#bengali – Reetika Mitra

Chicken Kosha

Reetika Mitra — Sun, 13 Sep 2026 08:50:24 +0000

The concept of Kosha is quite unique to Bengal and literally it means stir cooking chicken or mutton in a medium flame so that the meat soaks the oil and masala done until browning happens. The concept is similar to Bhuna chicken or mutton elsewhere in India. Anyone who has grown up in Kolkata will remember fondly the famous Golbari Chicken and Mutton Kosha. I have travelled all the way from Bhowanipore in South Kolkata to Shyambazar in North Kolkata to savour this delectable dish on many occasions with friends and family. One can add on to the recipe which I shared. For example one can add Potato and also use the same recipe for cooking mutton. The spices used are critical to getting the taste and use as little water as possible. This dish needs a generous helping of oil in the cooking. So do not try and make a diet version of this dish. It is meant for indulgence. No wonder this dish is quite common in Bengali households as something to prepare for a special occasion or for entertaining guests. The chicken kosha is typically paired with steamed rice, luchi or paratha with a side of gondhoraj lebu (lemon). With the festive season around the corner, the chicken kosha is a good option to serve your friends and family.

Chicken Kosha

Author: Reetika Mitra
Prep Time: 10 Mins
Cook Time: 30 Mins
Total Time: 40 Mins

Description

Kosha Murgir Mangsho

Ingredients

800 grams Chicken, cut into medium sized curry cut
250 grams Yoghurt or Curd
5 medium sized Onions, finely chopped
2 Tbsp Garlic Paste
1 Tbsp Ginger Paste
6 Tbsp Oil (I always use Mustard Oil for this preparation)
1 Tsp Turmeric Powder
½ Tsp Kashmiri Red Chili Powder
1 ½ Tsp Cumin Powder
1 ½ Tsp Coriander Powder
1 Tsp Shahi Garam Masala Powder
1 heaped Tsp Sugar
Salt or to taste

Ingredients for the Tempering :

2 Bay Leaf
3 Dry Red Chili
1 Black Cardamom
4 Green Cardamom
1 Cinnamon Stick

Instructions

Clean chicken and pat dry. Blend 2 onions in a blender to a smooth paste. Finely chop the rest. Keep aside.
Marinade the chicken with blended onion paste, 1 tablespoon oil, half of the Ginger and garlic paste, and half of turmeric powder, red chili powder, cumin powder, coriander powder and salt. Add 1 tablespoon Mustard oil and half the yoghurt or curd to the marinade as well.
Toss well mixing all the ingredients with the chicken pieces. Cover with a cling wrap and keep the chicken in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 hours, depending on the time available at hand.
Heat the remaining 4 tablespoon oil in a deep bottom pan over medium flame. Once the oil is hot, temper with bay leaf, dry red chilli, black and green cardamom and cinnamon stick over. Add in 1 teaspoon of sugar while tempering, as this caramelizes and give a rich colour to the gravy.
Next add the chopped onion and sauté till they turn light golden in colour, before adding the remaining ginger-garlic paste. Stir for a bit and add the rest of the yoghurt or curd. Cook over low flame, stirring frequently till oil leaves the edges.
In the meanwhile, make a thick paste out of the remaining spices other than the Garam Masala powder, that is, Turmeric Powder, Red Chili powder, Cumin powder, Coriander powder along with 3 tablespoon water. Do Not Add The Garam Masala Powder To This Mix.
Add this spice paste to the pan and cook for about 1-2 minutes. Now add the marinated chicken along with the marinade. Mix thoroughly over low heat.
Keep cooking for 15 -20 minutes more on a low flame while stirring continuously. Stirring is the essence to making the perfect Chicken Kosha. The chicken should release sufficient moisture while cooking, which in turn will help to cook the chicken. If at all needed, you may add a ¼ cup of water.
Once cooked, add the Shahi Garam Masala to your chicken. By now the gravy will be semi-dry and not a runny one. It should also leave oil on the sides.
Serve your Chicken Kosha hot with your choice of rice, pulao, luchi, roti or paratha.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 4

Gondhoraj Chicken (Chicken with Gondhoraj Lemon)

Reetika Mitra — Sun, 05 Oct 2025 05:40:10 +0000

The word “Gondhoraj” translated, simply means king of fragrance. Gondhoraj lemon is the special ingredient in this recipe. This particular lemon is predominantly found in West Bengal but quickly becoming popular in other parts of India. I was pleasantly surprised to find it on the Blinkit catalogue and it turned out to be really good. This fragrant lemon has been used in Bengali kitchens as an ingredient to dishes and also served on the plate to be squeezed into the food as per the individuals choice and taste.

The dish visually looks a bit toned down and plain to the eyes but the taste more than makes up for the lack of eye appeal. The combination of Gondhoraj lemon with chilli is a marriage made by the food gods. You simply can’t go wrong with this assortment. This is an easy and quick recipe. Other than the Gondhoraj lemon, the other ingredients are pretty straight forward and easily available. Most Bengalis would like to team this with Luchi or steamed rice but I feel this dish would go equally well with parathas and appams. I wanted to share this recipe post the Navratri period since it can be a nice non-vegetarian dish for those who would like to try something different.

Gondhoraj Chicken (Chicken with Gondhoraj Lemon)

★★★★ 3.3 from 1119 reviews

Author: Reetika Mitra
Prep Time: 15 Mins
Cook Time: 20 Mins
Total Time: 35 Mins

Description

The Fragrance of Bengal

Ingredients

800 gms Chicken
1 Tbsp Ginger paste
1 Tbsp Garlic paste
½ Tsp green Chilli paste or 1 tsp finely chopped green Chillies
4 Tbsp heaped, thick Curd or Yoghurt
2 Tbsp Gondhoraj Lemon juice
2–3 Tbsp Oil (or Ghee)
1–2 Bay leaves
2 dry whole Red Chillies
10–12 whole Black Peppercorns
2 medium sized Onion, grated to a fine paste or finely chopped
¾ Tsp Coriander powder
¾ Tsp Cumin powder
½ Tsp Garam Masala powder
1 Tbsp Ghee
1 Tsp Sugar (to balance the taste)
5–6 Kaffir lime leaves
Salt according to taste

Instructions

Wash and pat dry the chicken. Marinate it with the ginger paste, garlic paste, yogurt, green chilli paste, Gondhoraj lemon juice and salt. Keep aside for 30-60 minutes.
Heat oil in a pan. Once hot, temper with bay leaves, dry red chillies and the whole black peppercorns. Add in the onion paste. Sauté till the raw smell goes away and turns light golden brown in colour.
Next, add in the marinated chicken along with the coriander powder and the cumin powder. Stir well cover and cook over medium-low heat. Cook for about 18-20 mins, stirring the chicken at regular intervals. While cooking, if the chicken starts sticking to the bottom of the pan, you may add ½ cup of hot water to it.
Once the chicken is almost cooked, add the ghee, sugar, garam masala powder, kaffir lime leaves. You may add some more of the Gondhoraj lemon juice if you want out here. Do taste the gravy and add according to your preference.
Cook for another few minutes until the chicken is fully done and is cooked through. Turn off the heat. Serve with steamed rice, luchis, parathas or even appams!

Notes

You may also add a bit of finely grated lemon rind at the very end of the cooking, just before switching off the flame. This will ensure a flavour burst of the Gondhoraj lemon. However, this is purely optional.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 4

Lau Dal

Reetika Mitra — Sun, 13 Jul 2025 05:25:40 +0000

I owe the idea for this recipe to my mother. When I was a kid, my mother often made the Lauki dal at home particularly during the summer months. She used to say, it’s good for the stomach and has a cooling effect. The Lauki dal is a relatively common Bengali dish. There was another dal which was made at home using karela. Truth be told, given its bitter taste, I was not particularly fond of it but we were told it was good for the gut and with all the sweets we used to eat, the karela was a good antidote. As I grew up, I understood the nutrition benefits of both the lauki and the karela as vegetables. It so happens that both the lauki and the karela are made with moong dal. So, I decided to cook the same dal but with both the vegetables together. The bitterness of the karela gets balanced with the sweetness of the lauki so the dal has nice dual taste profile. One tip for the recipe, I have used Radhuni (wild celery seeds) which adds a typical Bengali taste to the dish. Radhuni is used in dishes like Shukto and is part of the famous Bengali Panchphoron mix. If you can’t get hold of the Radhuni, you can substitute it for Cumin seeds instead. On final tip, don’t forget to add one dollop of ghee for that extra flavour. This is one dish which appeals to the entire family and is a staple for the summer months.

Lau Dal

★★★★ 3.5 from 823 reviews

Author: Reetika Mitra
Prep Time: 5 Mins
Cook Time: 15 Mins
Total Time: 20 Mins

Description

The Summer Staple

Ingredients

1/2 cup Moong Dal (split skinless green gram lentil)
1/2 medium sized Lauki (Bottle Gourd), diced into 2 inch pieces
1–2 Tej Patta (Bay leaf)
2 dry whole Red Chillies
12–15 Methi dana (Fenugreek seeds)
1 pinch + 1/4 Tsp Haldi (Turmeric powder)
1/2 Tsp Radhuni (Wild Celery seeds. You may substitute it for cumin seeds, if you cannot get them readily available)
1 Tsp Ginger paste
4 Green Chillies, slit
2 medium sized Karela (Bitter Gourd), sliced into rounds
A few Moringa Drumsticks, cut smaller pieces
1 + 1 Tbsp Oil
Salt to Taste
1/2 Tsp Sugar
1 Tsp Ghee

Instructions

Pressure cooker 1/2 cup moong dal in 2 cups water with a pinch of turmeric powder. Cook until 1 whistle. Take off flame and allow to cool by itself.
In a pan heat 1 tbsp oil. Fry the karela till golden brown and crisp. Take out and keep aside, ready to be used.
Lightly saute the drumsticks as well and keep them aside as well, ready to be used.
Heat 1 tbsp more of the oil. Add the tempering of bay leaf, red chillies, fenugreek seeds and radhuni (or cumin seeds) over medium-low flame. Add the diced lauki, saute and stir for a minute. Cover and cook for a minute or two.
Next lower the flame and add ginger paste, 1/4 tsp turmeric powder and salt. Stir over low flame, cover and cook over low heat for about bit. If need be, sprinkle some water so it doesn’t get burnt from below.
When the lauki is semi done, add the dal from the pressure cooker. Pour some more water if necessary to get to your ideal consistency.
When it starts boiling, lower the flame and cook for a few more minutes till the dal and lauki are cooked.
Now throw in the slit green chillies add the fried karela, sauteed drumsticks and sprinkle the sugar. Give a good stir and cook for 30-40 seconds more.
Lastly add the ghee. Mix well and switch off the flame. Serve hot accompanied by steamed rice.

Nutrition

Serving Size: 4