicy
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Kacchi biryani

Kacchi biryani is the wedding dish of Old Dhaka: at every Bangladeshi biye the huge copper pots come out, and the lanes around Nazira Bazar are famous for it. 'Kacchi' means raw: the mutton goes into the pot uncooked, marinated in yogurt and spices, under a layer of half-cooked aromatic rice and fried potatoes, and everything steams together for over an hour so the meat juices cook the rice. Serve it with borhani, the spiced yogurt drink, and a salad of sliced cucumber and onion. The common mistake is under-marinating or using lean meat cut too large; small pieces of shoulder with some fat, marinated overnight in the fridge, cook through in time. Chef's tip: seal the lid with a rope of dough; if no steam escapes, the meat at the bottom becomes tender without you ever opening the pot.

150 minRice & Grains
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Mezbani beef

A mezban is the great community feast of Chittagong, held for a death anniversary, a new home or a good harvest, and the food is always the same: rice, dal and this dark, fiery beef curry cooked in giant pots by professional bawarchis. What makes it different from other Bangladeshi curries is its spice blend: mustard oil, lots of dried red chilli, and a ground mix of star anise, mace, nutmeg, cumin and white pepper that tastes warm and deep rather than hot alone. At home it is a weekend treat, eaten with rice or paratha. The common mistake is rushing the bhuna (frying) stage; the beef must fry in its spices until the oil floats free before any water goes in. Chef's tip: toast and grind the mezbani spice mix fresh on the day, because ready-ground spices lose their perfume in a curry this long.

180 minMeatGluten freeSpicy
by KrazyBadal 0 views

Shatkora beef

Shatkora is a large, thick-skinned citrus that grows in the hills of Sylhet in north-east Bangladesh, and its bitter, perfumed rind is what Sylhetis put in beef curry instead of lemon. The rind and pith are cut into chunks and simmered with the meat, so the sauce turns gently sour and smells like lime leaves and grapefruit at once. It is a home dish for Fridays and Eid, eaten with rice; the many Sylheti families in Britain made it famous in UK curry houses. Shatkora is sold frozen or in brine at South Asian grocers; if you can't get it, use the peel of half a grapefruit and a lime. The common mistake is adding too much shatkora early, which makes the curry bitter. Chef's tip: boil the shatkora pieces in water for 2 minutes and drain before adding them; it removes the harshest bitterness and keeps the fragrance.

130 minMeatGluten free
by KrazyBadal 0 views

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