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In
Bangladesh, the main diet consists of rice and
dhal (a lentil mixture, which is usually quite thin and poured as gravy over
the rice). Depending on the size of income, people will also eat several
vegetables and curries. There are for instance many varieties of spinach,
also a read one, "lal shak". In Ramadan, the people like to eat sweet and
deep fried food. Puffed rice, "muri", is also popular, also throughout the
rest of the year.
National dishes are "bhaji" (fried vegetable with turmeric), "jol"
(vegetables mixed with fish or meat and a little oil), "kalia"
(moderate hot curry with meat and sometimes potato), "korma
(kurma))" (a curry which is not hot and contains normally ginger,
cardamom and cinnamon), "rezala" (like korma but with almonds, saffron and
pistachio), "pullao" (rice and ingredients separately cooked and then fried
together), "biryani"
(rice, meat, vegetable, yoghurt and spices, first fry and then cook together)
and "kichuri" (rice cooked with lentils, oil and spices).
Bangladesh has many rivers and is bordering the sea, and fish, both from
river and sea, and shrimps form an important part of the menu. "Hilsa"
is the most popular fish in Bangladesh, it is often served smoked. Pork
is not eaten by the majority of Bangladeshi, as they are Muslim. The Hindu
and Christian inhabitants however do eat pork and sometimes you see herds of
of small black hairy pigs in the rural areas, which don't look at all like
the Dutch pigs I know, the fat, pink, bald, big ones.
The food reminds you of both the
Indian and the
Nepalese kitchen. Curries
are popular, and the food can sometimes be spice, but not very spicy.
Turmeric is popular though, and that is why many dishes are yellowish of
color. Cardamom and coriander are also often used.
Sweetmeats are also very popular; they are served as dessert, or with chai
(sweetened tea with milk). Hindu people serve them at their Puja festivals.
You find many shops with huge collections of (mostly curdled milk based)
sweets. Many regions are famous for a certain kind of sweetmeat, and
rasmalai for instance is famous in Comilla, whereas
rasgolla (rasagolla)
for Savar is renowned. When traveling through Bangladesh, someone would
always want to bring me to their favorite sweetmeat shop.
Also in other respects you will find regional differences; in the South,
people will eat sea fish. Shutki, a form of dried fish, is exported from
Chittagong. In Dhaka,
people like fried rice and meat, and you can also find more international
restaurants, as the living standard is a bit higher than in rural areas. In
the old city,
biryani is very popular. In the Northern parts, people eat vegetable
curries and river fish, but the very poor people sometimes only have plain
rice.

Travel in Bangladesh |